Marine Investigations

Marine Investigations

Road to A Marine Investigator

by David Pascoe

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Chapter 2

The Nature of Investigations



Excerpt

Marine investigations bear distinct similarities to criminal investigations of police professionals. Throughout this book I stress the similarities to police work for reasons that will become self-evident. The similarities are:

1. Important decisions will be made based on the results.

2. The results of investigations have a high probability of being litigated.

3. A similar degree of professionalism is required to be credible.

4. Competence and technical skills required are similar.

5. People's lives may be affected by the outcome.

6. The investigator exposes himself to a degree of risk in the form of civil liabilities.

7. Some investigations become linked to criminal actions.

Marine investigations are unlike criminal investigations in the following ways:

1. In-court application of investigation results is civil, not criminal action.

2. Rules for evidence handling are less stringent.

3. With insurance cases the subject is a customer of our client and not an adversary.

4. The investigator is performing a business service and not a police function.

5. Investigator has no official authority.

The very word "investigator" probably conjures up all kinds of inaccurate notions about the marine investigator. Detective, private eye, and too many TV shows and movies are likely to come to mind, but the marine investigator is nothing so glamorous, though occasionally our work involves spectacular and/or costly casualties such as major fires, collisions and even fatalities.

The subjects of investigation begin with marine casualties either in the form of property loss, damage, warranty claims, structural failures, other plaintiff actions, personal injury and the issue of general liability — who or what is responsible for the loss or injury. The number one client for marine investigators is, of course, the insurance companies that insure boats. Since boats function in a risky environment this inevitably means that there is no shortage of casualties to be investigated.

The types of casualties that marine investigators become involved with are wide ranging and can encompass the unusual. The maxim that truth is stranger than fiction certainly applies to the subject of marine investigations. From the person who is thrown out of a boat and then is run down by the runaway boat, to a husband and his mistress found dead aboard a boat, locked in amorous embrace — victims of carbon monoxide poisoning. The variety of casualties that we work with is not infrequently bizarre and challenging.

Copyright© 2004 David H. Pascoe
(Additional spaces are added for easy screen reading.)



Table of Contents: Chapter Chapter 2


2. The Nature of Investigations 23

Tools Needed 28


Communication with Insured and Insurer 30

Relations with the Insured and Insurer 30
Investigator as Adversary 32
Sidestepping Questions 34
Taking Statements 34
The Art of Listening 35
First Notice from Client 36
First Contacts with Insured 36

Getting Started 38

Keeping Logs 39
Frequent File Review 40
The Investigation Book 40

Travel Jobs 41

Preparation for Travel 42
Fees 44
Business Arrangements 45

Joint Investigations 47

Evidence 48
Avoiding the Circus 48
When Evidence is Perishable 49
Joint Procedure 49

Legal Implications 51

Copyright© 2004 David H. Pascoe

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Expand Business!
Marine surveyors:
Expand your marine business!
Conducting marine investigations can help free you from the limitations of a seasonal business and expand your business opportunities and income.
Who Hires?
Who hires marine investigators?
In addition to insurance companies, specialist investigators merge their specialized pleasure craft knowledge with investigative abilities for a broad range of clientele.
Clientele
These can range from boat owners with serious warranty claim disputes and faulty repair issues to being hired by lawyers as investigators as either fact witnesses or expert witnesses.
Marine investigators often work for boat owners who are having trouble with insurance claim issues, assisting the boat owner obtain a proper claims settlement.

Marine Investigations Marine Investigations
by
Soft Cover
544 pages
Publisher: D. H. Pascoe & Co., Inc.
Published: 2004
Language: English
ISBN-10:0965649652
ISBN-13: 9780965649650
Price: $44.50
In Stock


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David Pascoe - Biography

David Pascoe is a second generation marine surveyor in his family who began his surveying career at age 16 as an apprentice in 1965 as the era of wooden boats was drawing to a close.

Certified by the National Association of Marine Surveyors in 1972, he has conducted over 5,000 pre purchase surveys in addition to having conducted hundreds of boating accident investigations, including fires, sinkings, hull failures and machinery failure analysis.

Over forty years of knowledge and experience are brought to bear in following books. David Pascoe is the author of:

In addition to readers in the United States, boaters and boat industry professionals worldwide from over 70 countries have purchased David Pascoe's books, since introduction of his first book in 2001.

In 2012, David Pascoe has retired from marine surveying business at age 65.

On November 23rd, 2018, David Pascoe has passed away at age 71.

Biography - Long version

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