Business with no integrity

We at Vereeniging Manhattan Hotel and Action Bar (Pty) Ltd are hurt and upset at Centriq Insurance Company wholly owned by Santam Ltd for not paying our claim for fire damage. They had no good reason to deny this therefore they could have and should have payed for our claim.

We closed our Bar for the night of the 11th of July 2016 , while opening the bar early the next day, we found a fire upon our arrival and had to put it out.

We then made a claim to which the insurance Company refused to pay stating that we had contravened the Tobacco Act and that a cigarette had caused the fire, which is definitely not possible as the fire had been caused by an electrical fault in an airconditioner installed near the ceiling in the room, the photos which the insurance has does show that the damage emerged from above downwards and not from the floor upwards at all.

We are in business and operate many businesses as do our friends and competitors. We are extremely hurt and upset at this division of Santam insurance for not paying and forcing us to incur the expenses of attorneys.

There was an adequate amount of contact with Martin Le Roux a Director who led us to believe that the claim would be honoured to no avail, he just led us a merry dance.

We were forced to seek the assistance of attorneys only to have the insurance company defend on the same basis as above causing even more delay which is most unfair to small businesses.