Expert Witness Blog

Insurance expert witnesses may opine on insurance loss claims, insurance policy coverage, automobile insurance rates, and related topics. Here, Insurance.com writes on on 2011 car insurance trends including:

Mileage-based insurance

Companies will continue to offer discounts and incentives in 2011 – such as a premium refunds or diminishing deductibles to existing consumers who remain claim-free, says Ryan Hanley, an insurance broker with the Guilderland Agency in Albany, N.Y. “Pay as you drive” insurance policies are among the discount plans most likely to grow in popularity next year. These policies offer drivers a premium based primarily on the number of miles they drive each year. This can lead to big savings for people who drive relatively few miles.

In PRESERVE THE PHYSICAL EVIDENCE!, electrical wiring expert witness Roger L. Boyell, writes:

As soon as you believe a legal action might be initiated, take pains to preserve whatever physical evidence may be relevant. Send in an investigator, take many photographs, expedite the discovery process.

Any delay allows potential evidence to be altered or disguised, as in the following real-world examples.

Pesticide expert witnesses may write reports and testify on pesticide contamination, insecticides, and pesticide products. The EPA regulates the use of pesticides under the authority of two federal statutes: the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA).

The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) provides the basis for regulation, sale, distribution and use of pesticides in the U.S. FIFRA authorizes EPA to review and register pesticides for specified uses. EPA also has the authority to suspend or cancel the registration of a pesticide if subsequent information shows that continued use would pose unreasonable risks. Some key elements of FIFRA include:

* is a product licensing statute; pesticide products must obtain an EPA registration before manufacture, transport, and sale * registration based on a risk/benefit standard * strong authority to require data–authority to issue Data Call-ins * ability to regulate pesticide use through labeling, packaging, composition, and disposal * emergency exemption authority–permits approval of unregistered uses of registered products on a time limited basis * ability to suspend or cancel a product’s registration: appeals process, adjudicatory functions, etc.

In Preparing and Presenting Expert Testimony, traffic engineer and accident reconstruction expert witness Lawrence Levine writes:

All too often an expert walks into court and it is discovered through questioning that he or she only saw the site the day before trial; that he or she only saw photographs provided by the attorney and did not see several others; or that he or she did not bring their notes to court. To a jury or a judge who is trying to determine the merits of a case as well as the reliability and truthfulness of the witness before them, any one of these questions can totally undermine the expert’s credibility. Once credibility is lost, generally the tryer of fact and jury members discounts the witness.

Gathering of Information The investigating traffic engineer must determine exactly which aspects of the case are within his realm of responsibility if he is to be a fact witness. Fact witnesses generally are not asked for opinions. For the traffic engineer who will appear as an expert witness, opinions will be required. Therefore, it is expected that they will have familiarized themselves with the following:

Insurance claims expert witnesses may opine on insurance policy interpretation, insurance fraud, and related topics. In 8 Great Ways to Get Busted for Auto Insurance Fraud, Insurance.com writes:

Insurance fraud is becoming more frequent as people look for “creative” ways to make money in the struggling economy. Insurance companies find that people file more claims in a down economy, often for smaller amounts. And, fraud is an increasing problem. With so many claims for car insurance companies to process, it may seem like a fraudulent claim can slip through unnoticed. Not so.

Just like the team on CSI uses advanced techniques to analyze evidence and figure out what happened, an insurance company’s Special Investigations Unit or SIU-which often includes reps with law enforcement experience-conducts a thorough investigation to detect fraud. (Please note that Insurance.com reminds consumers that insurance fraud is illegal and a very bad idea.) Here are a few things fraudsters try to get away with-and why it’s rare that they will:

Affidavit of service expert witnesses may opine regarding the process server’s work product. The National Association of Professional Process Servers has established the Standards, Best Practices and The Policy Manual for professional process servers which includes this information:

Jurat A jurat is a certificate by the person before whom a writing was sworn and is designed to compel truthfulness on the part of the signer. The jurat is completed during the execution of an affidavit and is generally written at the foot of an affidavit stating when, where, and before whom such affidavit was sworn. Before executing a jurat, a Notary Public must be satisfied as to the identity of the signor, and the voluntary nature of that person’s signature. The signing of the affidavit, and the execution of the jurat, is required by all states to be done at the same time in the physical presence of each other.

The jurat initiates a legal process that could eventually result in criminal conviction and punishment if the signor is later found to have lied.

Trucking expert witnesses may write reports and testify regarding federal motor carrier safety regulations, qualifications of truck drivers, federal motor vehicle safety standards, and truck maintenance, among other topics. In Maintenance Musts, Steve Sturgess, Executive Editor truckinginfo.com, writes:

Looking at peer fleet information using the CSA 2010 criteria, as many as 10 to15 percent of large fleets (with more than 500 power units) are at risk of intervention for maintenance-related violations, the study found. As fleet size gets smaller, the at-risk ranking gets bigger and bigger. In the one-to-five fleet size, one small fleet in four is potentially looking at FMCSA intervention for maintenance problems…

Rair President and CEO J.J. Singh says one solution is the correct and careful use of the Driver Vehicle Inspection Report that is filled out – or should be – every day by the truck driver. “The bigger fleets have a more proactive approach to maintenance and more rigorous processes to act on the DVIR,” he says. “But even so, 10 to 15 percent of even those fleets are at risk of intervention. There is a need for training of drivers in the proper inspection and reporting on the DVIR, and then a robust process to correct in a timely manner any problems identified.”

Public storage expert witnesses may write reports and testify on mini-warehouses, storage warehouses, and self storage units. In Going Your Separate Ways: Evicting the Trouble-Maker Tenant, attorney William D. Farrar writes descirbes the cost in having a trouble making tenant:

As hard as tenants are to get in the first place, we truly dislike having to ask one to leave. However, the “cost” in having a trouble-making tenant stay will far exceed the rent they are paying. The “cost” in other tenants being unhappy, and leaving, negative publicity, and management time dealing with ongoing problems will add up! After all, you can quantify your loss from an empty unit- not so the problem tenant. Sometimes an empty unit is better than one with rented problems!

Read more: selfstorageguide.com.