Plumbing and Drainage Cover for Flats

Thank you for choosing HomeServe's Plumbing and Drainage Flat cover. This document contains the terms and conditions that are applicable to this product. Please read this document carefully. We do not wish you to discover after an incident has occurred that
you are not insured. If you have any queries, please call HomeServe on 0800 783 0951.
The product consists of two separate contracts. You will have an insurance contract made between you and Inter Partner Assistance SA and a service contract made between you and HomeServe Membership Ltd.

The price that you pay for this product is £50.49. This includes the premium that you pay for the insurance contract and the service charge that you pay for the service contract. This charge is inclusive of any taxes. There are no additional charges for this product and therefore the total amount that you will pay is £50.49.

DEFINITIONS

Some of the words and phrases used in this document have special meanings. If a word or phrase is in bold type, then the following definitions will apply to those words or phrases:

1. Emergency: sudden and unforeseen damage to the internal plumbing and drainage services which immediately: a) exposes you to a risk to your health; b) creates a risk of loss of or damage to the property and any of your belongings forming part of or normally contained within the property; or c) makes the buildings uninhabitable;
2. Emergency repairs: repair work by a plumbing or drainage engineer authorised by Inter Partner Assistance SA to identify and/or eliminate the emergency;
3. HomeServe/we/us/our: HomeServe Membership Ltd, Cable Drive, Walsall, WS2 7BN;
4. Insurance contract/policy: the insurance provided by IPA upon the terms and conditions set out below;
5. Internal plumbing and/or drainage services: the domestic sanitary fittings, water supply, storage and drainage systems for which you have responsibility within the limits of the buildings of your property;
6. IPA: Inter Partner Assistance SA, The Quadrangle, 106–118 Station Road, Redhill, Surrey, RH1 1PR;
7. Payment(s): any payment or payments that you make for this product including the premium and/or the service charge;
8. Premium: £50.49 being the amount that you pay to IPA in respect of the insurance contract;
9. Property: your principal permanent place of residence (comprising garden, private dwelling, garage and outbuildings, built of brick, stone or concrete and roofed with slate, metal, concrete, asbestos or asphalt, used for domestic purposes, all situated at the address shown in your summary of cover), but excluding mobile homes, bedsits, properties in multiple occupation and commercial premises.
10. Service charge: £5.00 being the amount you pay to HomeServe in respect of the service contract;
11. Service contract: the service contract provided by HomeServe upon the terms and conditions set out below.
12. You/your: the customer named as the permanent occupier of the covered address and your spouse, children, parents and other relatives who normally reside with you at your
    property;

INSURANCE TERMS AND CONDITIONS

1. This insurance contract is made between you and IPA who shall be the only parties to this agreement.
2. IPA agrees to provide cover upon the terms and conditions contained in this insurance contract in consideration for your payment of the premium.
3. This insurance contract is underwritten by Inter Partner Assistance SA (Company number FC008998) of the Quadrangle, 106 – 118 Station Road, Redhill, Surrey, RH1 1PR.
   Inter Partner Assistance SA are a wholly owned subsidiary of AXA Assistance S.A. and part of the worldwide AXA group of companies and is regulated by the Financial Services Authority in the United Kingdom and authorised by the Commission Bancaire, Financière et des Assurances in Belgium.
4. The benefits described in these terms and conditions are provided for the period of insurance shown in the accompanying policy summary. These terms and conditions shall be subject to English law and the parties submit to the non–exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.

WHAT IS COVERED?

Section A – Internal plumbing and drainage emergency

1. If you suffer an emergency to your internal plumbing and drainage services at the property IPA will pay up to £2,000 (including VAT) for an approved plumbing and drainage engineer to carry out an emergency repair that is immediately necessary to:
   1. protect you against risk to health; and
   2. make the buildings of the property safe and habitable and,
      if necessary, secure the property and belongings against further resulting damage.

The maximum number of claims that can be made under this section is two claims during the period of insurance.

