Duties and Code of Conduct of a Surveyor and Loss Assessor
The complete list, not the highlights: what IRDAI says a surveyor must do on every claim, and how a surveyor must behave.
IRDAI's surveyor regulations set out what a surveyor must do in regulation 13 and how a surveyor must behave in regulation 16. Both apply to every licensed or registered surveyor, on every claim, whether appointed by the insurer or the insured.
The general duty comes first: to investigate, manage, quantify, validate and deal with losses, whether insured or not, and report on them to the insurer or the insured, with competence, objectivity and professional integrity.
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Every Duty in Regulation 13
In the order insurers reproduce them. The right-hand column is what the duty looks like on a claim.
| Duty | On a claim |
|---|---|
| Declare any interest in the subject matter, including through relatives, business partners or a material shareholding | First page of the report. "Relative" has the Companies Act, 2013 meaning |
| Tell IRDAI within 15 days of any change in the particulars given for the licence | A change of address, firm or anything bearing on the licence |
| Keep confidentiality and neutrality, without jeopardising the insurer's liability or the insured's claim | Neither side's advocate |
| Inspect and re-inspect the property that suffered the loss | Site visits, before and after repairs where needed |
| Examine and verify the cause and circumstances, the extent of loss, ownership and insurable interest | Who owns it, and was the insured entitled to insure it |
| Conduct spot and final surveys, and comment on franchise, excess and under-insurance | Average and excess go in the report |
| Estimate, measure and determine the quantum and description of the loss | The assessed amount |
| Advise insurer and insured on loss minimisation, loss control, security and safety | Stop further damage; prevent the next loss |
| Comment on admissibility and assess the insurer's liability under the policy terms | Wording as substituted in 2020 |
| Survey and assess the loss on behalf of the insurer or the insured | Whoever appointed the surveyor |
| Point out any discrepancy in the policy wording | Gaps or conflicts found while reading the policy |
| Answer queries of the insured, the insurer and others connected with the claim | Part of the job, not a favour |
| Recommend whether depreciation applies, its percentage and amount | For example the motor parts schedule |
| Give reasons where the claim is not covered | A repudiation recommendation without reasons is incomplete |
| Take expert opinion where needed | Forensic, engineering, chemical analysis |
| Comment on salvage and its disposal | Who keeps it and at what value |
| A surveyor who is a director or partner of a firm seeking a corporate licence surveys and reports only in that capacity | Added in 2020 |
Report Deadlines: Regulation 13 and the 2024 Retail Rules
Survey report
Regulation 13
Within 30 days of appointment, with a copy to the insured
Retail general insurance (2024 master circular)
Within 15 days of allocation
Complicated case
Regulation 13
Extension from the insurer, telling the insured, up to six months in all
Retail general insurance (2024 master circular)
Not stated in the insurer note relied on here
Documents not received
Regulation 13
Final report on the record after at least three written reminders
Retail general insurance (2024 master circular)
Final report within 15 days of the surveyor confirming the insured has sent all documents
Insurer finds the report incomplete
Regulation 13
May call for one additional report, within 15 days of receiving it
Retail general insurance (2024 master circular)
As in regulation 13
Additional report
Regulation 13
Within three weeks of the insurer's request
Retail general insurance (2024 master circular)
As in regulation 13
| Step | Regulation 13 | Retail general insurance (2024 master circular) |
|---|---|---|
| Survey report | Within 30 days of appointment, with a copy to the insured | Within 15 days of allocation |
| Complicated case | Extension from the insurer, telling the insured, up to six months in all | Not stated in the insurer note relied on here |
| Documents not received | Final report on the record after at least three written reminders | Final report within 15 days of the surveyor confirming the insured has sent all documents |
| Insurer finds the report incomplete | May call for one additional report, within 15 days of receiving it | As in regulation 13 |
| Additional report | Within three weeks of the insurer's request | As in regulation 13 |
Which Timeline Applies
The retail rules are shorter and apply to retail policyholders' claims; insurers tell their surveyors to follow them. S-01's 2023 course teaches the regulation 13 figures, and the paper tests those. Our IC-01 surveyors page covers the rest of the retail rules, such as allocation within 24 hours.
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The Code of Conduct (Regulation 16)
Every surveyor shall:
- checkBehave ethically and with integrity. Integrity means not only honesty but fair dealing and truthfulness.
