insurance in spain

 Can anyone help.... I took out an insurance on my mobile phone with vodaphone as I live in the mountains in a secluded house and I have rhumatoid arthritis. My mobile is my only form of communication as there are no land lines here. Vodaphone offered an insurance which they said covered everything loss, dammage, theft etc etc. But hey guess what when my phone fell into my water well it was not insured. However the insurance company told my son as he has the contact to go to the police and make a denucia saying it was stolen. My son refused to do this as it was untrue and we believed it to be a criminal offence. However he was persuaded by the insurance company to make a denuncia saying it was ´lost´ which it was but in our well!!!

Having done everything they asked nearly a month later after sending numerous documents repeatedly we still have not been given a new phone and get NO response from the insurance company. The vodaphone shop in Puerto de Mazarron have tried on numerous occasions on our behalf but agin they have had no response.

This whole episode has been incredible for me, I have an old phone which works sometimes which is not good enough for me, I have had problems contacting and arranging appointments with my doctor, my specialist a scan and many other things to do with my health problems. Driving is very painful yet I have had to cover hundreds of kilometers driving back and forth to the vodaphone shop on an almost daily basis for nearly a month, the pain for me to do this is terrible.

Finally we decided to go to the oficina de consumador who told us there is a clause in the small print saying if the phone is in a place and you cannot get to it then we are not insured!!!!

My question today is does anyone know if when you take out a legal policy here do the company have an obligation to supply terms and conditions in my native language?

The insurance company do not have any english speaking helpers and everything we received is in spanish.

I have today cancelled my direct debit with the bank as I am paying for a service that i am not receiving.

thanx julie

Hi Julie,

To answer your question "when you take out a legal policy here do the company have an obligation to supply terms and conditions in my native language?" - sorry the answer is "no".  What's more there is very little in the way of regulation of insurance companies, brokers or agents - nothing like the FSA we have in the UK.

I'm not really surprised by your comments.  Personally I wouldn't bother insuring anything in Spain which was of comparatively modest consequence.  I arrange my household insurance via the bank and therefore pay more than I should, but know that the bank will be on my side if there's a big claim which I reckon is vital here.

Have you tried asking Vodaphone to help ?  In the circumstances, they made be sympathetic.  But from what you say I think chasing the insurers will be like...

Sorry I cannot say anything different.

Código Penal de España. CAPÍTULO VI. Del falso testimonio
 
Artículo 458.
1. El testigo que faltare a la verdad en su testimonio en causa judicial, será castigado con las penas de prisión de seis meses a dos años y multa de tres a seis meses.
2. Si el falso testimonio se diera en contra del reo en causa criminal por delito, las penas serán de prisión de uno a tres años y multa de seis a doce meses. Si a consecuencia del testimonio hubiera recaído sentencia condenatoria, se impondrán las penas superiores en grado.

It would be, but can you prove it ?  

They won't have put it in writing, so inevitably they will just say that your son misunderstood.