Identify the disagreement
First write down the disputed point. Was an object omitted, is proposed repair incomplete, or is a valuation too low? These differ from disagreement about whether the event falls within the policy at all. A second estimate does not automatically resolve interpretation of an exclusion.
Ask which factual and technical assumptions the insurer used. A wrong model number may be corrected without extensive new investigation. If a substantive difference remains, discuss the expertise needed for a counter-assessment.
Kifid explains that reasonable counter-expert costs require assessment and that every invoice is not automatically payable in full. Its guidance also shows that simply imposing a ceiling equal to the insurer's expert's fee is not necessarily the answer. Ask for the relevant rules and arrangements to be explained specifically.
Define the instruction
Ask the prospective expert which knowledge suits the damage, whether furniture, electronics, or flooring. Identify the report to be produced, required documents, and work outside the instruction. A promise to handle everything says little about the actual task.
Record whether the expert only prepares findings, also negotiates with the other expert, or may enter further arrangements for you. Ask whether signing includes authority to act or assignment of a claim. These serve different functions from permission to photograph or examine an object.
Discuss what will be sent to the insurer and whether you receive the report. The procedure should allow factual errors to be corrected without substituting your preferred conclusion for an independent technical finding.
Identify practical access and retention requirements. If an object is awaiting disposal or repair, coordinate examination before its condition changes. Do not commission duplicated visits simply because the existing photographs or report were not supplied to the new expert.
Understand costs before signing
Request written rates, expected hours, travel, examination charges, and any VAT. Establish what happens if more work becomes necessary. An estimated total is different from an unrestricted instruction.
Ask who must pay if the insurer does not reimburse everything or disputes whether costs are reasonable. Do not rely on a commercial statement that the service is free without reading the agreement. Ask the expert and insurer to clarify their positions on the proposed work.
In Kifid decision 2024-1113, the particular contractual wording on expert costs was important. That outcome is not a general promise for every counter-expert. It illustrates why the correct policy version and precise arrangements should not disappear behind a broad slogan about fees.
Connect the new work to the existing file
Keep the initial report, quotations, and inventory. Identify questions the new examination should answer. This helps the expert focus on why an amount or proposed remedy may not match the actual loss.
Ask how discussions between experts operate and whether a further assessment procedure may lead to a binding amount. Read related documents before agreement. An arrangement about extent does not necessarily resolve a coverage dispute; identify subjects remaining open.
Check that the final report addresses the objects and disputed issues. Preserve the instruction, time record, findings, and fee correspondence together. A later invoice disagreement can then be considered through work performed rather than the final loss amount alone.
If the extra investigation reveals that part of the original assessment was correct, retain that finding too. Counter-assessment is useful because it examines a question, not because it must increase every entry. An evidence-based agreement may narrow the dispute even where one requested adjustment is not supported.