- checkStrive for objectivity in professional and business judgement.
- checkAct impartially when acting for an insurer on that insurer's policyholder's claim.
- checkAccept no direct or indirect benefit beyond the fee agreed for the survey (added in 2020).
- checkBe courteous and considerate to everyone met in the course of the work.
- checkNot accept or perform surveys in departments for which the surveyor holds no licence.
- checkNot take on work beyond their competence unless they get advice and assistance that make them competent.
- checkWork with due diligence, care and skill, to proper technical and professional standards.
- checkKeep up to date with developments relevant to the practice.
- checkKeep proper records of all work done and comply with all relevant laws.
- checkHelp colleagues gain professional qualifications, including by providing articleship or practical training.
- checkWork only as a surveyor in insurance business, and take no advisory or consultancy work that could create a conflict of interest.
- checkDo no outsourced activity beyond what IRDAI's outsourcing guidelines allow.
- checkKeep a register of survey work (Form IRDAI-11) and keep reports, photographs and key documents for three years, or until any litigation ends.
- checkAcknowledge every fee or payment received for survey work.
- checkDisclose any appointment that could prejudice an interested party, and on foreseeing a conflict of interest notify all parties and seek instructions.
- checkNot disclose a client's, employer's or policyholder's information without consent or a legal right or duty to do so.
- checkNot use, or appear to use, confidential information for personal advantage or for a third party.
- checkWork in a company or firm only as an employee, director or partner. An employee's report is signed by the employee and countersigned by a director or partner.
- checkIf employed by an insurer, only survey and assess the loss, and stay out of settling the claim.
- checkFollow IIISLA's articles, regulations and code of ethics, and the Insurance Act, the IRDA Act and IRDAI's rules, orders and guidelines.
Rules That Bind Others Around the Surveyor
- check_circleThe insurer must enquire into any breach of the code it learns of, and report proven cases to IRDAI immediately.
- check_circleThe insurer and the directors or partners of a corporate surveyor must make sure interim and final surveys are done by licensed surveyors.
- check_circleDirectors and partners must exercise reasonable oversight over the surveyors their firm employs.
- check_circleEvery insurer needs a Board-approved surveyor management policy and must file an annual report on surveyor misconduct with IRDAI.
What a Breach Can Cost
| Consequence | Rule |
|---|---|
| Licence not renewed or converted | Since 2020, IRDAI can refuse renewal if the surveyor has not carried out the regulation 13 duties. From 30 July 2026 renewal is replaced by conversion into a registration, and the refusal rule now refers to conversion |
| Suspension or cancellation | Under regulations 23 and 24, after IRDAI's procedure |
| Waiting period | After a cancellation for any reason other than unpaid annual fee, a one-year wait before applying again, and an individual enrols afresh as a trainee |
| Suspension for unpaid annual fee | Automatic from 1 April. A suspended surveyor cannot accept new surveys, continue pending ones or issue a report |
Trainees Have a Code Too
Regulation 17 binds student members (trainees): behave ethically and with integrity, take no survey work and issue no survey report without a licence, keep proper training records at all times, disclose any proceedings or investigation against them, and follow IRDAI's instructions.
FAQs
What are the duties of an insurance surveyor?expand_more
Regulation 13 of IRDAI's surveyor regulations lists them: declare any interest, inspect, investigate cause and extent of loss, quantify it, comment on admissibility, excess, under-insurance, depreciation and salvage, give reasons for any repudiation, advise on loss minimisation, and report within the set time.
Which regulation contains the surveyor code of conduct?expand_more
Regulation 16 of the IRDAI (Insurance Surveyors and Loss Assessors) Regulations, 2015, as amended in 2020 and 2026.
How long must a surveyor keep survey records?expand_more
Three years for reports, photographs and important documents, with the register of survey work in Form IRDAI-11. If litigation is involved, until it ends.
Can a surveyor accept a gift from the insured?expand_more
No. Since 2020 the code bars any direct or indirect benefit other than the fee agreed for the survey.
What is the time limit for a survey report?expand_more
Regulation 13 says within 30 days of appointment, extendable up to six months in complicated cases. For retail claims, IRDAI's 2024 master circular sets 15 days from allocation.
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