A very strict process of processing claims, as listed below, must be followed.
· The government must be notified of all claims within a limited period of time after the event. Claims submitted long after the event become impossible to evaluate, and the private partner will struggle to show how it dealt with the event and mitigated its consequences;
· The notices must contain complete information, otherwise the notice should be rejected;
· The government should request further information on the claim until it is satisfied that it has enough information to evaluate it; and
· The claim should be grounded on the base case financial model and the original project schedule in order for the effect of the event to be evaluated against the original base case in terms of time and money.
The parties should endeavour to reach agreement on the schedule and cost implications of the event. In some cases, the independent certifier can assist in this. The fall-back position should be the DRP, as the independent certifier cannot play a role in providing a final and binding decision on matters that may include legal matters beyond his/her technical expertise.
Some jurisdictions (Chile in particular) have established technical panels charged with resolving disputes of this nature, staffing the panel with independent legal, financial, and technical experts.
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