There are many tragic stories being told about the night a natural disaster destroyed many homes and buildings and buried people under mud following days of intense rain in and around Durban.
Hearing about a large mansion near the top of a hill sliding down the hillside and further taking out two homes below would sound quite unreal for many who have never lived through a disaster like that. We always talk about the rolling green hills of Kwazulu Natal, but many of those hills became death traps on that night of 11/12 April!
Our neighbours were away the day the insurance assessor came and asked hubby to show him around. He told us that the homeowner of that large mansion had no insurance cover, so has not only lost his/her most prized possession but is now being sued by the insurance companies of the homeowners below!
A hectic and impossible load to carry!
Our neighbour's pool paving is starting to show damage, and the massive crater between them and our friend's home next door has still not been filled by the local authority. No one dares touch it, as it's a public lane!
Our friends who are living in a rental until their home is restored, have to pay for 24-hour guarding, as their home has been ransacked a couple of times!
The assessor advised us that there are some things the insurance companies will not cover; so I decided it's high time I sat down and actually read our policy; from a well-respected insurer by the way!
I was shocked to read an exclusion -
no cover for landslip
So, if our home was taken out by a mudslide, we would have lost everything and had to rebuild at our own cost!
They've always been very good with the usual things that go wrong around the house, but advised that if we want that cover, we need to provide them with a geotechnical report, which will cost an arm and a leg!
We however are in the process of changing insurance companies as we had endless problems with a business interruption claim during Covid lockdown, so have to wait for this to be settled before we jump ship!
Yes, it was nearly two years ago!
Large hotels took them to court when they refused to pay as they said the business interruption was not due to an infectious disease, it was lockdown!! The hotels won their case, so assessors were appointed for all bnb's, guesthouses, hotels and resorts.
We had to fill in endless spreadsheets for the assessor, and they have only now come to a conclusion, but have yet to file a report to the insurer! As soon as that has been resolved, we'll be on our way out!
The phrase below always reminds me of my late uncle who turned it around when someone gave him uphill, he'd say to himself:
Go suck a lemon and be happy!
That's what I wanted to tell the assessor who kept on emailing me spreadsheet after spreadsheet!
It's not always easy making that lemonade, not so!
Enough of my ranting; and onto some of the good stuff in the life of a Silver Blogger.
Even though we run a BnB that keeps us on our toes, we can still afford little luxuries like having a leisurely cup of coffee in bed, and smiling smugly as we no longer have to face the traffic!
We have time to watch the sun rise; the colours in the sky were spectacular earlier this week!
Thursday was a public holiday here in South Africa, so it felt like Friday; I was not feeling well and had a massive headache from too little sleep...there I go complaining again...so we ordered take-away.
Friday came along, feeling like Saturday, so we had a quickly thrown-together supper - spring onions, red bell pepper, mushrooms, frozen mixed veg turned into a frittata by pouring whipped eggs to cover it all, loads of cheese on top and cooked with a lid on. Served with sweetcorn on the cob, and hot mock sourdough bread; all really delicious!
Earlier in the day one of the young caregivers who took care of Mom Lily during her last few weeks came to visit, She is busy setting up her own little nursing/caregiving agency and needed a guiding hand.
I will never forget seeing her arrive on her first day of caring for Mom; tiny in stature, and I wondered how the heck she was going to assist Mom, who was totally immobile. She however has been trained to use the correct techniques to move Mom, and my skepticism turned to admiration. I wish Lelo all the very best in her business!
Enjoy what is left of your weekend friends!
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