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By Donald Perkins
If a person is unscrupulous enough to set or cause to set a fire, he/she will usually be fraudulent during the insurance claim procedure. Thus, DOCUMENTATION of the fire scene is one of the most crucial segments to a criminal/civil investigation, especially when dealing with fraud. The fire scene DOCUMENTATION is a permanent record of the investigation and will provide whoever reads it with all the information necessary to understand how the fire occurred, as well as what contents were present, or not present, at the time of the fire. An investigator’s close examination and evaluation of the burn/char indicators and remaining evidence are not worth a dime if the findings are not documented in a detailed, precise manner. And if/when it ever comes to testifying in court, extensive documentation and extremely high credibility go hand in hand.
DOCUMENTATION of the fire scene comes in three disciplines. These include report writing, photography and diagraming. Since report writing is the base of the foundation of the case, reports should be accurate, concise and offer the reader a systematic approach to the investigative conclusion. Proper grammar and correct spelling go without question. The investigator’s professional ability in report writing is a direct reflection upon him and upon the organization he represents.
Before the investigator begins the report, it is important that he review all notes and photographs carefully. If a video of the fire scene was taken, it should be viewed before and after the report is written to ensure that no pertinent information has been overlooked. As with any field of investigation, a thorough check-off list will cover most of the pertinent details necessary for the report and will insure that all bases have been covered. With a thorough check-off list, no questions are left unanswered. Where was the gas shut off? Was that a wood shake roof or composition shingles? What size electrical service supplied the home? Did the fire department find the door unlocked or did they force entry? Were there any signs of forced entry into the home? Most importantly, a check-off list will reinforce to any eventual jury that the scene investigation was both systematic and thorough, thereby lending credibility to the testimony.
The INTERVIEW section of a well written report will vary depending upon the type of investigation; civil or criminal. Remember to include only that information that is pertinent to the case. Additional superfluous information and suppositions will only open other areas of opposition to attack if litigation should arise. A top notch investigator, when noting information that appears important but does not fall into his personal realm of expertise, will VERBALLY report his views and/or concerns to the fire authority or claims adjuster, but will not include them in his written investigative report.
The investigator, when conducting the initial interview, should be sure to obtain at least two phone numbers. Besides the home phone, the business phone or the phone number of a close friend or relative is helpful. This way, there is less difficulty encountered notifying witnesses if/when litigation later occurs. A good report will include sequential interviews; beginning with the insured, followed by witnesses who first discovered the fire, then first-in observations by firefighters and continued with any additional witnesses pertinent to the case.
Interviewing the insured will vary with the type and circumstance of each fire situation. It is important to remember that fraud can result from an accidental fire as well as a fire of incendiary origin, therefore it is also important that the contents and their value be established at an early point in the investigation. The timing of the interview is also important, especially if the insured first witnessed the fire in its incipient (beginning) stage. Facts provided by the insured concerning the arrangement of furnishings and contents within the area/point of fire origin can prove to be very important. This provides the investigator with an understanding of the expected fire behavior at the area/point of fire origin and he will record it in his diagram. Burn/char patterns are a direct result of the fire behavior which is based on the fuels (contents) and ventilation present in the area of fire origin, all necessary information to support the report’s conclusion.
The good investigator will, when initially interviewing the insured, always ask for the location of specialty equipment or items of high value such as jewelry or clothing. Stressing the possibility that they survived the fire, he also asks for the locations of insurance policies, photographs and family heirlooms. These items should be individually listed in the report and will include the manufacturer, quality and brand of clothing alleged to have been lost. All of this DOCUMENTED information will assist in the fire investigation plus help immensely when the insured presents the proof of loss statement to the insurance carrier. (It is not unusual for a fraud intent claimant to “suddenly remember,” as he’s later completing his proof of loss statement for his contents claim, his wife’s four mink coats and his own dozen Armani suits.)
When the investigator has correctly left time to verify some of the items declared by the insured in the initial interview, it often is of later help to the adjuster. If the fire is of an incendiary origin or if there are suspicious circumstances surrounding the fire loss, all items mentioned by the insured should be carefully documented. A top investigator will count coat hangers, look for clothing labels, attempt to ascertain the quality and construction of the furniture, look for brass headboards or fixtures, look for manufacturer’s plates, etc. He will then photograph and DOCUMENT all findings. The closing of the report should make reference to additional or supplemental reports that may follow.
Good investigators are quick to agree that good report writing skills do not come easy; they are the result of diligent work and development of a consistent format. They also agree that it is helpful to try to dictate a major portion of their observations at the fire scene. This greatly enhances the overall reports due to the visualization aspects. In this way there is no lapse of memory regarding details of the fire scene should the actual report dictation be done a few days after the on-site investigation.
Photographs support the written report with accurate representation of the burn/char patterns, fire damage, and the condition of the contents at the time of the investigation. Photography includes 35mm photographs, slides, and video documentation of the fire scene. Types and areas of photography are dependent upon the investigation that is being conducted. In the case of a total fire loss, down to the foundation, the photographs can make or break an arson for fraud case. In a total fire loss, it is highly important that the investigator obtain a diagram of the building and contents in each room from the owner/insured. The thoroughness of his report will be enhanced if he reviews the diagram with the insured, DOCUMENTING this interview with either a video tape or a tape recorder, prior to the fire scene investigation.
In most fire scene investigations, 35mm color photographs provide the norm. It is of great importance that the viewer be provided with an overall visual understanding of the fire and that there be enough photographs to DOCUMENT and accurately support the conclusions of the investigator. Depending on the size of the loss and the circumstances of the fire, an average of 36 to 72 exposures should be considered normal for a residential dwelling.
Another form of photography is the use of a video tape recorder and is a well-formed habit of a good fire investigator. In this way he is able to provide himself an excellent opportunity to review before he writes his report and insures that no pertinent details are left out. If the video is shot in a chronology similar to the investigation, starting with the exterior of the structure and working into the area/point of fire origin, it provides an excellent DOCUMENTATION of a fire scene; one that will not be available in its same form once litigation begins. Additionally, a video recorder will also capture the attitude and demeanor of the person being interviewed, another valuable tool in eventual litigation procedures.
Fire investigators, in those instances when video recordings are not an option, will record the interview via the use of a small tape recorder. Armed with a laundry list of questions pertinent to the case, he can obtain complete answers to questions. Then, when the actual report is written, his need for any memory guesswork is eliminated.
A complete fire investigation report will include a diagram of the structure and of the area/point of fire origin. This is used to orient the reader to the structure and its relationship to other buildings as well as to its proximate location to the street. In most instances, it need not be to scale. Whenever possible, the north side of the building appears at the top of the page as this allows compass locations to be used in the written report and serve as an assist to the reader toward understanding the details of the case.
DOCUMENTATION of a fire scene is the key to a successful investigation and prosecution of arson for fraud. In fact, it is the number one priority in any fire case, whether arson or accidental. The investigators testimony, based on clear, concise, thorough DOCUMENTATION, will dictate a favorable result in a litigated case and, most especially, in a fraud prosecution. Good luck and DOCUMENT! DOCUMENT! DOCUMENT!
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