Hard drive failure = insurance fraud?

October 15, 2007 2:42 PM

Here is the deal. I have a client who brought in a hard drive with a "smoked" circuit board. He is filing a claim on his insurance for it AND the data that was on it. Fine. BUT...he wants us to "prove" that the circuit board failure happened as a result of a power surge and NOT as a natural failure of the board. I don't believe that is possible at this point. I am a computer tech, so I am looking for input from attorneys, electricians, and anyone else who can proffer and opinion. Thanks in advance!
posted by titans13 to computers & internet (14 comments total)

I think that what he is asking is impossible to prove without a) other evidence or b) an examination that would probably cost more than the insurance claim would cover.

As to the first part, if there was some clear source of a power surge (such as a lightning strike) or if lots of other devices were damaged at the same time, then a power surge might be indicated. But if it was just the drive of the computer and no other component, a power surge seems unlikely.

To really tell what happened, you would probably need to verify that the circuit board did not contain any fuse or breaker, or if it did, that they were not damaged. Then I think you might need to desolder and test all the components to see what failed. That would be time consuming and really expensive, and almost certainly not worth doing.

That being said, can you get an identical drive, swap the circuit board, and perhaps recover the data?
posted by procrastination at 2:49 PM on October 15, 2007

It sounds like your user is trying to make a claim on a surge protector that is "insured up to $100,000" as they tend to trumpet so loudly on the front of the box.

Anecdotally, I've heard it's basically impossible to collect on those as the manufacturers will try to weasel out in any way possible.
posted by Oktober at 3:03 PM on October 15, 2007

I don't believe most people own a hard drive which is expensive enough that it is worth filing a claim against one's insurance.
posted by caddis at 3:05 PM on October 15, 2007

Should have used preview. If it is a surge protector claim, forget it, unless the surge protector itself fried along with the hard drive.
posted by caddis at 3:07 PM on October 15, 2007

Just tell him to buy an identical hard drive, swap the PCBs, and then copy the data off (if possible).
posted by mrbill at 3:50 PM on October 15, 2007

Thirding the swapping of the circuit board, but it often must be identical down to the exact revision board and not just drive model.
posted by dereisbaer at 4:39 PM on October 15, 2007

If nothing is else is fried, it's _very_ unlikely it was a power surge. Look at it this way. The power enters the PC through the P/S, goes to the MB, then to the HDD. It would have to travel through ALL of that, perhaps arcing along the way, leave it all untouched, and fry the HDD circuit board alone. Meh.
posted by tcv at 5:09 PM on October 15, 2007

The power enters the PC through the P/S, goes to the MB, then to the HDD. It would have to travel through ALL of that, perhaps arcing along the way, leave it all untouched, and fry the HDD circuit board alone.

There's always the possibility that the HDD was in a separately powered external enclosure. A friend of mine lost two identical 400 GB hard drives in separate external enclosures to a power event. There was visible damage to both drive circuit boards in the same places, but no other devices were damaged.
posted by musicinmybrain at 7:20 PM on October 15, 2007

I don't think it's possible to say with confidence that it was a power surge, at least without inspecting the entire computer and associated power-supply components (surge suppressors, etc.).

It sounds like the guy is trying to claim for the value of the *data* (not just the drive) either against his insurance or against the surge suppressor's warranty, so the amount of money could be significant. I don't think he'll ever see any of it, but he's welcome to try I guess.

He should really find someone who acts as an expert witness in insurance litigation; they generally have long resumes and will say whatever the hell you want them to say, if you pay well enough.

I would run away from this.
posted by Kadin2048 at 8:05 PM on October 15, 2007

Try contacting the electricity provider to see if they have any record of a power surge or other event that may have led to one at the time and in the location that the client claims their HDD got fried. A long-shot, but worth pursuing because it's the only way you will ever prove this, unless there are a number of people in the same area with similar problems.

My mother had a similar issue some years ago, but with a number of TV sets - it turned out there had been a lightning strike to a transformer not far away, so the electricity company was able to confirm the surge.
posted by dg at 8:38 PM on October 15, 2007

This is simple. You already admitted that it is beyond your expertise to prove that the hard drive was or was not damaged as a result of a power spike. So tell that to the client, and let him get on with the search.

As kadin2048 said, it sounds like the client wants testimony supporting some kind of warranty claim. If you are unable to professionally determine that, don't try to fake it, lest of all by asking people on internet. You don't want to end up testifying in court and admitting that your estimate of situation came from an answer some random person posted on a public message board. It will be embarassing, and potentially damaging to your reputation and career.
posted by blindcarboncopy at 9:52 PM on October 15, 2007

There's a good possibility you can get the data back.
posted by delmoi at 12:00 AM on October 16, 2007

<pessimist type="notalawyer">I'd avoid physically touching the drive, as the client sounds like he has a deficit of clue and a surplus of lawyers. That's a dangerous combination. Don't get involved.

Hand this off to OnTrack or someone whose "your failure to make backups is not our problem" contract is legally bulletproof.

If he resists that option, I'd suspect fraud. Perhaps he doesn't want to get the data back because it's not actually there, and filing a claim for its value is worth more than the data itself? The insurance company may then want to inspect the drive and validate the claim, so again, don't touch it. </pessimist>

As for the hardware, does it physically smell smoked? If so, it's likely that the heads were cooked too, and mrbill's board-swap trick won't work. If the board is less severely damaged, then there's a chance. But again, depending on the value of the data and the proximity of lawyers, this might be a task best left to the professional data recovery services.
posted by Myself at 1:48 AM on October 16, 2007 [1 favorite]

I am an attorney. If this issue came to me, I would bring it to you, not the other way around. The issue of causation is a technical issue, not a legal issue.

There is a legal issue, and if I were your lawyer I would tell you: offer only your honest opinion. If your honest opinion is that you cannot make a determination, then that is it. Do not try to falsify or unduly shade your opinion. You have only one reputation. Treat it well.
posted by yclipse at 4:22 AM on October 16, 2007