Fire investigation has changed dramatically in the past several years, and has changed in ways and directions never before seen. The days of "oh well, I guess it was just an accident" are long gone. We now have insurance carriers looking for some form of restitution for the losses they suffer due to the carelessness of those not covered by their policies. Add to this, the many attorneys who handle these cases and you end up with a mix of attitudes, individualities and experiences.

I have the opportunity through my work, to be exposed to both the public sector, in my firefighting career, and the private sector, with my private investigations company. I have seen the different ways the two sides handle fire investigations. Both sides let their own stubbornness and ill feelings for the "other" get in the way of doing their job. I also have the pleasure of instructing at the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice’s Basic Course for Arson Investigators. This experience has given me greater exposure to the ideas that public sector investigators, both fire and police share. In this initial level course, we attempt to explain the advantages of the two sides working together. My fellow instructor, Ms. Donna Hogan of Prudential Insurance and I seek to accomplish this explanation as we do our "dog & pony show" for the attendees. During this classroom section, we explain the workings of a private sector investigation and the advantages of allowing, "them damn private guys" into the public world. The insurance carriers and their investigators have access to expert testing labs and other tools at that are often not available to the public sector due to cost and time constraints. In other words, the insurance carriers have much "deeper pockets" to dig into with which to drive their investigations.

In New Jersey, for example, the public and private sectors can "share" information and are protected by the Arson Immunity Statute. It’s a nice "Quid-Pro-Quo" arrangement. The two sides can help each other, as long as they are very careful not to cross the lines which separate them and that must always remain in place. A good defense attorney can easily spot when one side or the other crosses over and commits an act of collusion, which can jeopardize the investigation. In this day with all of the legal issues we run into on a daily basis, a careful investigator must take all possible precautions to avoid this situation.

Some of the advantages an insurance carrier’s investigator has over public sector investigator is the ability to enter the subject property as many times as they deem is necessary to thoroughly conduct their investigation. This is accomplished by the "right by contract", which is agreed upon by the insured when they accept the terms of insurance coverage. In New Jersey, a public sector investigator would have to either gain written permission or a warrant to reenter to subject property once they give up control of the incident’s scene. Another advantage of the private sector investigator is that insured is contractually required to assist the investigation in any way, which is deemed necessary by the private investigator. This can even include the giving of statements, both taped and otherwise. The insurance carrier can even insist on an "E.U.O." or Examination Under Oath, which is a taped statement usually performed by the insurance carrier attorneys and members of their "S.I.U." or Special Investigations Unit. It is at this point where the insured can officially, verbally be held to his or her word, thus making perjury a possibility.

The insurance investigator’s biggest disadvantage has is the fact that they are rarely the first investigator on the scene and rarely get the opportunity to examine a pristine scene. This makes the initial public sector investigator’s photos and reports extremely important to the private investigator. In fact, they are as important to the private investigator as any of the statements or other information collected by the private investigator are to the public investigator.

Now this article was just a quick and brief view of how the "bizz" works in New Jersey (from my point of view). However, I would check and verify the laws, which govern these issues in your state.

In closing, I would make only one request of the fire investigators out there "digging ‘em out" day in and day out, OPEN YOUR EYES, see and use ALL advantages that are available to you, no matter where they may come from.