Once in a while, in order to facilitate his work, his understanding as well as to save time, or else corroborate certain decisions during loss management, the insurer or his claims adjuster representative must call upon technical or scientific specialists in different fields of expertise.
The first goal is a better understanding of the dynamic and context of a loss, but also to render better service to the insured. The insurer cannot be an expert in all the fields. Each loss is different and must be managed the right way from the start.
When a loss is even remotely connected to scientific phenomena or in the presence of complex interactions such as found in engineering or environmental files, the expert can provide a scientific opinion regarding a precise question, scientifically demonstrate origins and causes, or still, offer an overall help to resolve the case.
The expert’s responsibility is, among others, to support the insurer in his process to fairly resolve the case and to advise him on ways to finalize it. These means aim to put the insured back to the position he had before the loss, or to answer a direct claim or in responsibility.
The expert’s mission is to provide to his client recommendations drawn from his experience and his scientific knowledge, based on a detailed diagnostic of the situation. Since he is independent from the insurer, his integrity and objectivity are essential. The expert must remain impartial in situations where it would be difficult for the insurer to remain so.
The establishment of the origins and causes on solid scientific bases by the expert is also crucial in subrogation cases, in order to recover the sums of money paid to the insured for a loss caused by the negligence of a third party.