Okay. So; this year’s conference focused on changes in the law, technological implications and the impact of Brexit. An all-round success across the board. Totally relevant for all industries however there was just one problem; no marine surveyors were present.  I kid you not – none. Other than a field specialist in Dynamic Positioning I was the only ‘marine surveyor’ in attendance. Dwarfed by the crowds of architects, quantity surveyors, RICS candidates, psychiatrists, accountant’s legal beavers and medics covering a variety of fields I felt rather unloved. On several occasions, I was asked about my trade and specialisation; all good questions of course but there was a base line to this which was the stereotypical idea that marine surveyors are cross trade enthusiasts without qualification. Many times in conversation when describing what I do for a living I was asked the question “What qualification do you have?” and heard the phrase from another “Anyone can be a surveyor.” I’m lucky. Having spent much of my short life to date on the water, I’ve got a degree in a parallel relevant subject, obtained sea time on yachts and with the Navy and have since partaken in the Diploma schemes founded to remove this type of stigma. My training however, will never be over. My field of expertise rests with ‘expert valuation’ having completed over 100 this year to date with several in arbitration at present. This is in addition to high value logistics (specifically the handling and securing of high value cargoes) an area in which I have worked and studied for more than ten years. Explaining these basic facts to my peers at the conference won me some points and by the end of the day you could say I was one of them but nonetheless always feeling slightly like a guest amongst others.

My situation was worsened slightly when the advent of expert fees was discussed in the afternoon.  A little unsure of where the data came from Bond Solon produced a spreadsheet to all delegates giving a breakdown of expert’s fees including hourly rates, report production costs and court appearance costs etc. (apparently from survey data). I was slightly dismayed to see that on all levels the marine surveyor was listed as the lowest in all fields. Whilst I expect barristers, solicitors, consultants and superhero grade medics to hold a higher status in terms of chargeable income I thought the marine surveyor would sit slightly higher than tree surgeons and driving instructors; perhaps on a level par with quantity or building surveyors but alas no. We are at the bottom of the pile. This raises the question of where did this information come from; is it entirely accurate and who out there is charging just £60 per hour for expert witness testimony? Not only should we be looking at the standardisation of qualification within our industry but I think it is about time we started looking at standardising fees also. The difference in fee structure throughout our own membership at the IIMS is huge; often when working quayside you may have two or three surveyors on site representing different parties all of which charge hugely different sums for what is effectively the same work – is this fair, or indeed correct?