John Lewis Insurance Reviews

Name: John Lewis Insurance
Rating: 1.66

1.7 Rating 433 Reviews

15 %

of reviewers recommend John Lewis Insurance

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1.7

Based on 433 reviews

Shipping & Delivery
Delivery Methods	Postal Service
Customer Service
Communication Channels	Telephone, Email, Live Chat
Queries Resolved In	Over A Week
Customer Service	1.2 out of 5

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John Lewis Insurance 1 star review on 31st October 2024

Greyson

John Lewis Insurance 1 star review on 10th June 2021

Stefan Phillips

Anonymous

Anonymous // 01/01/2019

Filter: Rated 1 None 5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Stars Helpful

“I bought an expensive Miele Dryer from John Lewis in 2000, when guarantee ran out I insured annually , via John Lewis, knowing that my machine was covered as long as I continued to pay. If ever it became uneconomical to repair, they would replace it free of charge with an equivalent model. Two weeks ago, I rang the insurance company to ask for an engineer to look at my dryer which was making a slight banging noise when rotating in one direction. I was advised that my quarterly direct debits of £24 had been stopped because the machine was too old for them to continue insuring! I have paid this insurance since 2002 so that when eventually the dryer needed replacing, I would not be saddled with an expensive bill. This is not what I signed up for and I feel I have been swindled. Consider this - getting an expensive top of the range machine goes against you if it lasts too long. I have since paid for a Miele engineer to look at the problem, and the dryer just needed some brushes changing. The next time I buy a large appliance I will get it direct from the manufacturers.”

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Posted 5 years ago

“John Lewis home insurance is the worst thing I have ever experienced in my life. After a break in you would expect a name like a JL to act swiftly and with empathy. Instead the staff they use are incompetent, rude and very unhelpful. Avoid at all cost”

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Posted 5 years ago

“AVOID AVOID AVOID AVOID AVOID 3rd party entirely at fault.....18 months to settle a major home insurance claim!! Basically you aren't buying John Lewis insurance.....it's just a rebranded product. So when you call up the "John Lewis support desk" the people you are speaking to are the underwriters......a different company entirely....but this was only revealed when I specifically asked them who they worked for!”

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Posted 5 years ago

“Currently I am having claim for my watch , They already sent a lost adjuster now again they sending from some other company. now I need to take time off to do this who pay for my time off ??? Jonh Lewis robbing money from us and employing 3rd party underwriters to pay the claim. Definitely I am making aware to FCA and social media this kind of things which they never mention about third party under writers. and customers who buying policies from Jhon Lewis.”

