ITIC’s comprehensive professional indemnity insurance is tailored to suit the specific needs of aviation professionals
such as:
• Aircraft designers
• Aircraft managers
• Aircraft asset managers
• Aircraft technical managers
• Aviation registries
• Aviation brokers
• Aviation consultants
• Aviation claims managers
• Aviation risk managers
To demonstrate potential liabilities of aviation professionals, the following claims scenarios may be helpful.
Aviation Loss Adjuster
Underwriters instructed an aviation loss adjuster to investigate and handle a claim arising out of the loss of an aircraft. The investigations by the loss adjuster, a former engineer, led him to believe that the cause of the loss was mechanical failure of the engine. On this basis, the underwriters commenced litigation against the engine manufacturers. However, the manufacturers instructed an expert witness who countered the loss adjuster’s allegations of mechanical failure. Despite the evidence of the expert witness, the loss adjuster believed their investigation was correct, and on this basis, the underwriters continued with the litigation.
When the litigation was fairly advanced, evidence from the engine manufacturer’s expert witness was disclosed which showed that the loss adjuster’s theory on why the engine malfunctioned was clearly incorrect. Furthermore, this evidence was always available to the loss adjuster, but he had simply missed it.
The underwriters had no choice but to settle the claim on the best possible terms available. However, they incurred a substantial costs liability. They then sought to recover the wasted litigation costs from the loss adjuster, claiming that the loss adjuster had been negligent in (a) failing to see the evidence at the beginning, or alternatively (b) failing to acknowledge that they were incorrect following the defendant’s expert report.
The Club sought legal advice on behalf of the loss adjuster, and it became apparent that the loss adjuster was negligent in their handling of the investigation and claim. On this basis, the Club settled the underwriters’ claim.
Aircraft Designer
A designer of light aircraft was asked by an aircraft builder to design a single turbo prop aircraft, which was to be used as an air ambulance service between various small islands off the coast of Ireland.
The aircraft was designed and then built by aircraft manufacturers. Following delivery, the end user discovered small cracks in the hull of the aircraft. The aircraft was repeatedly returned to the builder for repairs, but the cracks continued to reappear on the hull. Eventually, the end user decided to claim against the manufacturer for supplying a defective product. In turn, the manufacturer claimed that there was nothing wrong with the build quality of the aircraft, but rather that it had been designed badly, and this was what caused the cracks. The designer was therefore brought into the proceedings as a third party defendant (along with various other parties including the propeller manufacturers and the hull manufacturers).
Upon investigation, it became apparent that the cracks were caused by excessive vibrations in the hull. Various theories for the vibrations were considered, but the most likely explanation was that the propeller was at fault due to unforeseen frequency resonations. This was something that the designers had considered and tested for, and they provided their calculations. However, as the hull was a completely new design, it did not resonate as had been previously predicted. Therefore, it was clear that the designer had not been negligent in the provision of his service to the manufacturer. Furthermore, there were certain reservations concerning both the weld quality of the hull by the manufacturer and the actual build quality of the hull material itself. The Club defended the designer successfully.
