Home Inspector Code of Ethics Course

Inspection Education Topics Student Discussions
22601

#7 Turn away some consumers.

You don’t have to accept work from everyone who wants to retain you. If a client starts off being difficult or unreasonable, it usually gets worse, not better. While it may be hard to walk away from an inspection fee, it’s sometimes cheaper in the long run.

Furthermore, an added bonus of refusing to allow these consumers to become your clients is that they’ll become your competitors’ clients. Pity your competitors!

Some homeowners what to use the inspection before they put the home up for sale to make a checklist of what they want to have done to a home. It is NOT to point out every single little thing ‘wrong’ with the property with the intent or expectation of having the seller fix them all before the house can be sold.

22602

The article on contracts and the contract template that InterNACHI makes available has been my contract foundation since I was made aware of it presence. This contract provides a great deal of peace of mind as it spells out clearly the scope of the home inspection, what is covered and what is not. It does not exaggerate the scope and increase client expectations.

22603

If a house seller asked me to go easy on an inspection, I would explain that it could be a safety hazard in the future if I did not do my job properly and within the guidelines of the InterNACHI code

22604

There are many different ways to avoid a lawsuit such as, using caution signs to keep people from entering potentially unsafe areas, only hiring independent contractors for help, using an LLC for your business and keeping records of services rendered

22605

The house seller tells me the roof is less than 10 years old and clearly by looking at the roof and the curling of the shingles it has been a lot longer than that and the shingles have reach their life cycle. I tell the homeowner that the shingles are at the end of their life cycle and I will have to recommend a reputable roofing contractor.

22606

This would be on the part of the inspector where he or she observes a situation where the electrical outlets are not functioning properly and he or she approaches the seller and suggests omitting the problem from the report if the seller is willing to pay the inspector or a preferred third party to make the repairs. This would be an unethical approach by the inspector and should not even be considered or hinted at.

22607

To avoid lawsuits, never say you’re an expert, use contract when hiring help, use a pre-inspection agreement, write report properly, become a certified master inspector, take every every one of interNachi’s courses, set up your business as incorporated or LLC and Carry errors and Omission insurance.

22608

There may be occasions where the client for various reasons is not present to sign the inspection agreement. When this is the situation the inspector should ask the agent if the client has authorized the agent to sign the agreement and if so is there documentation to that affect.
The agent when signing his/her name should also include Authorized Agent under the agents name.
The worst case scenario is that there is no hard document that can be provided and the agent still provides a proper signature for the inspection. In this situation the rules of implied and apparent authority would most likely hold up in a court of law based on past rulings in this area. One example being the Ohio Court of Appeals ruled that the purchasers of a home were bound by an arbitration clause contained in an agreement that their real estate agent signed on their behalf.
The better practice is to have the client sign the inspection agreement.

22609

From the article I learned that as an inspector I am an educated “generalist” meaning that I have an overall knowledge of a home and its functions. Telling someone that I am an expert of a certain trade opens me up to a higher level of care that I am not licensed on and legal ramifications could pursue.

22610

I have often been asked to do this in my current line of work (hvac). I always let the customer know that as a professional I will be conducting a complete and thorough inspection of the system and then reporting on it accurately and honestly. Then I remind them that my name and reputation and that of my industry is very important and that they would appreciate the same if this were them as the buyer. I have yet to have anyone argue with this in 15 years. This is the result of taking control of the situation before it can become a problem at all.

22611

In the article i read about breaking something during an inspection, i learned that i am doing my client a service by inspecting things that maybe haven’t been touched or maintained for some time. If it breaks durning normal use (like during an inspection) then it was defective and should be repaired or replaced, and this is better than having my client or his family have a failure and having the perception that it wasn’t thoroughly tested.

22612

When asked by the homeowner to ‘go easy’ on the structural integrity of their house, it would be explained to them that my responsibility is to report on the integrity of the structure and that such a request is not in the best interests of anyone involved, and that to ‘go easy’ on any part of the house would be in violation of the code of ethics that I, as an inspector strictly follow. If the homeowner continued to pressure for such a request, I would inform him/her that I can either do the inspection properly or I would be forced to cancel the inspection all together.

22613

The following are easy and inexpensive steps that inspectors can take to help prevent lawsuits.

#1 Join InterNACHI, of course!

#2 Incorporate or form an LLC.

#3 Take every one of InterNACHI’s online courses.

#4 Become a Certified Master Inspector.

#5 Never refer to yourself as an “expert” in your marketing.

