I am often asked by potential clients if my fees to prepare a business interruption insurance claim will be reimbursed by the insurance company.

This is a valid question because experts in business interruption claims are not cheap, and risk managers, corporate officers, and business owners want to clearly understand what they’re getting into before hiring a consultant to prepare their business income claim.

For me, though, the question is frustrating because it implies that if my fees are not reimbursable, then the insured should not retain me or any other forensic accounting expert. I know from experience that this is a false assumption for insured parties to make. For example, I just closed a file two weeks ago and my total fees were approximately $27,000. What did the client get for that money? The insurance company, and the insurance company’s forensic accountant, valued the loss at $890,000. The final settlement, based on my calculations and critique of the insurance company’s report, was $1,650,000.

Was $27,000 a good investment for a return of an additional $760,000, regardless of whether or not my fees were reimbursed by the insurance company? I know from experience that insured parties recover, on average, five times my fees in additional claim dollars. Yep, you read that right: on average, 500% ROI.

So here’s the burning question: Do you trust the insurance company’s expert to come up with the right number to settle your claim, or do you trust your own expert?