Exciting news: We spent a large chunk of 2019 developing a new course, The Perfect Claim. Now, we’re ready to share it with you in 2020. But first, let’s take a step back. Why the need for another course?

Well…

Notably, the Arcadis Global Construction Dispute Report 2019 cited:

• Poorly drafted and unsubstantiated claims.
• Failure to serve appropriate notices.
• Neglecting to properly administer the contract.
• Failure to understand and/or comply with contractual obligations.

as the leading causes of time-consuming and costly disputes. Similarly, HKA’s Claims and Dispute Causation report agrees with this and adds:

• Spurious, over-inflated, opportunistic and unsubstantiated claims.
• Contract management and/or administration failure.
• Poor levels of skill and experience.

As you can see, these pretty damning reports are suggesting the construction industry is failing in the skills it needs. Knowledge and experience in effective contract management and administration are lacking. This is especially true for claims management and preparation.

What’s the problem?

Why is the industry failing in these skills? Well, to us, it seems pretty obvious. Often, the people that deal with these matters do not have the skills and experience they need. Companies frequently have not invested in the necessary education or training on these subjects. Let’s be honest, these are not skills that are taught at university. They are picked up on the job. But from these reports, this on-the-job learning is not working very well, which is causing the problems we’re seeing.

However, at Claims Class, we have a solution to this problem. We have launched a new course for 2020: The Perfect Claim.

This new suite of e-courses takes you step-by-step through a claim for an extension of time and the payment of costs. The course is based on a project where unforeseeable ground conditions were encountered. It deals with the many issues that you are likely to encounter on your projects and claims for loss and expense.

Along the way, we deal with contract administration and record keeping. The course also examines notices, delay analyses, cost calculations and claim preparation and presentation. In short, everything you need to know to prepare a claim.  Preparing the perfect claim is a sure-fire way to ensure its success.

The Perfect Claim’s e-course format means you can study in your own time and comes with three levels of learning.

Three Levels

Basic:

Perfect for those who want the knowledge without the commitment of practical study. Consisting of 5 hours of video tutorials, plus 13 written resources, papers and the example claim used in the videos. There is no commitment to assignments or pressure of pass or fail. This course is ideal for those who want to enhance their knowledge at an introductory level.

Intermediate:

Ideal for those looking for a slightly more in-depth course. Intermediate offers you 5 hours of video tutorials, 16 written resources and papers including 2 example claims. This course is tutor supported and students are set assignments related to each module of the course. Students receive grading from their tutor together with comments and advice on their work. The Intermediate course will take an average student around 35 hours to complete. Successful graduation will provide the skills and knowledge necessary to manage claims professionally. It also qualifies the student for Associate membership with the Institute of Construction Claims Practitioners.

Premium:

The Premium course has been designed for those who wish to achieve a high level of expertise in claims, to enhance their careers.  Tutor-supported, the course contains 5 hours of video tutorials, 16 written resources and 2 example claims. As you make your way through the case study, you’ll produce many of the documents you would be likely to come across on your project. This includes notices, delay-analysis, cost calculations and the claim-narrative.

Students will receive support and advice from their tutor, providing valuable feedback. You’ll receive each assignment back graded with commentary. We also provide model answers for each assignment, these form a valuable reference for the future. At the end of the course, you will have produced a full claim based upon the case study. This course will require a commitment of around 65 hours for the average student. Successful graduation will qualify you for full membership with the Institute of Construction Claims Practitioners.

Claims Class courses are different because we don’t just teach theory. We provide practical training based on real scenarios that you can immediately apply to your projects. Whether you need a refresher, an overview, or you wish to move towards serious expertise, there is a Perfect Claim Course for you. As a result of our state of the art online system, you can study in your own time and at your own convenience and enhance your career prospects, starting today.