I am struggling with distinguishing between the major defect and the material defect.
How would you catgorize a missing strain relief or bushing where a romex electrical cable passes through the wall of the service panel box? I chose major defect because it should be repaired by a licensed electrician and because it presents a significant risk of shorting out and energizing the whole box.
I categorize my reports the following way.
major defect - anything that in my mind costs more the 2K to repair or replace, like a new roof, or a house full of K&T, etc…
minor defect - would be any defect that IMO would cost less than 2K to repair or replace, like a hole in a wall, a bad window seal, or a closet door that need adjustments, etc…
Safety defect - anything that presents a safety hazard or a “potential” safety hazard, which in my reports are anything electrical, a trip hazard, broken window, etc…
IMO, what you described would be a safety issue at most not a material defect.
Welcome to our forum, William!..Enjoy! 