Should the State or Insurance Companies Be Allowed To Endanger Our Lives?

No “form” in my area (Chicago), so I won’t comment.

Just plain silly to waste your life during an inspection, that’s all.

Yep but due to the wording and what the insurance companies make up it must be done or the client gets screwed.

Why can no one see that it is not needed and it endangers inspectors needlessly.

As long as the insurance companies are able to find “inspectors” who are needy enough to risk life and limb for a couple of bucks … why should they care?

If you’re right … simply drop out of the program and let Darwin do his thing. When enough guys are crippled for life or die from falls or starvation … move back in and charge a reasonable fee.

There is no program. I cannot afford to do such a Nobel thing.

It is wrong and unsafe and therefore should be removed from the OIR form.

The OIR is a State organization and should not be coming up with requirements that jeopardize peoples safety for no reason. Why is that so difficult to process. The risk is without reward it is not a necessary practice.

Mike, the reason why they want all these photos is because of all the “honest” wind mit inspectors from the “My Safe Florida” days. Insurance companies are not there for the policy holder, they are a business and their job is to make a profit for the shareholders. No person in their right mind would take some inspector who is not an employee of the company at his word, especially after they proved that they were not trustworthy to begin with. Would you risk your money on the word of someone you have no knowledge or control of, of course not, so why should they? I had my own insurance brokerage which covered Florida Georgia and SC so I know a little bit of what I am talking about.

The OIR writes the form and should be concerned with the safety and welfare of their citizens period.

What the heck can you all possibility argue against it. It is wrong, useless and unsafe.

:DAnd they can pry my MT 6 out of my cold dead hands:D

Ok let’s look at it another way. I am an insurance agent and I have to get forms filled. I call Meeker Industries to have these items filled. The guy goes out and has them done for $50-$75. I, as an insurance agent would think, "damn these must be a quick and easy job if people will do them for $75.

Michael, you are one of the reasons the prices are so low. You even admit you will do whatever to meet a lower price. You are one of the biggest problems to our profession, not the insurance companies. You yelling how cheap you are on your website would, to a normal person, indicate this is an easy quick job.

You have created the illusion that these are easy and fast. Who would travel up to 30 minutes one way, go in the attic, complete these forms, send them out and then travel again 30 minutes to get home for $25? According to your site, you will. Remember every tenth call gets $50 off!

People like you have created bottom feeding. You wanted it, you got it. So now deal with it.

Russell,
You have no idea how I do things like I do not have much of an idea of how you do things but that is not the discussion. I have no problem with my prices and what I make per inspection.

My problem is that what they require to give clients the credits they deserve is not necessary. The form can be filled out accurately and safely if we did not have to include photos when it is not often safe to do so. I would still take as many as I feel I needed to back up my case but I would not crawl all over hell looking for a 8d nail to photograph.

Quite simply it has NOTHING to do with price but everything about keeping inspectors safe.

Every day we all tell people what we find and we do not have to provide photos.

I do not believe according to internachi safety information that internachi would recommend entering half of the places I go.

Call me some time and i’ll let you know how I make it work with the best prices out there for me and my clients.

For the record I just cut out the middle man. I have done these inspections for other companies that have full staffs and offices and I have always been in line with what those guys make. I have much less overhead than those guys and therefore can charge less.

Russell,

you still did not answer if you belly crawled truss to truss doing your full attic inspection on low slop homes from the 60’s. Just wondering if you do or not and if you feel it is a safe practice?

I do not “think” most of these guys would go into an attic like I describe.

I don’t want wind mits, and I’m glad I get very few calls here in North Floirda. I offer them, but at $150 each. I got a call this week asking my cost. When I said it was $150 they’re response was that I was a lot higher than the other guys. I said o.k. and I guess I lost it, but I also don’t want it for less than $150, and I feel that’s a bargin price in light of the new form. I stay plenty busy with standard inspections, four points, and mold.

No one is endangering your life. If you CHOSE to do what they ask you, rather than state is is not possible to safely get the information they are requesting than that is YOUR choice.

It should not be a choice that affects the clients. The OIR and insurance companies should not be askind for things that may be dangerous and if the inspector thinks it is dangerous the client should not be punished but without a doubt they will be.

They will not get the credits they deserve unless I preform actions that are unsafe and dangerous.

How on earth is that acceptable to you people? :roll:

It’s your choice. No one makes you do it.

Some guys will do anything for a buck. Nobody puts a gun to their head and makes them do it. If your client can find an idiot willing to take such little pay to risk his health and safety to save him even more money … isn’t your client entitled to exploit that idiot?

I’ll bet for half of what you make for such inspections there is a hooker on a Florida street corner a mile from the same house risking deadly STDs on much of the same principle.

Everything we do can be viewed as unsafe. How many crawl to the very end of an attic like the one Mike described?
I have always asked myself before doing something inspection related, would someone else rationally do this?
If the answer is no, I don’t do it.

My own attic is very small. It is possibly three feet tall in the center and the duct work is located there.
When I installed the radiant barrier all the way down to the end of the trusses, I had several pieces of plywood that I could rest on. I don’t have that on the average home I inspect.

When you are balancing yourself on two trusses, sweaty, have a respirator that keeps banging off of a truss, and you are trying to take a picture of something that is still 5 feet away, it isn’t the most easiest of tasks!

All of this proves what I have been saying. All of the inspections are scams. Granted, it does generate some extra income, but are they even necessary?

I recall a few years back when I got some type of survey for my auto insurance wanting all sorts of information. I asked a friend of mine who was an agent and he said to throw it away.
Any document, survey, or inspection is designed to increase your rate. Nothing more.

Michael - Nope I haven’t crawled and attic in a long time. But my guy Matt does it daily.

I have no middle man that I pay or refers me. I still charge $125-$150. You say its unsafe. Then don’t do them, no one is making you. I feel that checking the cables on the golden gate bridge is crazy, hence I don’ty do it!

If you feel its unsafe, get out of the business. But I will guarentee you this, keep telling agents its unsafe and there is a guy that will be willing to do it. I see no problem except that its gonna cost more for the client because it entails more work.

I see no law making you do these inspections.

Russell,

You don’t seem to get it or just do not comprehend what I write.

I do do it. It is unsafe and it is not necessary. The pictures do not prove anything. It is not a Law but I can tell you the client does not normally get the credit without a picture.

I also do not market to agents as they usually seek me out when they want great service and a great price. I did try that but most of the times they are getting compensated in one way or the other and have their own guy. I am not really that concerned about how agents feel because most of them know less than the underwriters about the whole process and only care about making the sale.

I do market to homeowners and they seem thrilled with the service and quality of the inspections I provide them.

The question was not do you personally crawl the attic but is it included in your inspections. I am just curious if you have guys that will crawl truss to truss on their bellies in a typical 1960ish low slope hip roof and is that safe to do looking for a nail that may or may not be visible. Also you do have more overhead than me and you have to pay the guy to do them. What do you pay your inspectors per wind mit report they do?

You said “do do” :smiley:

HAHAHA:shock: That’s funny…!!

Jim

I never felt my life was in danger doing any wind mit. I can either get the info or I can not. If it is unsafe I can not. However, I do want to kill myself for reading more of Meeker stucco stupidity(MSS). :slight_smile:

hu hu hu.

I like the do do comment much better.

John look in the mirror you’ve got a little brown spot on your nose.

Maybe you head is a little to close to the insurance companies collective asses :roll: