We are now supposed to supply the buyers with a copy of our license and a list of what we do not inspect…(along with our Inspection Agreement).
Any suggestions how to do this without printing out the entire SOP?
Appreciate any imput!
Will they allow you to post all this information on your web site .
I would include it with my agreement, so you have proof you provided it, just in case.
send an email with a link to your sop and/or website
And if they don’t have internet service?
Believe it or not, not everyone is ‘wired’. Also, no proof they actually received it, unless they respond that they did.
E mail it to their Realtor. If you had to, you could mail it to them or even fax it to them.
I have had it on my website for quite some time.
But back to Ted’s original question…
What method does Florida accept as a means of “delivery” to abide by the law?
It doesn’t say.
468.8321 Disclosures-Prior to contracting for or commencing a home inspection, a home inspector shall provide to the consumer a copy of his or her license to practice home inspection services in this state and a written disclosure that contains the scope and any exclusions of the home inspectionOkay… so it must be delivered prior to the Agreement stage, by any method. I would still have a statement in my Agreement that they must initial, stating they received the required copies prior to the “contracting” of the home inspection. CYA.
I think a date and time on the agreement would accomplish that.
On my next version of inspection reports, there is this:
**Was the pre-inspection agreement sent to the Client named above or their representative prior to the inspection? ******
Yes
Did the Client named above sign the pre-inspection agreement?****
Yes
Did the Client named above bring the signed pre-inspection agreement with them to the inspection or send it signed to the inspection company prior to the inspection?****
Yes
**In the event that the Client did not bring the pre-inspection agreement with them, did the Client named above sign the copy of the pre-inspection agreement brought to the inspection by the**
Inspector?****
N/A
I hope I did this right…I had to lower the resolution way down to upload but I think you can get the idea…
I think this would work, you can email it just like your agreement and have met the letter of the law…waddya think/
I have been recommending that HIs do this for 5 years in the Law and Disorder Seminar. Glad to see a major state legislature ratifying my recommendation.
Joe, would having a link to the sop in your agreement be good enough? And why must we provide a copy of our license when no one else has to, ei contractors?(That last was just me whining)
I simply put it in the report.
I have been doing this for years and it does not take up any more room than all the crap disclosure excuses everyone uses anyway!
At the top of each report section I “Quote” in Blue font what the State Law (or SOP) says what you will do, and what you don’t have to do.
I then answer all the “Inspector must report…” information required and add on whatever else I want to report on.
I don’t feel the need to re-word all those disclaimers. Just cut-and-paste the law verbatim. If the judge and lawyers can’t figure that out, it’s their problem not mine. A lawyer wrote it.
Sample report: http://www.midtninspections.com/system/files/userfiles/Report_Sample_Thermal_HI.pdf
The disclosures in the agreement is where they should be. I agree.
A report is “after-the-fact”. Providing information about any limitations or other factors about your service in your report is not as much a “disclosure” as it is a “confession” made after the client has already paid and received his product…much like having the waiter tell you after you have eaten it that the meat might be tainted and the restaurant denies any liability should you become ill.
I agree including the SOP in the report is senseless.
Jim and/or Joe,
In reading the posted law above, isn’t the intent of the law, that the exclusions and license be available for review “Prior to contracting for” the inspection, including the presentation of the PIA for signing, so the potential client may do due diligence of the service offered.
That is how I read it. JMHO.
I would argue that if you put it in the PIA your giving the client the information ***before ***they sign and that when they sign they agree both to the terms and that they have read the SOP. The expectation is that they have the time for that due diligence between receipt of the PIA and when they sign. Am I wrong?
Now we’re getting down to ‘brass tacks’. What is the acceptable (and legal) timeframe for a contract to be presented so a potential client may have the time and access to resources to perform their due diligence? Certainly not at the inspection site. I counter that many do not even see the contract until at the inspection.