Internachi policies and practices

Miscellaneous Inspection Topics AskNACHI.org Questions
#1

As an association, please advise on your list of standard practices that your members must adhere to. Is it within you list of practices to;

A) unscrew an electrical panel and remove the cover from the wall, to look behind (assuming they aren’t a licensed electrician)

B) remove a gas furnace cover and gas fireplace covers to inspect gas equipment ( if not a licences gas tech)

C) when dealing with licences trades, what perameters does a home inspector, who’s not licensed, must adhere to. Can they inspect, or comment on those pieces of equipment? If so, in what manner?

#2

Maybe this will answer your questions. Home Inspection Standards of Practice - InterNACHI

#3

Who wants to know?

#4

I’ve read the policies and I don’t understand all of it and the specific jargon. As for, who wants to know, I do, perhaps the question can be more specific

#5

In the state of Texas, they can do all of those things. Including identification of defects and deficiencies in the work performed by any trade licensed or not. They are expected to be competent in their assessments.

You probably need to provide your state to obtain an accurate response as Home Inspections are licensed in many states. The state SOPs and regulations vary from state to state and supercede association standards.

Do you have a specific issue with some inspector’s findings?

#6

sounds like a seller who wants to shoot the messenger…

#7

Thank you Chuck this was well explained. The problem is, I’m Canadian and home inspectors here are not licensed, monitored or regulated and they don’t need to have any education. I am the home owner and I watched the inspector pull a blind off my wall and almost broke my fire place cover, until I stepped in, to remove it for him. In parts of Canada you don’t even get to see the results of the inspection, I haven’t heard if there is an issues yet. I’m just trying to learn my rights and the limitations of the inspectors who are members of this association. This inspector is a member, but we have different rules in Canada regarding licensed trades and running a legal business and I’m struggling to learn my rights, and what this associations does to protect the home owners from damage, negligent information, etc. if this is applicable.

#8

It would be helpful to know who the inspector is, you haven’t said yet.
Some inspectors have more qualifications than others, so answers to your concerns may depend on this.
Good luck!

#9

Mark I agree, I could get better answers by naming the inspector, but I’m not comfortable doing that, as he is not very professional, was very rough with my belongings, but at this point, I’m not sure if he’s done anything wrong, besides being a jerk. Ive also noticed that here, it’s not common to be bonded, again I find this very risky and don’t agree, but maybe it’s acceptable?

#10

Hello “Unregistered” - I’m a Canadian Inspector and can simply say that regarding opening panels has a lot to do with acceptable practices and any laws or regulations that apply in your province. Yes in Ontario opening electrical panels must be done in a safe manner, and likewise opening or removing “accessible” service covers is typically done by home inspectors. Again it’s mainly a visual review of conditions and not deemed as work or changes to the system.

On another note the home inspectors “client” is generally the only person entitled to the inspection report, unless a condition threatens health or safety.

On the issue of quality of the inspection - that’s a whole open market of 'standard of care".

Licensing is currently only mandatory for performing home inspections in BC and Alberta, and on the horizon in Ontario. So again, unless the inspector is any other province, it can be an open market, where quality and professional business practices can vary widely.

As Marc G - stated quality, care and experience can vary, along with what I will add in consideration of some looking for a cheap, quick inspection.

#11

Thanks Claude I’m in Ontario and it sounds like you are the one that can best answer my questions.

Why would you choose to be a part of this association, and not CAHPI that actually applies to Canadians? Is it common, to not be bonded and if so, how are you guaranteeing protection for the home owner, against any damage? General liability protects you, against lawsuits and that appears to be the norm?

What type of comments can you make on items specific to licenced trades, assuming you aren’t licenced in them? Gas furnace, electrical etc.

#12

Thanks “unregistered”. My background includes being a founding member of OAHI, long term member of ASHI (ACI), and have been actively involved for almost 2 decades on the national which includes serving on CAHPI as the Ethics & Professional Practices Chair.

I currently serve as Chair of the NHICC National Certification Program.

Why NACHI - simply for marketing and to keep tabs on what’s going on the things in general.

Regarding bonding - many home inspectors are mandated to carry E&O Insurance and General Liability; but than again there certainly are many that do not. This organization does not, unless it is required by state or in our case provincial regulations. BTW: General liability protects the home inspector against damages that one might cause.

