Home insurance companies are increasingly bombarded with some of the strangest stories out there with claims that are too far-fetched and sometimes needless, embellished or falsified. Sample these bizarre home insurance claims that will likely have you rolling over with laughter. Be careful not to damage the house, though.
1. Buzzing bee
A bee found its way into a man’s house. The man got so engrossed watching it fly around his head that he got dizzy, fell over and dented his kitchen wall. The man claimed it was obviously the bee’s fault that his kitchen wall was damaged. The bee just wouldn’t buzz off! But, his insurance company would not hear of it. Home insurance does not typically cover insect infestations. If bees won’t buzz off your home, call the exterminator!
2. Hungry hamster
A couple let their hamster with an appetite out of the cage for "play time" only for the furry creature to gnaw through their skirting boards. The couple posted a claim form saying that the “tasty wood” was to blame for the damage and not the hungry hamster. Evidently, the hamster with an appetite did not get to chomp the claims form before it got posted because the form was actually received!
3. Bowling stroke
An insurance company was little bemused when a woman decided to use her hardwood floor to practice her ten pin bowling stroke. The insurance company was even less amused when instead of blaming the heavy ball the woman blamed the hardwood floor for the resulting damage. She claimed the hardwood just wasn’t hard enough! Her insurance company, unsurprisingly, struck out her claim.
4. Wondering dear
A policyholder came home to find a broken sitting room window and a dear wondering around his kitchen. It did not take him long to figure out what had happened. He swiftly filed an insurance claim that the deer had accidentally rammed through his picture window and found its way into his kitchen! However, he soon learned that standard home insurance cover does not usually protect against damage resulting from wild animals.
5. Embarrassing claim
A woman’s kitchen was nearly destroyed by steam when her washing machine got stuck in the middle of a boiling cycle. Her insurance company wouldn’t hear of her claim because according to them she was covered for water damage only and not steam damage! Luckily for the woman, a claims court did not even allow the insurance company’s representatives to speak. The judge reviewed the case closely, laughed and ruled "Water is H2O as is steam – case for the plaintiff."
Turns out bizarre insurance claims stories don’t just come in one way after all.
1. Buzzing bee
A bee found its way into a man’s house. The man got so engrossed watching it fly around his head that he got dizzy, fell over and dented his kitchen wall. The man claimed it was obviously the bee’s fault that his kitchen wall was damaged. The bee just wouldn’t buzz off! But, his insurance company would not hear of it. Home insurance does not typically cover insect infestations. If bees won’t buzz off your home, call the exterminator!
2. Hungry hamster
A couple let their hamster with an appetite out of the cage for "play time" only for the furry creature to gnaw through their skirting boards. The couple posted a claim form saying that the “tasty wood” was to blame for the damage and not the hungry hamster. Evidently, the hamster with an appetite did not get to chomp the claims form before it got posted because the form was actually received!
3. Bowling stroke
An insurance company was little bemused when a woman decided to use her hardwood floor to practice her ten pin bowling stroke. The insurance company was even less amused when instead of blaming the heavy ball the woman blamed the hardwood floor for the resulting damage. She claimed the hardwood just wasn’t hard enough! Her insurance company, unsurprisingly, struck out her claim.
4. Wondering dear
A policyholder came home to find a broken sitting room window and a dear wondering around his kitchen. It did not take him long to figure out what had happened. He swiftly filed an insurance claim that the deer had accidentally rammed through his picture window and found its way into his kitchen! However, he soon learned that standard home insurance cover does not usually protect against damage resulting from wild animals.
5. Embarrassing claim
A woman’s kitchen was nearly destroyed by steam when her washing machine got stuck in the middle of a boiling cycle. Her insurance company wouldn’t hear of her claim because according to them she was covered for water damage only and not steam damage! Luckily for the woman, a claims court did not even allow the insurance company’s representatives to speak. The judge reviewed the case closely, laughed and ruled "Water is H2O as is steam – case for the plaintiff."
Turns out bizarre insurance claims stories don’t just come in one way after all.