Section B – Hotel accommodation

In the event that your home is uninhabitable for 48 hours or more as a result of an event insured under Section A above and no alternative accommodation is available to you, IPA will pay up to £500 (including VAT) for hotel accommodation for any additional period during which your home is uninhabitable as a result of an event covered by Section A.

Conditions and limitations of cover

There are conditions and limitations which affect the cover provided by your policy. These are set out in this section and you should read them carefully to ensure that the policy meets your needs.

1. To prevent claims being made on pre–existing problems a 14 day exclusion period applies to your policy (commencing on the policy start date as shown in the accompanying summary of cover) during which new customers can not make a claim against the policy for any event which occurs during this period. This exclusion period only applies to the first period of cover and does not apply on renewal of cover where there is no break in the continuity of insurance.
2. You can cancel the policy at any time during the 28 day period commencing on the policy start date (as shown in your policy summary). Please note that your statutory cancellation rights are included within this period.
3. IPA reserves the right to cancel this policy by giving you at least 7 days notice at your last known address. If IPA cancels the policy you will be refunded any premium paid by you for any period of cover following cancellation.
4. In the event of a valid claim covered by Section A, IPA shall only be responsible for organising and paying for an emergency repair. IPA will not cover any other repair work
   that may be required in addition to the emergency repair, such as: repairs required to avoid the problem re–occurring; or to ensure your plumbing and drainage system is restored to a functional standard for ongoing use; or normal day–to–day maintenance work. For example, a blocked drain will be left running clear so as to alleviate the immediate emergency but if the drain is required to be re–aligned to avoid the problem re–occurring, this is not covered; a leaking water tank will be drained to alleviate the emergency of water escaping through the home, but the leaking tank will not be replaced.
5. The cover limits stated in Section A provide cover against the cost of call–out, labour and materials plus where applicable VAT. Cover in each case is not provided for restoration of any
   fixtures and fittings (e.g. fitted units, special floor coverings such as laminate, wood block or ceramic tiles etc.) removed in the process of conducting an emergency repair.
6. In the event that a claim under this insurance is found to be covered by any other insurance or maintenance contract, IPA will not pay more than its fair share (rateable proportion) of any claim.
7. This insurance does not cover normal day to day maintenance of the internal plumbing and drainage services at your property for which you are responsible, for example the
   descaling or desludging of central heating systems/pipes. Nor does it pay for replacing items that wear out over a period of time.
8. You must co–operate with IPA in obtaining re–imbursement of any costs that IPA incurs under the terms of this cover, which may have been caused by the action of a third party against whom you have a legal right of action.
9. Claims made under this insurance contract should be made in accordance with the claims handling procedure set out in your service contract with HomeServe. IPA will not be liable for the cost of any work undertaken by contractors not authorised by HomeServe in advance.
10. The following events are excluded from cover provided under Sections A:
    1. any hot or cold water tap which requires re–washering;
    2. temporarily frozen pipes which have not resulted in confirmed damage;
    3. incidents related to external guttering, rainwater downpipes, rainwater drains and soakaways;
    4. incidents related to water flowing externally out of any overflow pipes;
    5. any event arising from circumstances known to you before the insurance began;
    6. loss or damage arising as a result of disconnection from interruption to mains services;
    7. a leaking central heating radiator, where you are able to turn off the radiator and stop the leak; or
    8. any problems associated with shower units, controls, outlet or shower head.
11. IPA shall not be liable for:
    1. shared plumbing or drainage facilities;
    2. any item not forming part of the internal plumbing or drainage services;
    3. any fixtures including lead piping where replacement is only necessary as a result of legislation or health and safety guidelines, or to meet current best practice;
    4. systems which have not been installed, serviced or maintained in accordance with established practice or manufacturer's instructions;
    5. swimming pools or decorative features including ponds, fountains and any associated pipes, valves or pumps;
    6. vacuum drainage systems;
    7. any replacement costs of pumps, water tanks, radiators, cylinders, sanitary ware (e.g. basins and toilet bowls), water softeners, waste disposal units, macerators or any central heating component (e.g. motorised valves, boiler parts etc.);
    8. any defect, damage or breakdown caused by malicious or wilful action, negligence, misuse, or third party interference including any attempted repair or modification to the
       internal plumbing or drainage services, which does not comply with recognised industry standards;
    9. any loss in the event of damage occurring where the property has remained unoccupied for 60 or more consecutive days;
    10. any liability for consequential loss whether as a result of a defect or malfunction of the internal plumbing or drainage services, or arising from any goods, services, arrangements or advice provided by us or any agents acting on our behalf, unless through our or their negligence;
    11. costs incurred where you have been informed of the need to do a permanent repair to avoid emergencies;
    12. any investigative work (such as CCTV), where the immediate emergency has been resolved;
    13. any part of the internal plumbing or drainage services which is too difficult to access safely, e.g. where asbestos is present;
    14. any costs above the limits of cover. You are responsible for agreeing and settling these costs directly with the plumbing or drainage engineer;
    15. any loss arising from subsidence, heave of the site or landslip caused by:
        1. bedding down of new structures;
        2. demolition or structural repairs or alterations to the property;
        3. faulty workmanship or the use of defective materials;
        4. river or coastal erosion;
    16. any loss or damage arising as a consequence of:
        1. war, invasion, act of foreign enemies, terrorism, hostilities (whether war is declared or not), civil war, rebellion, revolution, insurrection, coup, riot or civil disturbance; or
        2. ionising radiation or contamination by radioactivity from any nuclear fuel or from any nuclear waste from combustion of nuclear fuel, the radioactive toxic explosive or other hazardous properties of any explosive nuclear assembly or its nuclear component.
    17. any loss, injury, damage or legal liability arising directly or indirectly from the failure or inability of any equipment to correctly recognise or interpret data representing the Year
        2000, or any other date, in such a way that it does not work properly at all.

COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE

IPA wish to provide you with a high standard of service. Very occasionally we receive a complaint. If you wish to make a complaint IPA will make every effort to resolve your complaint to your satisfaction. If you have a complaint please write to the Freepost RLYC–LXAL–GEEH, Customer Relations Department, HomeServe, Cable Drive, Walsall, WS2 7BN. If your complaint relates to the service you experienced as a result of a claim, and you feel that the matter has not been resolved satisfactorily, you may escalate your complaint to the General Manager, Inter Partner Assistance SA, The Quadrangle, 106–118 Station Road,
Redhill, Surrey, RH1 1PR. In the unlikely event that you are not satisfied with the response you can ask IPA for details of the Financial Ombudsman Service.

SERVICE CONTRACT TERMS AND CONDITIONS

1. This service contract is made between you and HomeServe who shall be the only parties to this agreement.
2. We agree to provide the services upon the terms and conditions contained in this service contract in consideration of your payment of the service charge.
3. This service contract shall operate alongside and shall subsist for the same period of time as your insurance contract. These terms and conditions shall be subject to English law and the parties submit to the non–exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.

Our obligations to you

To enhance your experience of the policy, throughout the term of the policy, we will provide you with the following services:

1. We will arrange and administer your policy. In particular we will forward to you your policy documents, advise you of any changes to your policy made by the insurer, collect your payments and advise you in writing within 5 working days if you miss a payment.
2. We operate a 28 day 'cooling off' period during which if you wish to cancel your policy and this service contract you should return your policy summary to us and we will procure that you receive a full refund of all payments made by you up until the date of cancellation. Your statutory cancellation rights are unaffected.
3. If you have any questions whatsoever concerning your policy, or the amount of cover provided by your policy, we will provide advice to you on any questions that you might have. To obtain advice on your policy please call our Customer Services department on 0800 783 0951.
4. We will liaise between you and IPA with regard to any amendments that you may request to your policy. To request an amendment to your policy please call our Customer
   Services department on 0800 783 0951.
5. If you move property please telephone our Customer Services department on 0800 783 0951. If you request, we will (subject to the new property satisfying the insurer's
   underwriting criteria) arrange for your policy to be amended to cover your new property.
6. If you wish to write to us concerning any of the matters referred to in clauses 2 to 5 above, we will provide a freepost address for you to do so. Our freepost address for this
   purpose is: Customer Relations, HomeServe, Freepost RLYC–LXAL–GEEH, Customer Relations, HomeServe, Cable Drive, Walsall, WS2 7BN.
7. If under this service contract you wish to make a claim under the section headed "Guarantee of service" or make a complaint under the section headed "Complaints" we will provide a freepost address for you to do so. Our freepost address for this purpose is: Freepost RLYC–LXAL–GEEH, Customer Relations, HomeServe, Cable Drive, Walsall, WS2 7BN.
8. We will provide to you the guarantee set out in the section headed "Guarantee of service."
9. We will use reasonable endeavours to ensure that the standards of service that you receive in respect of your policy and this service contract meet your satisfaction. In this
   regard we will undertake regular assessments of claims and complaints made to us by our customers generally to ensure that we meet this obligation to you.