I’m not licensed and have been in the business since mid 1980’s and also taught as a full time professor at a local college (Architecture & Engineering). Hey licensed trades are great, but like any other trade/industry/profession - certainly not infallible. Even some trade workers are also questionable in their abilities and capabilities.

#13

I guess everyone here wonders about the obvious question - are you a concerned consumer, or as advocate of only licensed trades concerned about opening readily accessible “service panels”?

Review the “Standards of Practice” that states what the scope of work is for a home inspection. Simply - home inspectors review condition, identify defects and make recommendations to repair/replace, advise if further professional evaluation is required or notify of safety concerns.

#14

Unregistered. As the seller you have little, if any, recourse against the Home Inspector. Any recourse would be against the buyer as stipulated in your purchase and sales agreement. It would be up to the buyer to make good on issues and then deal with his inspector for repayment.

Associations mean absolutely NOTHING when it comes to education, training and overall knowledge of the individual inspector. Plain and simple, there are great inspectors, good inspectors, bad inspectors and horrendous inspectors. Quality runs the full gamut.

As the seller, you have no rights to the inspection report or anything it contains, except as would be written into your purchase and sales agreement. Remember that the P&S agreement is between you and the buyer. The Home Inspector is not bound by those terms whatsoever. In fact, Associations almost all require that the Inspector is bound by confidentiality to their client only without written permission.

#15

I’m only concerned about three things 1) an uneducated person with no knowledge making potentially incorrect comments on my home 2) any inspector causeing damage of any degree to my belongings 3) that someone with none to perhaps some education has the legal right to comment on equipment that licenced people have spent years and many hours acquiring the proper licensing to work on. When you live in a province that doesn’t protect anyone against crooked SOBs looking to take a penny from innocent people, I think that gives me all reasons to learn my rights, understand the industry and know when to stop anyone from entering my home. You have no idea if someone is coming to rob you blind, or in cahoots with the buyer to get your home at a lower price and if you can’t see the report the whole thing could be a lie. That’s the bottom line, it would be stupid not to question. It’s to bad that so many of the inspectors here, want to condone people for protecting themselves. If some of you read the thread you would know that ive read the practices and policies, or be aware that where I live has no regulation set in place for this industry. It’s sad, that there are thieves out there today, but I refuse to be taken advantage of. Perhaps some of you won’t be so quick to judge next time, and kindly guide people to make proper decisions. Isn’t that your jobs after all. To those good inspectors out there thank you, to the rest of you, you won’t win in my home.

#16

“Unregistered”…

Your opinion if someone has a license they can do no wrong is totally without merit.

Do you possess a Drivers License?

Do you feel that everyone driving on the road is an excellant driver?

Type of license makes no difference. Book smart to pass a test doesn’t mean squat in the real world.

Seems to me you should sell your home yourself so you can maintain control over every aspect of the process to suppress your paranoia.

Good luck finding a buyer that will deal with all that.

#17

At no point did I say “ they can do no wrong” but they come with recourses, consequences and liabilities that are enforced and monitored. Which is not the current case for inspectors where a I live. thank you, I’m officially sold as of today and did it without a realtor and took control over the possibilities of negligent people entering my home.

#18

I simply wrote for a few questions to protect myself against negligent inspectors. Although I got a few great responses, thank you. The most of you got defensive, didn’t answer the questions at hand, made poor assumption and insulted. For those of you who took that route, you did not represent your fellow inspectors, nor did you make a very good impression for inspectors as a whole. These post can be read by anyone, I can only hope you didnt affect the good inspectors negatively.

#19

I’m pretty sure we all wish you great luck & a successful closing on your property.
PLEASE feel free to let us know on here your opinion of the individual who performed the home inspection on your property,
and if you feel there were any issues that you think caused undue problems.
It’s always nice for us to hear the consumer’s (seller) reaction about the transaction process & surely appreciate your effort to “AskNACHI.org”!

#20

How interesting that “Unregistered” is so concerned about professionalism and knowledge of inspectors, but instead of requiring that same knowledge and professionalism from an agent when it comes to the sale of his home, decides to sell it alone. Now there is always the chance that unregistered is an agent and is hiding that fact from us, but my gut instinct is he / she is just trying to save on the commission. I guess if you read deeper into the original questions, those are also just a matter of saving money on items called out by someone he / she thinks isn’t trained and therefore their opinions are not worth anything. JMHO after having seen this same time of attitude from FSBO’s in the past.