By Barry Stone
Dear Barry,
I'm a new home inspector and recently inspected a home with a forced-air heating system. In my report, I recommended that the air ducts be cleaned as a standard maintenance procedure. After my clients bought the home, the duct cleaning company reported that the interior membrane in the main duct was damaged, exposing fiberglass insulation. The buyer believes I was negligent and invited me back for a second look. If you peer carefully through the grill, it is possible to see the pink insulation. But the interior surfaces of ducts are not within the scope of a home inspection. How would you handle this situation?
--Wes
Dear Wes,
The interior surfaces of air ducts are arguably not within the scope of a home inspection. However, a home inspector should also consider whether a particular defect was visible and accessible at the time of the inspection. If it was, it is a wise business practice to take responsibility for the omission. In the long run, it is a good way to build a solid reputation for your business.
To avoid problems of this kind in the future, recommendations for standard maintenance procedures should be stated as things to be done prior to close of escrow. That way, problems found by a contractor or technician can still be negotiated between the buyers and sellers. If the person who services the equipment is called after the close, your recommendation to have done so sooner reduces your level of accountability and enables the parties in the transaction to resolve the problem in a mutually agreeable manner. This is particularly important with regard to gas-burning fixtures, where repair costs can be high and where safety violations can be life threatening.
Gas company technicians often discover defects not reported by home inspectors. Therefore, it is wise to recommend a safety evaluation of all gas fixtures prior to close. This protects you and the buyers from defect discovery after the sale of the property.
Service businesses of the kind you have entered are never easy. Just remember who you're working for, and give them your best.
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