In our opinion there are three stages at which you can ask for help with a construction claim before it heads towards arbitration, starting with the best time and going from there. You can opt for before a claim has even arisen, as soon as you receive a claims notice, or you can wait until conversations with the other party progress. Here are our top line thoughts.
Advice to prevent claims notices
The best moment to ask for help is before a claim has even arisen. Get a claims consultant involved right at the start and you can set yourself up to better manage disputes and head claims notices off at the pass. Whether you're defending a claim or raising one, the crucial element is having your facts straight - having a clear understanding of what's happening, where and when, so you can prevent issues from escalating, frame any arguments or counter arguments, and perhaps most importantly see the other side.
Benefits include:
Maintaining good communications
Identifying any issues early
Getting an outside perspective
Ensuring you're keeping track of events in case an issue occurs
Makes it easier to resolve any potential disputes
Advice once a claims notice has been raised
Failing option one, the second best time to ask for help with a construction claim is when a claims notice has been raised. Getting professional support at the outset does two things - it shows you're taking it seriously and it lets you know where you stand. That outside perspective is essential, especially if tensions are beginning to escalate. Your claims consultant will be able to advise you about the realities of your position, help you get your information in order if it isn't already, and if they're good at what they do, they will help you to see if/what the path is towards a resolution.
An outside perspective can help maintain relations
Greater likelihood of a swift resolution
More cost-effective than a long drawn-out argument
More likely to maintain positive relationships
Advice when a claims notice is escalating
The least favourable time to enlist the support of a claims consultant is when the claim is escalating and communications have broken down - although it’s still better to ask for help than not. At this point if someone doesn't intervene quickly then you could easily end up facing litigation, and the costly, damaging as well as binary results that come from that process. A claims consultant can help you to see where there are holes in your own perspective, they can make sure you don't make errors in your communications, and they can (if they're good), give you an honest perspective on the likely outcome for you.
Minimises the fallout of the dispute
Shows you're taking it seriously
Helps you to see two sides
Our claims consultants have more than 30 years’ experience protecting the interests of our clients.
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