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Posted 6 years ago

“John Lewis home insurance You don’t find out how good an insurance company is until you make a claim. I had the misfortune to make a straight forward claim regarding a leak in my kitchen, 10 months later they finally settled, the loss adjuster they used was appalling, inefficient and downright difficult. My advice would be to use a professional company to work on your behalf, it will save you a lot of stress or better still find a different insurance provider.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“I have insured my dogs for two years with John Lewis. Last year, one dog died and other was injured in a badger attack. I made a small claim for the injured dog (4-year-old healthy male terrier). When the policy came up for renewal, JL doubled my premium (from £106.54 to £224.54). I contacted them twice to find out why and was fobbed off with "you will receive an answer from the management team". Two days before the renewal date I still had not received any reply as to why my premium was being doubled without any discussion or explanation, forcing me to take out new insurance. I cannot recommend JL pet insurance. To date I have had no further contact with JL regarding this policy though it is still showing online as live. Needless to say I have cancelled my DD.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“I cancelled my policy with John Lewis Home Insurance which was due for renewal 1st May. If you compare the policy wording between John Lewis Home Insurance:https://www.johnlewisfinance.com/content/dam/jlf/insurance/home/pdfs/john-lewis-plus-home-insurance-policy-wording.pdf to that of say for example AXA: https://www.axa.co.uk/home-insurance/policy-details/ you will notice that AXA provides clear definitions of its groupings terminology by further elaboration in its 'What your policy does not cover section' so that you know exactly what a claim does and does not cover. By comparison, John Lewis Home Insurance policy documentation only features categories by group of what is not covered without further elaboration. This allows for a policy evil known as 'scope creep' so that when a person makes a claim the range of the terminology can be defined at point-of-claim to include what RSA deems fit to include. When I made a claim and they blew it out based on their point-of-claim definition I explained that their interpretation wasn't quite the same as a definition that had been debated in a famous case in English Law where a respected judge provided the scope of the definition. Nevertheless, when I disputed the claim I was merely told by inference in the reply that if I didn't like the refusal I could decide not to continue with the policy and that their were plenty of things the policy did cover (as long as you can prove it). When I complained to a manager (a tortuous route to get hold of one) about the agent's inappropriate tone in the letter they sided with the agent on the crucial point of the claim refusal. When I eventually managed to state my points from a legal perspective the manager did say that they would discuss some aspects of the agent's response with the agent and would get back to me about the legal points I raised. I took about 4 weeks to speak to manager after making my claim and I never did hear back from the manager. Based on my experience with other home insurance companies that I've held policies with and also the fact that I possess City&Guilds qualifications in Customer Service & Customer Support this rates as my worst experience with any home insurance company and having run businesses, I would never treat anyone in the manner in which I was related. John Lewis are only answering the phone and sending out the sloppily put together policy documentation and the FCA described them as an 'agent' for RSA. What's more I found the same policy for £10 cheaper so in this case the 'middle man' is an expensive one. If you shop on a price comparison website for a cheaper deal please check the policy underwriter first if you don't want RSA again as RSA have their finger in a lot of pies. When I rang up to cancel and the John Lewis agent asked for a cancellation reason so that he could pass the comment on the the underwriters I told him that it wouldn't even be worth me entering into conversation about my experience as trying to deal with them before was less than ideal.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“Unfortunately for me and my property storm “Gareth” in effect deposited copiously amounts of driving rain water through roof space into bathroom / lounge area into the building on the 12th and 13th March 2019. We made good the area in question patched small hole in lounge ceiling soaked up surplus rain water, waited for surveyor to be appointed. I contacted my John Lewis Insurer claims service who eventually surveyed via camera on pole the slate roof handed over a form, “claim cancelled”, left. Eventually on querying the refusal received telephone call, “wear and tear, not covered, claim is cancelled”, conversation re: Ann marie. At John Lewis. Email sent by me highlighting “Storm Gareth” please check the forecast response per JL, email “We have checked wouldn't have expected structural damage to have occurred with the recorded weather conditions so any damage would be attributed to general maintenance which is excluded under the policy”. Message relates to ongoing severe forecast at that time,12th/13th/march 2019, time of incident, email concludes, “There is no visible damage to roof!!” Therefore am I to assume that the roof is “sound” ingress of rain water a figment of my imagination? I rejected their explanation forwarded a report via “GOOGLE”, and picture of “STORM”, front per claim. Email JL: “The closest weather station we refer to has recorded maximum gusts of 43mph, which falls below wind speed we'd expect to potentially cause storm damage to your home”. This statement contradicts reported official weather transmitted reports by Met Office. As the incident played out. “J.L are quite happy to review roofers estimate”, yet made no offer for me to review their evidence or information , re pictures taken at 23/3/2019. The overall repair estimate was around “£300 or less, excess £200 per policy.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“Home insurance massively over priced - Martin Lewis alerted me to this on a TV programme. Renewal quote £61pm - got exactly the same cover with Direct Line for £35pm.”

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Posted 6 years ago

“It's certainly not "high quality cover from a name you can trust" We had an electrical fault in our car which caused a fire 26 days ago... we are still awaiting JL underwriters (Sabre) to make payment for the vehicle which they have deemed uneconomically viable for repair & it looks like it will be another 2 or 3 days before they send me a cheque. Who on earth pays out by cheque in 2019???!!! By the time the cheque clears we will have had no car for 5, possibly 6 weeks & instead of a 30 min commute each way to work it's taking 2 hours in each direction. There is no service whatsoever at any level & you get passed around from call centre to call centre with no one willing to take ownership.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“Grievious incompetence; incredible belligerance; clearly uses delay tactics; refusal to escalate matters; herculean effort needed to get resolution (8 weeks and 6.5 hours of my time, and counting, so far); will try every trick in the book to avoid paying out; and will offer far below market prices. Trust me and others here, who have experirenced first hand, the incredible world of John Lewis insurance. Take heed.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“Desperate Home Insurance policy, totally unfriendly to disabled user: my poor 86 year old mother has been treated ghastly. I could never recommend this service. Once our go to provider, we now totally avoid. I had to cancel her policy due to loyalty annual price hikes with out due explanation. Ignored her claim for 10 months and still attempt to restrict claim. I would give -1 star if it were possible !”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“When I called up to make a claim, the staff applied their own version of events to the claim to justify refusing the claim and applied their own incorrect understanding of terminology used in the terms & conditions to also justify refusing the claim. When I complained about the way I had been dealt with was inappropriate (The FCA agreed that there had been two breaches of their principles and lodged a complaint against John Lewis Home Insurance and issued a reference number) and that wording of their terms & conditions was unclear, the person replying to my complaint stubbornly refused (over two letters) to enter into meaningful dialogue about the valid points I raised and closed the case off out of convenience rather than accept they were wrong. I spent a whole day on the phone dealing with people who were out of their depth or didn't know what they were talking about or what to do. I took out the insurance policy because I trusted the name 'John Lewis' and have multiple disabilities and can't do my own repairs. When I was sold the policy the agent stated that it was 'unlimited' cover. When I stated that I had been mis-sold the policy the reply in the letter, despite my complaint featuring legally valid points, was to call customer services to decide whether I wanted to continue the policy or not. When I called customer services they told me that it was down to the claims team to deal with the issues I raised against them and was given the run-around and put into some continuous call loop that took ages to get a reply from somebody (I'm still no further along). On closer inspection of the policy wording, a 'premium' policy which I paid extra for, the lack of clarity in the wording makes it difficult to understand what is meant. BBC Rip Off Britain states that a business has a responsibility to make their terminology clear. If the ratings scale on this page featured negative quantities John Lewis Home Insurance would score -5 based on my experience with them. I've has insurance policies with other companies which have been OK but have to say that this is the worst experience I've ever had in terms of customer service, competence and help. It was a totally distressing experience that left me worried and wanting to cry.”

