Colin tried to fix a loose kitchen handle. By lunchtime, he’d broken the cupboard door and cracked a floor tile.
He called his insurer about accidental damage.
The clerk asked whether he’d chosen to do the work himself.
Colin said yes.
Then what part was an accident? she asked….
The kitchen handle had been loose for three weeks. Colin’s wife, Anne, put a screwdriver beside it on Saturday morning.
He asked whether that was a hint.
She said a hint would have been less carefully arranged.
Colin opened the cupboard and found the screw. It was easy to reach if he took the door off first.
Anne asked why the door needed to come off.
To make a small job easier.
The top hinge came away at once. The bottom hinge was less helpful.
Colin gave the door a gentle pull. Then a pull he described afterwards as gentle.
The hinge tore out of the wood. Colin caught the door, dropped the screwdriver and stood on it.
He hopped, let go of the door and watched its corner hit a floor tile.
Anne came back from the garden.
The handle was still attached to the broken door.
At least it isn’t wobbling now, Colin said.
Anne moved the other screwdriver out of reach.
He remembered that their home insurance mentioned accidental damage. He found the number and called.
The clerk asked what had happened.
He gave her the shorter version.
She asked who had been working on the cupboard.
Colin said he had.
Had he decided to take the door off?
Yes.
And had he pulled it?
Yes, but he had also tried catching it.
The clerk asked whether anyone had made him start the work.
He looked at Anne. She folded her arms.
No, he said. Entirely my own choice.
The clerk paused.
You chose the job, removed the hinge and pulled the door. Which part of that was an accident?
I meant to fix the handle.
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