A DAUGHTER has slammed the compensation offered after contractors dumped a lifetime of prized possessions belonging to her mother.

Wedding pictures and a lifetime of memories were taken from a storage container and thrown away by a housing company.

Maureen Ross, whose mother does not want to be named, has condemned the attitude of South Essex Homes who manage the sheltered accommodation property in Southchurch, as well as that of Southend Council, who she believes have tried to place the blame on her 80-year-old mother.

She claims that South Essex Homes have only offered £600 in compensation for the mistake, which involved a full storage shed of personal belongings which were thrown away.

This is despite the family spending thousands to replace lost items including clothes, photographs, and kitchen equipment.

Ms Ross has also expressed anger at Southend Council’s insurance process, which she claims required her to provide receipts for every item lost, some of which were bought decades ago, and have also said that they will only insure the value of each item relative to when it was bought, not its present day value.

She said: “This whole process has been so upsetting for all of us, but especially for my mum, because there’s a whole lifetime of memories which have vanished in a situation that could have been entirely avoidable.

“The compensation is inadequate, and doesn’t reflect an organisation which is supposedly taking our complaint seriously.

“It feels as though we have been put in an impossible situation, and the lack of compassion we have received has been, quite frankly, appalling - especially considering it involves an elderly woman.”

A South Essex Home spokesman said: “We fully understand the sensitivities of this issue, and we have apologised directly to the family for the distress this situation has caused them and apologise once again.

“Following a detailed investigation by the council’s insurance team, and as the family are aware, the council accepted primary liability on behalf of South Essex Homes and as such compensation has been offered to the family.

“Whilst we can understand the frustrations with the process, it is standard practice for insurers and their loss adjusters to require evidence of items being claimed for, particularly where this involves high value items. We understand a number of issues raised by the family, including the compensation offer have been addressed in a letter response from the council.”