Business owner's 'insurance snub' after Wingfield fire

A massive fire at a fuel depot at Wingfield last month has left a small business owner tens of thousands of dollars out of pocket, after he was forced to evacuate his property because of the blaze.

Ricki Wadsworth owns 'Great Aussie Bite' lunch trucks, and said with the unpredictable fire nearby, police officers asked him to leave his work premises to stay safe.

"The cops said 'out you get,' they didn't give us any time," Mr Wadsworth said.

"The wouldn't let anyone in no matter what, it was too dangerous, they said."

The evacuation orders stood in place for two days, meaning Mr Wadsworth, his ten trucks and 15 staff could not return until the area was deemed safe.

"We lost a lot of stock because we had nowhere to store it, we couldn't get in," he said.

"We couldn't put it in the cool rooms, plus we lost power."

Mr Wadsworth says his business had paid insurance premiums with CGU for six years and his policy was up to date, but his claim for damages was knocked back.

The insurer refused to comment to 7News, but in a letter to Mr Wadsworth, CGU said the reason for the claim's refusal was in the policy's fine print.

"Your policy provides cover for your stock against 'accidental damage,'... Losses arising from a 'variation in temperature' are a specific exclusion under the policy wording."

Mr Wadsworth says he thinks other businesses in the area might face the same problem, as others are yet to hear from their insurers.

"It's over $20,000 (we've lost), if you count the turnover," he said, "In these tough times that's a lot of money."