#6 If you are going to hire a helper, use a contract.

#7 Turn away some consumers.

#8 Use InterNACHI’s Pre-Inspection Agreement.

#9 Purchase InterNACHI’s “Caution” stop sign for $39.95.

#10 Take three photos of the water meter before you leave the property.

#11 Write your reports properly with InterNACHI’s library of narratives.

#12 Use InterNACHI’s 24/7 On-Site Help Button.

#13 Include InterNACHI’s “Estimated Life Expectancy Chart” with every report.

#14 Use InterNACHI’s “Now That You’ve Had a Home Inspection” home maintenance book.

#15 Use InterNACHI’s Client Satisfaction Survey.

#16 Use InterNACHI’s free Issue Resolution Service.

#17 If you settle a dispute with a client, get a signed release and a letter of reference.

#18 Participate in InterNACHI’s “We’ll Buy Your Home Back” Guarantee.

#19 Read "SLEEP WELL: A Home Inspector’s Guide to Managing Risk.

#20 Carry Errors and Omissions (E&O) Insurance.

22614

The inspector should let the seller know he is working under a code of ethics and must report the roof condition as viewed on the day of inspection, and that the report must be impartial,truthful and confidential to the inspectors best judgement .

22615

I would explain to the house seller that I am required to follow the code of ethics established by InterNACHI which dictates that I must perform the inspection in a non-bias manner and that I must be truthful and can not overlook any part of the home during the inspection.

22616

This was the first one that came to mind…I was asked by a Realtor to contact a client as she wanted someone to conduct a home inspection on a typical 1950,s bungalow. Once I had finished the Inspection I was able to meet my client at the home in order to go through the Inspection on scene as one might say.
One of the many faults I found was a very large crack in a picture window in the front living room. It was established that this was caused by the owner who damaged it while moving furniture so no shifting of the structure was an issue here.
The client was not upset and was quite prepared to replace the window after purchasing the home as she wanted to re new all of the windows anyway and was aware that the house needed work. So the Inspection was concluded and my client went away happy. An hour or so later I received a call from my clients Realtor. I answered and was confronted with " What the F*** does a crack in a window have to do with a Home Inspection* Thinking for a second I asked the Realtor to call me back when he had learned some manners and I would be happy to explain the answer to his question. He did in fact call me back in a very calm voice and although there was no apology I was able to answer his question. Thinking he had learned from his first mistake He then stated that I would not be working for him much if I found silly little things at every Home Inspection that I did for him.
So I politely informed him that I actually did the Inspection for my client and in no way was I at any time working for him. No he doesn,t recommend me to his clients…oh well.

22617

This was the first one that came to mind…I was asked by a Realtor to contact a client as she wanted someone to conduct a home inspection on a typical 1950,s bungalow. Once I had finished the Inspection I was able to meet my client at the home in order to go through the Inspection on scene as one might say.
One of the many faults I found was a very large crack in a picture window in the front living room. It was established that this was caused by the owner who damaged it while moving furniture so no shifting of the structure was an issue here.
The client was not upset and was quite prepared to replace the window after purchasing the home as she wanted to re new all of the windows anyway and was aware that the house needed work. So the Inspection was concluded and my client went away happy. An hour or so later I received a call from my clients Realtor. I answered and was confronted with " What the F*** does a crack in a window have to do with a Home Inspection* Thinking for a second I asked the Realtor to call me back when he had learned some manners and I would be happy to explain the answer to his question. He did in fact call me back in a very calm voice and although there was no apology I was able to answer his question. Thinking he had learned from his first mistake He then stated that I would not be working for him much if I found silly little things at every Home Inspection that I did for him.
So I politely informed him that I actually did the Inspection for my client and in no way was I at any time working for him. No he doesn,t recommend me to his clients…oh well.

22618

The seller has requested that i “go easy on the roof inspection” my response would be ok, then feel very comfortable to inspect the roof fully and make technical commits on any section or defect that is observed without reservation. if question i would state " as an inspector i would note any defect or problem that any competent person would notice" i would not be a house inspector if a problem was apparent and not reported.

22619

I have learned that the importance of a written agreement can not be overstated. I must ensure that the client understands the limitations of the visual inspection, and that it does not include warranties or guarantees on the future performance on any component of the home.

22620

Client wants me to overlook missing gutters. Explain to the client that the missing gutters will have to be documented at the time of inspection. It is my duty as a inspector to be honest and abide by our code of ethics.