Over the years insurance agents call asking for old mit forms to be sent to their office. I tell them that I need permission from the homeowner to release the Mit form. Some get offended and say they have never heard of this. I tell them that I protect personnal information…
How do you guys handle these request as homeowners are shopping?
Nick. Are the agents calling on behalf of the original homeowner you did the inspection for? If this is the case, I don’t have a problem providing them with the form especially if the intent is to verify a feature in order to grant some sort of a discount to your customer. Now with that said, I would still consult with the customer before releasing the form to the agent. If for some reason this was being asked with regards to a new homeowner and not the original person you actually did the inspection for, I think then, I would have certain reservations in providing the agent with that information. Just my opinion on this though.
Over the past 5 yrs, many agents have called, for various reasons, but i refuse to give out personnal info w/out written authorization. On the original insp the agent and homeowner get a copy as directed by the homeowner. A yr or more down the road the homeowner starts shopping and xyz agency calls asking for a copy. I then tell them no problem if the homeowner sends me authorization. CYA
Yes, with the clarification you have provided now, I also would want to have authorization from the homeowner. It does seem odd the homeowner wouldn’t have kept a copy though. I would not have a problem resending “him” (homeowner) a copy at any time though.
How do you know who is on the phone. I have had an agent’s rep forge a persons letter with a signature and then tell me what’s the big deal, when I caught them.
I really doubt doing anything with a wind mit would get you into court. "maybe fraud but I doubt that as well. I know it is possible but you have better odds of winning powerball.
My new greatest idea if it is legal why don’t we start a powerball co-op
I do not even know if that is what it would be legally be called but hey I even volunteer to do it for members if they want to do it.
We all get in a group everyone contributes. We track it and when we win we all share as per contribution. Each $2 gets you a share. Minus expenses and such. Nothing to me of course my time would be donated.
We would need some sort of contract and some lawyer member to donate their time.
Or some Association creator could have his guys look it over Hint hint.
Damn I like this idea. Funny how stuff can just strike you.
Always remember who your client is. In appraising, I can’t give an appraisal to the spouse if they were not present when I was hired (without written document). No big deal right? Think about a couple getting a divorce. One of the spouses orders a home inspection to prove something, (could be noting holes in wall for abuse, used for selling purposes for divorce, used to prove unfit home for child custody) but you give report to the other party not thinking its a big deal. You will be sued by the party that hired you and will have no leg to stand on as a professional. What if the home had an insurance claim on it and an insurance attorney hired someone to get that documentation from you without your client authorizing it, that would be trouble. No other professional service will release information without authorization.
Also, I bet if you asked your E & O insurance if they would cover you in that scenario, it would be a big NO. They wouldn’t in appraising.
I guess it’s just a business decision. I’m forbidden by law as an appraiser to do so, so I’ll just stick with the professionalism that industry has set. Also, I will not do any type of business practice that my E & O insurance say they wouldn’t touch.
I also want the insurance company to see me as a professional, not just a guy with a flashlight and camera. Would they send you a report? No, they are professional.
clip from Wikipedia - Because of the personal information (name, address, insurance co and policy number, their signature, phone number, email address) and confidential nature of many professional services and thus the necessity to place a great deal of trust in them, most professionals are subject to strict codes of conduct enshrining rigorous ethical and moral obligations. We as a profession should subscribe to this as well.](“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional_ethics”)
I started this thread message for the purpose of helping this hard working group to be aware, read 119.07 F. S. Some occupations are exempt from their address, names, etc being made public. See below,
Sorry if it didn’t come out as clear as I intended. No, I under no circumstances provide a report issued to a homeowner for an inspection to another homeowner. It would hold true for any type inspection as far as I’m concerned. These reports are only good the day of. We don’t issue insurance policies, that’s the carriers business. Never are they transferable as you’ve well stated Pete.