Standard Bank Home Assistance - Damage caused by contractors on their home assist database

Standard Bank home insurance offers a "home assistance" service wherey they send out service providers to deal with electrical, plumbing issues you may be experiencing on an insured property.

On Sunday, 27 September 2020 I contacted Standard Bank's home insurance Home Assist line in connection with a problem we were experiencing with our plugs tripping the board. On Monday morning, 28 September 2020, Standard Bank sent two technicians from MRM electrical to assist. I explained the tripping problem we had experienced the day before and the technicians immediately opened the DV board to look at what was going on. Instead of investigating whether any of our appliances was causing the problem (which was the case - as we discovered later) the technicians proceeded to UNEARTH our geysers, fridge, swimming pool pump and (as it turned out) a number of plugs. I was concerned but they assured me this would not cause a situation of electrical non-compliance. After they left, I discovered that my stove and geyser were still tripping. I called MRM electrical back, but after waiting for hours for them to arrive asked them to come the next morning. When the technicians were late again, I called in a different electrical contractor. He was able to fix the stove issue but discovered that MRM Electrical technicians had caused a dead short in the system WHICH HAS STILL NOT BEEN RESOLVED. This company needs to be taken off SA Home Insurance Home Assistance database immediately and their licence to operate must be revoked.

Standard Bank must also be held accountable for the service providers it promotes on its database. When I raised this issue with their call centre operators, they said that tripping is "not an insured event" and that I needed to submit a complaint without any acknowledgement of their role in the damage I have suffered.