Depending on the severity of the case, insurance companies will issue insurance reports in the event of an insured event, with the purpose of determining the amount and cause of damage. This can be used to ascertain whether other parties may have committed a criminal offence. For instance, a child may have sustained a serious injury on a playground, resulting in consequences for which the insurance company of its parents or the playground´s operator would have to cover the costs. An expert opinion can provide information as to whether the injury was purely accidental or whether the condition of the safety surfacing was a contributing factor to the injury. If damage can be identified that is avoidable and for which the operator is responsible, it is possible that the operator may be held liable. In such cases, however, the consideration of additional expert opinions may be necessary.

Party opinion

As the name suggests, this expert opinion is commissioned by a party involved in legal proceedings. In most cases, one or more of the parties involved in the proceedings submit an expert opinion that they have commissioned themselves. This is referred to as a 'party opinion'. It is often also referred to as a 'private expert opinion', but since local authorities, associations or companies can also commission such expert opinions, the term 'party opinion' is more appropriate. If, for instance, in the previous example of an injury sustained on a playground, the injured person suffers private disadvantages, such as the cancellation of a holiday trip or the need to procure expensive medical equipment, the operator may be held liable and the injured person may be able to pursue their own legal claims with the help of a party opinion or private expert opinion.