Risk and liability for consultants advising on the built heritage

Professional consultants are liable for damage resulting from negligent advice, design or acts. This research examines the perspectives of professionals involved in advice on the built heritage. It examines the risks for consultants as perceived by conservation advisory bodies, insurers, legal consultants and conservation consultants. The paper explores the risks assumed in conservation of the built heritage and control measures generally adopted. Results indicate two types of consultancy advice that incur different risk levels. Conservation consultancy can be separated by the knowledge and experience of the consultant(s) involved, either conservation awareness or general property and construction awareness only. The former can be further subdivided by the particular nature of their advice: advice relating to survey and valuation, and advice relating to repair and refurbishment. Consultants perceive clients to be divided into two categories: informed and uninformed. A typology of clients and professional consultants is presented, which indicates broad risk categories.