I need some advice on my current claim with Travel Insurance Direct...

I need some advice on my current claim with Travel Insurance direct , Back in November 2013 i traveled to Asia where my luggage was stolen on gun point, luggage worth of $10k+. I submitted my claim to Travel Insurance Direct , they had ask me all the following documents which i have provided them " Airline Tickets , Airline Booking Documents , Bank Statement , Original Receipts of items i claimed , Police Report , Boarding Passes.

Returning back to Australia , the insurance provider arrange a investigator to have a face to face interview / investigation of my incident. The interview went for 1 hour . They asked me to provide all the contact details like

1) Who dropped me to Airport - I said my friend -they asked his contact number and name.

2) Who picked me from airport on my return - I answered another friend - again his contact name and number.

3) How many luggage suitcases who had when going and its colour.

4) How many luggage suitcases when you return

5) Where were you living in overseas ? - I said my mom's and sister's place - They asked me their contact name , phone number and address.

6)Who picked you from airport in overseas - I said my brother - They asked me his contact name , phone number and address.

7) They asked me everything - in that 1 hour interview.

Now when i inquire about the status of my claim as it's been over a month now , they are asking me to provide them my luggage weight in written for my return trip from the airline i traveled "Emirates". And have mentioned that we can only proceed further if I provide them this information

I have asked Emirates but not getting any response , called Emirates office in Melbourne but they say to ask them through website as my query will be answered by Dubai office. And Dubai office is not replying back to my query. I am stuck in this situation.

In the end i would say , if i am not getting reply from Emirates , what should i do with my insurance claim ? And isn't it a silly question to ask my total luggage weight for my return trip ? Or is it a way to extend my claim or create hurdle in paying off my claim ? And isn't it the job of insurance investigators to find my total baggage weight ? As the baggage weight is not written anywhere on the ticket or boarding passes we get.

Please Help

Regards,

It's pretty clear that the insurance company is suspicious of your claim, probably because the stated value of your luggage is over $10k, far more than the majority of travellers have with them.  They will surely be contacting each of your "witnesses" to verify your statements to them.

It might be necessary for you to engage a solicitor who specialises in travel matters.  I know of one in Sydney but not Melbourne.

Thanks Phil,

I have no issues if they contact my witnesses , that was told to me by the local investigator that they can go for an overseas investigation. I said sure they can , I have no idea how much it will cost to engage a solicitor , i tried to search online and 1 hour consultation is costing around $300 . If Emirates don't reply to me in next few days then definetly that would be an option i will be going for.

For a number of airlines the baggage weight is printed on the baggage receipt that is normally stickered to the boarding pass (unsure if this is the case with Emirates).

Otherwise I would be calling up Emirates Australia (or going to their office), stating that Dubai hasn't responded and that you need it for a large TI claim, and getting someone in that office to email and follow up Dubai directly.

No the weight is not printed on baggage receipts , and i have the baggage receipts for my flight returning back to Melbourne only. As what happened overseas the customs authority took my baggage receipts before allowing me take my luggage outside the airport. So i don't have the baggage receipts from Melbourne to Asia. I have checked my baggage receipts from Asia to Melbourne and it has no weight mentioned on the receipt.Yes if i don't hear any thing back from Dubai , then am going to Emirates Office for sure.

I had a large claim recently and it took 3 and half months to process,insurance companies try to wear you down with red tape ,hoping you may give in and not proceed.if you feel you are getting know ware ,contact the ombudsman's office in you state.hope this helps and good luck 

Thanks Merc25 , how can Ombudsman may help here as it is clearly stated on their website if your insurance provider is not helping you out then only they will get involve , And in my case insurance provider have thrown the ball in my court by asking me look for a pearl in deep sea . Meaning getting this information from Emirates . Its too hard at the moment as i am not getting any response. Insurance provider can say to Ombudsman that they are waiting for the information from myside and only then they can proceed further . Sounds like never ending story :(

Have you spoken to them? Not helping you out is broad statement... if you tell your insurer that Emirates are playing ball and they decline your claim, you can definately go to FOS then. Have you asked insurer (in writing) why they want this information?

At the end of the day, you may need to consider lodging a civil dispute in the VCAT (or appropriate body in your state)

Whilst I concur with going to the Ombudsman's office, you need to go to the correct one. Insurance companies are part of industry schemes - so it'll will be the Financial Ombudsman Service as Cerberus Special Risks Pty Ltd (TID) is a member of them. Google Financial Ombudsman Service

In terms of getting help with Emirates, I'd walk into their office in Melbourne and ask for help.

Go to your financial ombudsman and ask for help as your insurer is not helping ,they will get in touch with the insurer and a person whom deals with ombudsman claims within the insurance company will contact you .they are generally management and deal more humanly as the  financial ombudsman is looking over their shoulders. I have used this service and it helps,but takes time ,so be patient .

I work at TID. I'll make sure our customer service manager knows about your concerns here. Have you contacted us through email, or our Facebook page? All respect to AusBT, but this might not be the best forum for you to get the action and attention you need. We're always happy to engage with customers and try to get them a satisfactory resolution. Or, if you're still unhappy, we can explain how you can take your complaint further - with us, and also with FOS (ombudsman).

If you'd like you can email me at phil.travelsafety@gmail and I'll put you directly in touch with the customer service team (sorry for the gmail but I don't want to give out my work email on a public forum, but if you check the TID.com.au site you'll see I'm legit').