A former CBeebies presenter who runs a theatre school in Lincoln hopes to reopen by the end of the month after a heartbreaking break-in at her business, but claims the insurers are not being helpful and feels like she is being “robbed again”.
Sarah-Jane Honeywell and her actor husband Ayden Callaghan lease the former Montana ballroom on Clasketgate, but on January 4 this year their Curious Theatre School was the victim of a burglary in which items stolen and damage to the building which totalled tens of thousands of pounds. Costumes worth thousands of pounds and precious memorabilia from the owners’ careers were among the items damaged or stolen.
A 28-year-old man was previously arrested on suspicion of commercial burglary before being released on police bail while their inquiries are ongoing.
It turns out the ‘business insurance’ @Insure4Sport@RipeInsurance@AvivaUK gave me is worse than if I’d just insured the products with Curry’s myself. I was not advised of this. I thought I had full cover. We have lost everything – check your policies with these people & RT PLS pic.twitter.com/s95CHLfmFc
Sarah told The Lincolnite that soon after finding out about the burglary on January 4 she phoned the broker Insure4Sport and was told it would be better to email, which she did that evening.
She said: “I feel it (the insurance) has been mis-sold. It was only on Wednesday, January 18, they even asked if I own the premises or rent it, but another broker told me that should have been the first question asked when we set up the insurance.
“After I first contacted them, it took them around 12 days to get properly in touch. I feel like we’ve been robbed all over again. We explained the type of business we are and all of the information when we took the policy out and were given the impression we’d be covered.
“I thought they might um and er about some things, but I didn’t exepct to basically not be insured when I was. We will fight them all the way.”
Sarah added: “I want to reopen before the end of January, or at the latest the first week of February. I will run the school from my house if I have to.
“The kids are desperate to come back and it is heartbreaking reading the statements from parents (to send to the insurers) about how they have been impacted.”
Insure4Sport’s specialist sports insurance is part of Ripe, one of the UK’s leading specialist insurance providers.
The Lincolnite contacted both Insure4Sport and the Davies Group, who provide the firm’s claims service, as well as Aviva, for statements of response, but there was no reply by the time of publication.
We were told that the Davies Group, the claims handling agent, will not be able comment on the status of individual claims or policies, but said it is working with the customer and the claim is still being investigated.
On Friday morning Insure4Sport sent a statement and a spokesperson said: “As the customer’s insurance broker, we are sympathetic to the situation and her claim is currently being investigated as a priority.
“Insure4Sport’s specialist claims handling partner Davies Group and ourselves are in dialogue with the customer and we are gathering all the required information to fully assess the claim.”
Valuable costumes were taken or damaged during the break-in. | Photo: The Lincolnite
Sarah said on January 16 she got an email back from the broker apologising for the delay and asking for a monthly incomings/outgoings and loss of earnings, which she then sent.
She said she accepted that at that point the insurance may not cover some items, including those that had been gifted, but didn’t expect to find herself in the situation she is now.
In the meantime, she has had a quote of £3,925 for a professional clean which will be needed due to the fact that needles were found inside the premises after the break-in. However, she has been told that the insurance won’t cover a professional clean, so she is debating what to do next.
The culprit(s) left almost every single room in the building in a mess. | Photo: The Lincolnite
Sarah said: “I was then told that I wasn’t covered for loss of earnings or for us to rent a studio in the time while we have to close. I thought it would only have been things I didn’t have receipts for that wouldn’t be covered, but it is barely anything.”
Sarah took to Twitter to rant about the issue, tagging both Insure4Sport and Aviva. She said off the back of this Aviva got in touch with her and said they would look into it and contact Insure4Sport.
She said Insure4Sport have since sent her back a list of what she is not insured for which she says is “longer than for what we are and amounts to 80% of the claim if not more”.
Two parents of pupils at the theatre school – Karis Hildred and Yuen Armstrong – set up GoFundMe pages to help get it back on track with more than £4,500 being raised by the time of publication, leaving Sarah feeling amazed by the generosity of the local community.
There was also evidence of drugs paraphernalia inside the building, while it appears that someone may have been setting up camp in one of the rooms. | Photo: The Lincolnite
Sarah also confirmed that a fundraising benefit performance will be held at the LPAC in Lincoln on April 30, with details still being confirmed.
Former Eastenders star John Partridge and Charlie Wernham, who is known for television shows including Hollyoaks and Bad Education, are among those who will feature in the show.
More items were also pulled off the walls. | Photo: The Lincolnite
Lincolnshire Police previously issued an appeal for information about the break-in incident saying: “It’s believed there have been a number of people coming and going from the property between December 23 and January 4.”
Anyone with information is being urged to contact PC Nicky Briscoe on 07385398418 or via email at [email protected] quoting incident 175 of January 4.
Alternatively, information can be reported through the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online here.
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Exciting news for MyLocal app users and The Lincolnite readers! Our latest update is now available to download from your app store and comes packed with the best local news experience you can enjoy.
Revamped News Feed: Enjoy faster loading times and smoother scrolling that make catching up on local news a breeze.
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Update your MyLocal app from your app store (version 2.73) now and start enjoying these great new features today!
P.S.: Start your MyLocal membership today to support MyLocal and The Lincolnite deliver you a better local news experience and honest journalism from across Lincolnshire.
P.P.S.: We have some huge things in the pipeline, stay tuned!