10. At least 28 days prior to the conclusion of your policy we will write to you to advise whether or not the insurer is willing to renew the policy and (if applicable) any variation to the terms upon which the insurer will renew. In the event that the insurer no longer offers the kind of insurance as covered by your policy we will use our reasonable endeavours to locate an alternative insurer willing to underwrite insurance upon similar terms.
11. If you make a claim on your policy we will handle the claim in accordance with the claims handling procedure and provide to you the claims handling services in the sections set out below.

Claims handling procedure

1. If you wish to make a claim against your policy, you or a person calling on your behalf should call our 24–hour Emergency Hotline number as shown in your policy summary.
2. In order for us to verify your cover you must quote your policy number when calling the Emergency Hotline and produce your policy summary if requested.
3. In the first instance we will take details form you in respect of your claim and we will if possible provide instruction to you on steps that you can take to minimise damage to your property.
4. If you are unsure as to whether you can make a claim against your policy please telephone the Claims Hotline and we will provide advice to you and explain to you any requirements in order to make a valid claim.
5. If you have a valid claim we will organise deployment of a plumbing and drainage engineer to evaluate your claim and to carry out any repairs covered by your policy. Your policy does not cover the cost of works carried out by anyone not authorised by us in advance.

Claims handling services

1. We work hard to ensure that any repairs undertaken pursuant to your policy are undertaken to your satisfaction. If this proves not to be the case please call Customer Services on 0800 783 0951. We will then appoint a Customer Services representative to investigate the matter and to work with you to resolve any issues that you may have.
2. We do not use call centres situated outside of the UK. Accordingly when you call us to make a claim under your policy we guarantee that you will be put through to a customer services representative based in the UK.
3. When you make a claim we will use reasonable endeavours: to answer your telephone calls within one minute; to arrange within one hour of your initial call a future appointment by a suitable qualified engineer to assess your claim; to resolve your claim on the first visit by our appointed engineer where suitable parts are available, access is achievable, the description of your claim provided by you is accurate and there are no legal restrictions preventing the engineer from resolving the matter.
4. Throughout this contract we will contact a representative sample of our customers who have reported a claim to assist us in continually improving the service we provide to you. If
   you are included within this representative sample, we will contact you within 48 hours of you making a claim.

Guarantee of service

We work hard on your behalf to ensure that you get the best possible service when you make a claim against your policy. We therefore provide the following guarantee to you:

If you make a claim relating to an uncontrollable internal emergency within your home we aim to deploy a specialist engineer to your property within 2 hours. If we fail to achieve
this, then we will pay to you a sum equal to all payments made by you under your policy and in connection with this service contract. If you feel that this applies to a claim that you have made you should write to the freepost address referred to in clause 6 of the section headed "Our obligations to you".

Complaints

If you have a complaint relating to any service provided by us under this service contract you should write to the freepost address referred to in clause 6 of the section headed "Our obligations to you". In the unlikely event that you are not satisfied with the response from us, you can ask us for details of the Financial Services Ombudsman.