How Much Does it Cost to Defend a Home Inspection Claim?
“What you do consider the costs to the home inspector for defending themselves against a meritless home inspection claim, considering court costs, attorney’s fees, depositions, and more?”
I received this question from a home inspector who was likely surveying the necessity of E&O insurance as a defense mechanism against the possibility of a claim and/or lawsuit brought against him for some frivolous reason.
Fortunately for home inspectors, not every claim becomes a lawsuit. Most claims, in fact, begin as a complaint from a disappointed client. If the complaint has merit, most professional business owners have the wherewithal and acumen to appease the client to his or her satisfaction.
The issue arises when the claim is not legitimate. And that’s normally the case.
How can you defend these claims? In the first installment of this two-part “cliffhanger” video, I reveal how most claims manifest and the claimant’s and his/her attorney’s motives in filing the claim.
You walk into a house that had already been inspected. There’s glaring issues in the basement – a massive crack in the foundation plus some apparent moisture stains. You ask yourself, “How did the initial home inspector miss these easy-to-recognize issues?”
Mold identification is not within any home inspection standard of practice, but a home inspector told me that his insurance company settled a mold claim for $250,000. That truly made me question the sanity of the claims executive.
Mediation is not a home inspector’s home court.
The county sheriff arrives on your doorstep. Your heart sinks. A home inspection client of yours is demanding you pay for the bad results that occurred months after your original inspection.
Many home inspectors are SHOCKED to hear that their corporate entities (sub-chapter S or limited liability corporations) do not insulate them from personal liability for doing a negligent home inspection.
e detail – during my Law and Disorder Seminar.
I’ve now been successfully defending home inspectors against meritless claims for a decade now, and with over 1,000 claims under my belt, I feel I’m qualified to describe the typical home inspection claim runaround competent home inspectors like yourself receive when dealing with an “issue” that really isn’t your “issue” at all.
I’m starting to see a very disturbing trend developing between the home inspection industry and the real estate marketplace: non-client home sellers are bringing claims against home inspectors for the failure of their clients to follow through on the agreement of sale as a consequence of the home inspector’s findings.