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Look Before Reimbursing
Fire departments and other public emergency service agencies that respond to environmental spills typically are authorized to seek reimbursement from spill generators. But not all the charges appearing on their invoices are reasonable or reimbursable. Transporters are being charged for everything from the cleaning, maintenance and replacement of gear to salaries and benefits of the emergency responders. Every invoice should be scrutinized and every authorizing statute questioned to avoid paying more than the law requires.
Common Problems on Invoices
At Spill Center, we routinely screen invoices from emergency response agencies as part of our service to our transportation company subscribers. We look for questionable line items and unreasonable (out of line with other providers) or unauthorized charges on invoices such as:
- Line items not directly arising from the incident such as a labor charge with a pro-rated benefits cost or an administrative overhead charge.
- Unreasonable scope of work, as when multiple fire companies respond to a minor fuel spill and each one invoices the spill generator.
- Math errors are among the most common problems we find on these invoices. Never assume the math is correct. The numbers might not add up.
For more information on Spill Center's Invoice Auditing Service, call Tom Moses at 978-568-1922, X222 or email him at tmoses@spillcenter.com. Visit www.spillcenter.com for more information about Spill Center subscriber services.
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