Review of Homeserve Shower Cover

I am actually writing this review while on hold on the telephone waiting to get through to 'customer service' regarding an ongoing claim.

My shower malfunctioned 4 days ago and I managed to get through to customer service the next day at noon. At this point I would like to say that I am really sorry for all the puppies and kittens I must have injured in a previous lifetime, because the payback Homeserve are inflicting on me is incredible.

The policy covers electrical and mechanical breakdown of my shower. It is a 2 year policy that started a month ago when the manufacturer's warranty expired. On my first three phone calls, I was constantly re-directed to the shower manufacturer (Creda) instead of Homeserve's own consumer department. This apparently is a common problem. If you come across the same, please ask them to give you the freephone Homeserve consumer department number.

Anyway, I finally got through to someone who said they would get an engineer to ring me within 2 hours. I waited. 4 hours later no engineer, so I went through the long process of getting hold of the consumer department (one thing I did notice is the more I rang, the less they gave their name at the start of a call), and got another promise of a call from an engineer (I won't name the employee as it's probably the company's system that is the culprit).

The next morning, no response by noon. I rang again and 20 minutes later explained in fine detail what was going on, only to be met with 'oh, that's because we don't have engineers available in your area' to which I replied 'why do I have a policy that uses engineers that do not exist?', and the reply 'oh they do exist, but there are no Creda engineers in your area'. Incredible. Sold a meaningless policy, I decided to continue anyway.

After several awkward silences between myself and the consumer rep (the hold music is sending me up the wall as I write this), I get the promise of an electrician to ring me next Monday morning (it was Saturday afternoon by this point), to arrange a time to visit.

Next Monday, no call. At noon, I ring again. Half an hour later, assurances from an employee who wouldn't give me her name, that she would chase the electricians up. I get the call. The electrician visits. He says there is nothing wrong with the electrics, it must be the shower that has gone. Blood pressure. Must...stay...calm. That is the stage I am at now. I have been on hold for 30 minutes and it is now 5.55pm.

I live in a flat with no bath so the shower is the only means of washing. I am smelly. I've just found out that as a result of the shower going, all the sockets in the flat don't work, even though the fuse box hasn't been tripped. What can I say? I've read the other reviews, and if I could I would post a picture of my despairing face on the phone pleading with you never ever to take a policy out with homeserve.

In the long run, forking out for a new shower is probably better for your life expectancy. I'll stop now, but if I do get my call answered within the hour I'll be sure to write back to let you know. By the way, the policy is underwritten by Inter Partner Assistance SA in Redhill in case that helps.