Home Inspector Liability – All You Need to Know

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Did you receive your home inspection report lately?

Did you find out that the professional who was supposed to inspect the roof didn’t mention anything about the roof problems that were present before?

Surely, you must be looking for ways to make the inspector care for the breach of contract. For one, the idea behind hiring a home inspector was to make sure that everything ranging from common electrical problems to roof issues comes to their attention before you make the final decision of paying for the house.

But when the report came in suggesting that the house was safe and sound without any common house inspection issues, you rushed into purchasing the home based on the home inspector’s confidence.

However, it took no more than a few weeks until you started bearing financial losses because of a classical case of a “home inspection gone wrong.” Although it is a serious issue, you should only consider going with the most liable option that doesn’t impose any further financial losses.

What are Home Inspectors Liable For?

Before you opt for insurance coverage or home inspecting company’s errors and omissions insurance, you must know what kind of mistakes and errors inspectors are liable for. This will help you take a viable approach to solve your case.

Home inspectors play the key role of detecting and identifying repairs or defects inside the house at the request of buyers and/or sellers. Sometimes, it’s a municipal requirement to ensure that the house transaction goes smoothly without any errors or omissions of the necessary property health facts.

Any home during a transaction has to pass the inspection. This is because the seller has to come clean with all the property facts, and the buyer must be aware of all the repairs and faults in the property that they will have to address once they purchase the property.

There are selected things that a home inspection business is liable for. These include the necessary checks they have to make with regard to the electrical foundation, water line issues, and roof issues.

However, if the inspector was negligent, it can result in damages to the other party, such as the one selling or the one buying. A home inspector liability would refer to:

• The breach of duty
• Damages that took place due to the breach of contract/duty
• Emotional damages and liabilities that the party endured due to breach of duty
• Injuries resulting from the breach of contract/duty

However, there’s a lot of additional information that you have to carry before suing a home inspector for negligence.

Are Home Inspectors Liable for Missed Items?

Since inspectors are skilled in-home inspecting procedures, they are responsible for checking a wide range of property issues. It’s their job to notice the property defects and problems that the untrained eye of an inexperienced homebuyer might not.

For instance, when you look at the Maryland Building Code, you will learn that home inspectors are responsible for checking ground fault circuit interrupters or GCFIs in the house’s wet areas.

But what if the home inspector missed termite damage? What if they missed mold infestation around the damp corners of the house? Here are the missed items that can make the home inspector liable for professional accountability:

• Home Structure
• Ceilings
• Walls
• Foundation
• Roof (damaged)
• Attic
• Plumbing
• Basement
• HVAC
• Windows
• Doors

When the home inspectors miss something from the list above, you may have a chance to knock on the home inspection business’s door for professional liability insurance.

However, you should know that in most cases, if the home inspector was negligent, the general liability insurance or the professional liability insurance would only allow them to cover costs until they top the cost of the inspection contract.

What to Do If Your Home Inspector Missed Something?

Coming back to the main question of what you can do in case the home inspector has left off some important detail in the home inspection report leading to your financial losses after purchasing the property. Here’s what you should know.

Some items on the home inspection checklist are minor, such as a leaky tap or faucet, while some are major, such as the replacement of a large cooling vent or furnace, which could mean a hefty burst of financial losses.

It’s quite common to go knocking up the door of the original home inspector responsible for missing out on the important detail. However, you can potentially file a lawsuit or reimbursement claim for the damages that you endured because of the inspector’s negligence.

Can You Sue a Home Inspector?

Do you wish to file a claim against the home inspector who missed out on important defect and repair details in the home inspection report? You can do so per the State laws that your real estate attorney might inform you about in detail. However, you must know that a real estate agent will rarely help in this case because that’s the person through whom most home inspectors get their clients.

For legally-abiding advice, you have to look up to your real estate attorney. Surprisingly, as most experts suggest, the presence of a real estate lawyer in the case of a home inspection gone wrong is highly critical. They can review the situation and provide the right pointers for suing the home inspection business respectively.

• You can file a claim or report or sue the home inspector under these circumstances.
• Inaccurate home inspection report
• Intentionally ignored property defects and repairs
• Unidentified defects and repairs inside the scope of the inspection
• No response from the home inspecting officer upon your lawsuit
• You can prove that the inspector has lied on the report

How To File A Claim Against A Home Inspector

You must inquire and review with other inspectors for their professional input on the case of inspector negligence. Their opinion will matter and prove viable in court since fellow inspectors know what kind of details shouldn’t be missed on duty.

All states have varying lawsuit requirements and negligence case claims.

Therefore, you can try working out with the seller or buyer if you’re a seller looking to file a contract-based lawsuit. Be careful of all the clauses that you agreed to and signed when hiring the home inspection business.

Conclusion

Asking a real estate attorney for help might prove beneficial because that’s how you will draft a demand letter and file for a claim.

Their expertise will help you mention the specific details of the damages or injuries that resulted from the inspector’s negligence.