Client complaint process

General Inspection Topics
1

I am new here and still going through the classes. But I was checking out some Yelp reviews of various inspectors and came across a complaint from a home buyer who said the inspector wrote in his report that the dishwasher was in working order, but when the home buyer moved in and used it for the first time, the dishwasher shorted out and they then learned that the dishwasher was hooked up to an insufficient electrical circuit breaker.
My questions concerning this are;
Is there liability here for the inspector?
Are inspectors expected to go through each appliance and assigned breaker to make sure it’s sufficient?
If so, how is this remedied?
Is this something that the E&O insurance would cover?

Thanks for insight into this situation.

2

Shawn:
Q 1 There could be liability., depending upon the contents of the inspection agreement.
Q2 No
Q3 The remedy could be negotiated between the client and inspector.
Q4 E&O insurance deductible would be far too much to make that claim worthwhile.

Good luck in the future

Cheers

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3

Thanks Douglas :blush:

4

NACHI SOP;
IV. The inspector is not required to:
S. inspect appliances.

If you don’t inspect appliances, make sure to put it in your disclaimers or state somewhere you don’t check appliances.

I do check appliances, and include this at the Appliance heading:

  • The appliances are checked for general condition as a courtesy to our clients. No warranty or guarantee is implied as to the functionality of all the individual features and functions of the appliances.

  • The home inspector shall observe and operate the basic functions of the following kitchen appliances: permanently installed dishwasher, through its normal cycle; range, cook top, and permanently installed oven; trash compactor; garbage disposal; ventilation equipment or range hood; and permanently installed microwave oven. The home inspector is not required to observe clocks, timers, self cleaning oven function, thermostats for calibration or automatic operation, or non built in appliances or refrigeration units. The home inspector is not required to operate appliances in use or any appliance that is shut down or otherwise inoperable.

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5

Thanks Michael