Able to see her
Through an ‘06 letter
She wrote a copy
A headstrong lady
Took things lying down? Not her
She let them have it
Ian had found it
Was in her magazine rack
What a real treasure
Told her I’d found it
Gran smiled and backed up her words
“Yes, all by myself”*
Gran had to have some work done in her flat in 2004. She had asbestos in one of her kitchen and bathroom walls, respectively, and it needed to be removed. She was displaced to another home for three days and the workmen came over and fixed the walls, then, in turn, left her bathroom floor damaged beyond repair.
Since she paid for housing insurance religiously, she first sought relief from them, only to be turned down in writing because her claim didn’t meet guidelines for section such-and-such under clause bah-de-blah of her policy. She/he, ended the letter by stating:
“We must advise, we are not in a position to recommend any payment to you on this occasion. We hope that the above is self-explanatory and would confirm that we are now closing our file.”
My Gran, headstrong and forthright, went about to put right what she thought was an injustice (and quite rightly so) and sent them a letter in response, voicing her opinion and disgust. I am more than happy to share this, highlighting her personality in one easy swoop.
Dear L.D. Smith,
To tell you I am disgusted with your letter is putting it mildly. Why do you not think it is an insured event? I was under the impression that when I took out house insurance that I was covered for things like this, or why would our Council encourage us to deal with a firm as useless as yours? And when I make a claim I’m told I’m not covered; you take the money from an 84-year-old pensioner and do nothing. Are you not ashamed to be conning people in this way? I think I’d be better going to a reputable company that will help people when it’s needed. I guess the shareholders are the people you take care of, not folk like me who made the country safe during the last war*, and then are treated like this.
Not to worry, you might live to be 84 yourself one day and need help. You won’t get it from your firm, that’s for sure.
Sincerely,
Mrs. B. R.
Now you can close your file.
She later got compensation from elsewhere…
Listen in 
28 responses so far ↓
the planet of janet // Thursday, 17 April, 2008 at 23:51 pm
awesome! your gran totally rocks!
Joyce // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 0:07 am
Yeah, Gran, way to shout it out! So glad she got compensation, finally.
Mocha // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 3:13 am
Gran sounded like a real pistol. Like the kind of woman I can only hope to grow up to be. I’m betting that she passed along some of that sass to her granddaughter. You’re very lucky.
Three years??? We’ve known each other that long? It doesn’t seem possible! You remain one of my favorite people. I’m going to get better about staying in touch.
wright // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 4:29 am
I LOVE her! What a strong woman. A woman we would all like to be!
Kathryn // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 4:32 am
I am just loving your gran. She sounds very much like my grandma. Love her spunk. And every bit of her letter was right. Good for her! Insurance companies are the worst.
Thank you for your lovely comments on my post. It is much appreciated.
Mama DB // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 5:13 am
Go Gran! What a fabulous response.
LouCeeL // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 6:09 am
You are such an amazing person. It’s becoming clearer where that comes from.
Mishelle // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 6:22 am
WAY TO GO GRAN!!! Wow. Awesome, S!!
Mishelle // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 6:22 am
Oh yeah, it’s me, Secret Agent Mama!!
Marylin // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 6:30 am
Your Gran sounds great! I’m glad someone sorted out compensation even if that “company” didn’t!
storyteller // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 6:34 am
Wonderful that ‘Gran’
took care of herself this way …
leaving ‘paper’ trail ;–
Hugs and blessings,
Scylla // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 8:31 am
I think I love your Gran.
Condo Blues // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 8:59 am
Your Gran is an amazing woman! Her letter certainly showed the insurance company that 84 may be old, but it’s not dottering.
Melisa // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 11:23 am
She was SPUNKY! What a great lady! I’m so glad you shared this with us.
Jennifer // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 12:01 pm
Go Gran! I love a good letter like that, one that totally tells someone off without making the writer look like the jerk!
jameil // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 12:12 pm
GO GRAN!!
Tara R. // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 13:31 pm
Oh, I like her. She’s sassy!
Elizabeth // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 14:34 pm
I bet that insurance company’s toes curled while reading that letter. Shame on them!
anglophilefootballfanatic // Friday, 18 April, 2008 at 14:56 pm
I can see why you liked her so much; you sound LOTS like her. Hope today is better.
bigdogmompam // Saturday, 19 April, 2008 at 7:40 am
Way to go Gran! I would have love to have seen the face of the person who read that letter.
The Grand View // Saturday, 19 April, 2008 at 8:16 am
Pure dead brilliant (as all of your posts are!). Thanks for the encouragement.
Laura McIntyre // Saturday, 19 April, 2008 at 9:25 am
Your gran sounds like a great woman, what a legacy to leave behind.
Maria // Saturday, 19 April, 2008 at 10:14 am
Wow. You’ve got one hell of a grandmother.
Tumblewords // Saturday, 19 April, 2008 at 10:27 am
Ah, gotta love her! Too bad there aren’t more of us who can take on the system!
Gandalfe // Saturday, 19 April, 2008 at 15:39 pm
Time to get a new insurance company me thinks. We vote with our dollars you know.
Katie // Sunday, 20 April, 2008 at 8:57 am
I love it! That letter reminds me of my grandmother - she’s a lovely woman until you cross her!
Karen MEG (Pomtini) // Sunday, 20 April, 2008 at 11:44 am
Oh, she was a fiesty one … good for her!
A real treasure, that letter.
Susan // Monday, 21 April, 2008 at 12:31 pm
Siobhan, your Gran sounds like a woman after my own heart. I hope that I have that kind of gumption to stand up for myself when I am in my eighties!
I’m sorry to hear about your homesickness (last post), and about the extra jolt of grief you felt when you found your Gran’s last letter. Your relationship with her was really something to be envied. I didn’t have that kind of relationship with my grandparents (I barely knew the Irish ones). My family is not at all close, either geographically or emotionally–they never have been, mostly out of disinterest. But my self-created family (Steve & my daughter) is very, very close. That means any separation, or the thought of separation, is extremely painful. I think it’s better to have that priceless bonding, even if there will be pain when we say goodbye, than it is to have a distant, arm’s-length relationship–one where there’s not much grief felt when someone passes on. The wonderful bond that you shared with your Gran really means that she’s immortal, as all that love gets passed on to all your boys…anyway, hang in there.
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