Page 40 - Insurance Times April 2021

to check the underinsurance factor (if any). The role of
physical inspection and knowledge of market price and/
or deprecated value is paramount here. One can
legitimately expect such skills from a licensed surveyor
rather than serving him everything on a platter.

6. Salvage value of the affected item/s:
While submitting the list of requirements, the surveyor
routinely asks for the salvage value of the affected
items ignoring his role and responsibility in finding out
the same himself in order to finalize a logical and
reasonable assessment. It is not fair to expect a
homeowner to explore the market and to find a salvage
buyer. This by no means can be taken as a claimant's
job unless the insured wishes to offer a price for the
4. Final repair bill with proof of payment: salvage. There are occasions where even for a non-
Unless a fire policy is issused on reinstatement value industrial/commercial risks, the surveyor has been found
basis, the surveyor has no right to ask for final repair/ to insist for 3 quotations for salvage from the
reinstatement bill for the property with proof of homeowner which is simply ridiculous. The surveyor
payment. A reinstatement value fire policy is the one should be skilled enough to ascertain a price and make
where the sum-insured has been fixed based on the local enquiries about the potential salvage buyers. For
present day replacement value of the property a non-industrial risks, this is not at all a difficult job.
irrespective of when the building was erected or the
furniture, fixture, fittings and the machineries were 7. First Information Report (FIR):
purchased. In such a case, the fire claim is payable only The surveyors routinely ask for the FIR as a part of claim
after the reinstatement of the property without any documentation. It is strongly felt that unless there is
improvement however. If the fire policy is without the an element of malicious damage, the requirement of
reinstatement value clause (say the sum-insured has
FIR should be dispensed with in case of a simple fire loss
been fixed on depreciated value basis) the insured has
in a shop or dwelling. The surveyor has a right to
a right not to even reinstate the property. In many conduct a local enquiry in case he has reason to believe
cases, deliberately or due to sheer ignorance, the that some irregular eventuality has taken place.
surveyor routinely insists for the repair bill and proof of
payment even when the fire policy is not on 8. Newspaper cutting:
reinstatement value policy. This not only is improper but
Though not insisted for in case of home losses, even for
also causes harassment to the Insured not to speak of commercial losses arising out of natural calamity, such
the delay in issuance of the survey report and eventual document must be taken as an additional corroborative
settlement of the claim.
document and not as a strictly necessary document. In
a small locality, there may not be any local newspaper
5. Original purchase invoices of furniture, reporting a flood loss or a malicious damage loss to a
fixture, fittings and contents: commercial property. A medium or even a large sized
This is another favourite demand of the surveyors even loss for a small or medium sized factory in a small
for small to medium home fire loss. Hardly ever it is locality may not feature in a leading newspaper.
realised by the surveyor that in a residential property Therefore, in effect except for very large catastrophe
getting the invoices of the furniture, fixture, fittings and newspaper cutting may not be readily available though
contents is almost impossible since the homeowner it remains a comforting document both for the surveyor
hardly keeps them. In many cases, the furniture is made and the claims handler in the Insurance company.
within the house itself by the known carpenter of the
homeowner who seldom issues any invoice. The role of 9. Claim form:
the surveyor should be simply to check the damages and This is a vital and required document for any fire or for
find out the present day value of the items so damaged that matter any Insurance claim for small home or shop

40 The Insurance Times, April 2021