Make a Complaint
While the Home Inspection Association BC (HIABC) works hard to prepare our members to be excellent home inspectors, there are times when clients feel their home inspection let them down.
Home Inspections are not designed to be ‘perfect’ and there are many limitations to a home inspection including:
- Time – A home inspection is an opinion of the home in a limited time period. In fact, the industry expects that a professional home inspection on a single family home can be completed by a inspector in 3 hours.
- Readily Visible – Inspectors can only see what their eyes can see. Defects hidden behind occupant belongings, behind vegetation, intentionally concealed by sellers, or even the home itself may prevent observation of what later may seem to be an ‘obvious’ defect.
- Cannot Cause Damage – Inspectors cannot cause damage to a home they are inspecting. This limits the type of materials we can walk on, where we can put ladders, and we cannot risk moving occupants things in case we break something. Certainly, we can’t put holes in any walls or start using tools to disassemble equipment.
- Inspector Safety – Our inspectors have to put safety first. Slippery roofs, uneven ladder support, wind, animal droppings/urine, and other safety considerations may limit an inspectors observations.
- Not Insurance – A home inspection report is not insurance and inspectors do not offer any type of warranty or guarantee on the home. Insurance is designed to protect the insured in the event of unforeseen circumstances and would typically require a deductible be paid to access compensation. A home inspection is an opinion of a home, based on a time limited, non-destructive, readily-visible observation of the home systems and basic response to operator controls.
Scope of Inspection – All HIABC member inspectors are required to follow a Scope of Inspection. This purpose of this Scope is to establish a minimum, uniform standard for Home Inspectors Association home and property inspector members. This Scope is embedded in your contract between you and your inspector. If you feel let down by your inspector and want to discuss a complaint, this Scope will come up early and often in the conversation as it is the scope of work (or job description) you agreed to with the inspector. Scope of Inspection
If you feel let down by your inspector, we recommend the following steps:
First - Contact Your Inspector
Contact the Home Inspector right away. Be ready to communicate specifically what the concern is and the conditions as to how you discovered the issue.
Make an appointment for the inspector to revisit your property as soon as possible.
If you and the Inspector are not able to resolve the matter at the revisit, he/she will contact the HIABC Insurance Plan Administrator with all the details of the complaint, including the inspection report, contract, photos, and your concerns. She will review the information and contact you directly.
At any time, you may ask the HIABC Insurance Plan Administrator for assistance: Call Helene Barton 1.800.610.5665. Helene will assist both the complainant and the inspector in resolving the matter.
The Home Inspectors Association BC (HIABC) has full time staff and a 1-800 number you can call if you have any questions or concerns about our members or about home inspections in general. If you have a complaint about an inspection or require any advice on resolving an issue, HIABC’s Insurance Plan Administrator can provide expert assistance and will work with both you and the Inspector to resolve the matter.
Be prepared to discuss the merits of your concern, the circumstances of your concern, and the response from your inspector. You will be asked to provide any correspondence and documentation of your concern.