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Posted 6 years ago

“Think John Lewis means great customer care and high standards? Think again. We had an absolute nightmare from the very start of trying to sort out a genuine, serious escape of water claim and it's not over yet! This has been the most depressing and time wasting experience with JL (or, more accurately, RSA) constantly low balling and attempting to wriggle out of their insurer's obligations. From aggressively trying to force us to accept less than 33% of the true value of the claim to suggesting we all (2 adults, a 3 year old and a 5 year old) move into a family room at the local Premier Inn for 6 weeks with no cooking facilities, this whole experience has been horrendous. Spread the word and AVOID these crooks, they simply DO NOT care about you.”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“John Lewis have completely lost it with this one. Want the personal touch or the customer care we are used to enjoying. You get a figures from trades men but you have to agree to any estimate they put in being the only cost you will be paid. Leaving the householder as we did paying for unforseen problems. We have been a JL customer since before we got married 35 yes ago. We changed to JL insurance because we trusted them and were used to their exceptional customer service. Forget customer service here. When we got a quote for house insurance we forgot about one small claim for a stolen bike. We put all other claims in from before and after that claim, an expensive error oud premium ballooned. To ghe point we pay far more than we did previously. Do use this insurance it sucks.”

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Posted 6 years ago

“Awful experience. we haven't ever claimed before and had a leak which flooded the downstairs. We've had to arrange the whole job ourselves whilst the insurance company kept putting hurdles in our way and withheld monies until the job was completed... would never go with these muppets again”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

“Pet Insurance My insurance has gone up £78.11 this year £575.40 to £653.51. The only variable is that my dog is 1 year older !!! I rang Customer Services and asked for an explanation as to why the premium has increased and was told 1. They take into account that VET fees had increased. Great but my dog hasn't had any treatment from the VET. 2. They look at the breed "standard schnauzer" and look to see if any condition is prevailing that my pet might be susceptible to. Great but my dog doesn't have an existing condition regardless of the breed. When I asked what options I had to reduce the annual premium I was advised that I had 3 options 1. Cancel policy and go elsewhere 2. Increase my excess 3. Change cover level. Ooops it appears that my policy renewal date was 3 days ago. So options left available to me Option 1 Cancel policy. Option 2 Shut up and put up the cash. GREAT!!! Be very careful once you've signed up your stuck!”

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Posted 6 years ago

“Appalling customer service, their emergency cover not worth the paper written on. They opt you into this Emergency Home cover, but refuse to help when you call them. If you call them, just say you know nothing about your house, every question is designed to catch you out. Abysmal, hate them and Waitrose, overpriced food.”

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Posted 6 years ago

“JL Insurance are now underwritten by RSA who are abysmal a straight forward robbery claim has taken 8 weeks to sort out. more than 130 pieces of correspondence between RSA, their 3rd parties and myself. have been asking for their final statement so I can escalate this to the ombudsman and still nothing. Insure with anyone else other than John Lewis.”

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Posted 6 years ago

“Been insured with them for four years massives price increasethis year. I have not made a claim phoned them up asking if they could do anything on the price and nothing from them at all. Been payng nearly £1000 per year no regard for loyalty!”

Helpful Report

Posted 6 years ago

John Lewis Insurance is rated 1.7 based on 433 reviews