FAQS

A building expert is, as the title suggests, an expert in his field. But he is above all a qualified technician with experience in the construction industry.

He gets his title from his level of competence acquired through his professional experience and the training he has undergone. This training must have been followed by a recognised organisation, thus guaranteeing his level of qualification.

He can have several roles, insurance expert, insured expert, construction expert or legal expert.

Whatever his role, the expert will be there to provide the necessary technical support in a case. Thanks to his methodology, his analytical skills, his knowledge of the reference texts, his mastery of construction techniques and building pathologies, he will be able to define the “technical truth” in a specific project. He will thus be able to oppose responsibilities, recommend improvements and solutions to identified problems.

He is an indispensable intermediary in the event of a claim or dispute.

Anyone can request the services of a building expert. Whether you are a private person, a company, an insurance company or a syndic for example, you can request the services of a building expert.

Following disputed works, following a claim, following a previous expertise where you feel you have been wronged, if you have doubts about works in progress etc…

The reasons can be multiple, the simplest is still to contact us and we will see if yes or no an expertise is necessary and under which form. There are no wrong questions, so don’t hesitate, contact us!

Simple question, simple answer, as soon as possible! Indeed, depending on the desired mission, it is important to contact a building expert quickly.

Because of certain legal deadlines linked to guarantees or prescriptions, it is important that the expert who will follow your request has the time to prepare his mission. The work of an expert is accompanied by prior research, which, depending on the type of research, can take more or less time.

If you start early enough, you will have enough time to define the desired mission and to be guided in an optimal way.

The nuance is sometimes misunderstood by the uninitiated, especially when we have never had to deal with a damage incident.

The insurance expert is the person assigned by your insurance company following the declaration of a damage. His client is the insurance company, you do not have to pay him anything.

The insured’s expert is an expert appointed by you in the event of disagreement with the insurance expert’s report. You are his client, so it is up to you to pay him.

The insurance expert intervenes following a damage report. His role is to check the accuracy of the insurance contract, assess the circumstances, note the damage and calculate the amount of compensation to be awarded.

Intervening on the account of the insurance company, he must ensure that the declarations are accurate and consistent with the claim. When appointed by an insurance company, he goes to the site, establishes the reported loss and proposes a compensation amount. This sum is calculated on the base of the guarantees subscribed and according to a scale specific to each company.

When the amount at issue is high, it is preferable to be accompanied by another expert, appointed by you, to ensure that your losses are fairly assessed.

It may happen that you disagree with the amount of compensation proposed by your insurance company. Therefore, you have the possibility not to accept the initial amount proposed that you consider insufficient. To do this, a counter-examination by a new expert, appointed by you, can provide evidence and calculation notes to justify your claim. This is called an insured’s expertise.

Please note that you have 2 years from the date your insurance company became aware of the loss to have your expert report carried out, this is the legal limitation period according to article L114-1 of the Insurance Code.

The insured’s expert is an independent expert who intervenes at your request in order to defend your interests in the event of a damage. His role is to make sure that the expertise carried out by the insurance expert is fair and that the amount of compensation is adapted to the prejudice suffered.

He can intervene as a negotiator with the insurance expert in order to re-evaluate the amount of the compensation, but note that he remains at your charge, except in cases provided for in the general conditions of your insurance contract.

Remember that an expertise has a cost, do not systematically refuse the proposed compensation, the potential gain will not necessarily compensate the amount of the fees. Ask your personal expert, he will be able to guide you.

He is an expert specialised in the fields of construction, his role is to understand the cause of a claim in order to provide technical support, to define its origin and to propose sustainable solutions.

He can intervene at the request of a private individual who feels that the work carried out on his property does not meet his expectations and the contract signed with the company.

In the same way, he can also be called by a company challenged by one of its clients to find an amicable solution in the event of a dispute.

Following a claim, his mission is different from that of the insurance/insured experts, he does not limit himself to estimating the cost of repairs or calculating the compensation, he must use all the means at his disposal to determine the origin of the claim.

Like a real investigator, he will have to carry out research or have additional analyses and studies carried out. He may have to use various measuring devices to carry out his mission.

The mission must be defined with you in order to target the areas of action and in what form you want the result of the expertise.

There are judicial experts in all fields, construction, medicine, automobile etc… When amicable expert assessments are not successful, a judicial expert assessment can be requested by one or other of the parties.

In this case, a new independent expert is ordered by the judge. He carries out his own expertise and analyses the parties’ files.

His knowledge of insurance law, town planning and construction law makes him an important contributor. He is there to report the facts to the judge in order to help him in his final decision, he does not take part and is impartial.

This expert does not have the role of making a proposal for reparation or any other, he is not there for the conciliation. He is an auxiliary of justice and his approach is contradictory. He collects the elements of all the parties to the proceedings and records his findings in his report which he gives to the judge. Based on his analysis of the facts, it is up to the judge to make the final decision, in no case the legal expert can make a legal appreciation.

It should be noted that in such a procedure, the judge is not obliged to follow the report, but in the majority of cases, the conclusions of the report are adopted.

An expertise is not material, it does not have a standard cost.
It is important to understand that each case is different, we do not spend as much time analysing a 15m² terrace and a 150m² roof for example. In the same way, giving a technical opinion and a complete expert report on several areas will not take the same time.

It all depends on the nature of the mission desired and the area concerned. A case-by-case study is essential, which is why an estimate is drawn up.

To give you an idea, for an expertise carried out by Atac-expertise you should count 90€TTC per hour and for travel, count 1€TTC per kilometre. I invite you to contact us in order to study together the proposal best adapted to your needs.

The choice is not easy and it is an important decision. The first contacts are essential, they allow you to be sure that the expert has the skills to respond to your requirements, that he can deal with your case within an acceptable timeframe and to define together the possible missions.

The exchanges must be clear and transparent. The expert may ask you for personal documents, the outcome of your project may depend on it, you must have confidence in him.

We recommend that you do not hesitate to contact us, and we will evaluate together to what level we can work on your request.