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Resolving
Complaints
Presented by Graham Clarke, P.Eng., RHI
Carson, Dunlop & Associates Limited
INTRODUCTION
The phone call always starts like this: “You inspected the house we bought six months ago and now we are having problems…..” Most of us have received calls like this, and all of us dread them. A complaint can ruin your whole day, and most of your night. And there’s nothing we can do about it, or is there? Let’s
look at one of home inspectors’ least favorite topics – complaints.
It is appropriate for this topic to start with
a disclaimer. Writing technical articles is easy.
There
is research that can be done, and technical issues
are anchored in physics and building science. Writing
about complaints is more challenging. There is
little authoritative material and we are dealing
with the
art of human relations rather than a science. As
a result, there are no definitive answers on the
topic. Our goal in this article is to make you
think. We encourage you to challenge everything
presented
in this article and to take away any of the pieces
that work for you.
One size does not fit all
When dealing with communications and human emotions, there is one thing we can be sure of - one approach does not work equally well with all clients. You will need more than one strategy to be successful. We have learned this lesson the hard way. We handled a complaint beautifully with a specific strategy in June, but when a similar situation arose in September, the same approach backfired, becoming a lawsuit.
Your philosophies
Your personal and business philosophies play a role in how you handle complaints. We find that, in general, there are three types of home inspection professionals:
The hardliner – these home inspectors
defend themselves against any and all complaints
vigorously, never admitting any mistake.
The validater – these inspectors
defend complaints vigorously when they feel unjustly
accused, but respond if there was a valid problem
with the inspection.
The conciliator – some inspectors
try to satisfy every client and may pay to make
a problem go away even though they made no mistake.
There is no right or wrong, but you should decide on your approach before you are in the midst of a complaint.
Three kinds of issues
We find that issues come in three types as well:
White issues – these complaints
turn out not to be a problem with the home.
Black issues – these are issues
where there is a problem that the home inspector
should have reported.
Gray issues – these are issues
where it is not clear whether or not the inspector
made
a mistake.
We find the white issues and black issues are straightforward to deal with. The difficult ones are the gray issues, because the inspector and client may feel strongly and very differently about an issue.
We find that about 10 percent of our complaints are white issues, 10 percent are black issues and 80 percent are gray issues. Nobody said it was simple!
Handling complaints – An important skill
Many people feel that resolving complaints is important because of the financial risk. While this is true, there are other reasons why effective complaint handling is an important skill.
An opportunity
A complaint can be an opportunity to impress or educate a real estate agent,
to generate goodwill and to avoid bad publicity.
A complaint is also an opportunity to turn around
a dissatisfied client, changing a detractor into
a supporter. Let’s look at each of these.
Real estate agents don’t have many tools to evaluate home inspectors. Their impressions are mostly based on your bedside manner. Your response to a complaint is one way to enhance your reputation with agents (We are assuming for the moment that this is important to you!)
A complaint is an opportunity to generate goodwill
with others. We had a difficult complaint handled
by the client’s attorney. The problem was subtle
but serious, and there was considerable question
as to whether we should have identified the condition.
The issue was settled with a small amount of responsibility
accepted by our firm.
Most of us have seen what a hostile media can do to home inspectors. A dissatisfied client can be the catalyst for devastating news coverage and public humiliation.
Complaints are also a way to build you business by improving your service. We learn something from almost every complaint, whether or not we made a mistake. The secret is to apply the learning to future work. Everyone makes mistakes. Successful people do not repeat their mistakes.
Using complaints to build your business?
While some people say that you can’t make everybody
happy, consider this. There are several studies
that suggest:
- 99 percent
of clients who have a bad experience will
not complain. This means that you don’t know about a problem and don’t
have a chance to make it right.
- 91 percent of clients who have had a bad experience will neither use the firm again nor recommend it to others. This does not help in building your business by referral.
- The average dissatisfied customer tells ten (10) others about their unhappy experience.
- The average satisfied customer only tells two (2) others about their good experience.
- Nine out of ten clients (90%) will come back to use the firm again if the complaint is resolved to their satisfaction.
- Perhaps more importantly, this same group will tell five (5) others, on average, about their good experience with the firm.
In a perverse way, you can create more positive feedback with clients who have had a problem resolved than with clients who were satisfied from the outset! We will stop short of advising you to generate complaints so you can resolve them, but this should help make you more enthusiastic about solving them.
Other results of complaints
Complaints can wear you down. They are distracting and emotionally draining for home inspectors. In addition to consuming your money, they may:
- Consume your time
- Change your attitude toward customer service
- Make you a more defensive home inspector
- Make it more difficult to get affordable insurance
- Increase your stress and reduce your satisfaction
We hope that we have convinced
you of the benefits of handling complaints effectively.
Let’s move on.
Our goals
The article is divided into four sections:
1. Avoiding complaints
2. Receiving complaints
3. Performing revisits
4. Resolving complaints
Our goal is to give you some suggestions for handling each of these steps of the process.
1. AVOIDING COMPLAINTS
Although the focus of this article is not risk management,
we can’t resist touching on a few critical areas:
1. Invite the client to the inspection.
We have found that clients who do not attend the
inspection are more likely to complain. There are
several advantages in having the client with you
during the inspection. You can adjust any unreasonable
expectations, explaining the scope of a professional
home inspection. You have a chance to establish rapport
with the client and earn their respect. Clients see
how hard you work on their behalf. Many home inspectors
say, “Friends do not sue friends.” While it may be a stretch to say that home inspectors become friends with their clients, there is a respect that can be earned over a 2˝ to 3˝ hour
home inspection.
Another reason to invite the client is that verbal communication is better than written communication in many ways. While it is your report that will be relied on if a problem comes up, a face-to-face discussion provides for feedback and allows you to repeat or modify your comments to ensure good understanding. You may also customize your reports to reflect your conversations with the client.
2. Use a good contract
While we believe a good contract is important, we
look at contracts differently than some. For example,
we send our Authorization Form (We don’t call it
a contract!) to our clients ahead of time. This gives
the client a chance to ask questions before the inspection.
It also saves the inspector time at the beginning
of the inspection explaining the scope, adjusting
expectations and getting an agreement signed. We
encourage clients to sign and return the agreement
before the inspection. This is also an opportunity
to take care of payment details before the inspection
itself.
We include a copy of the Standards of Practice so that the client can understand the scope of the inspection and realize that the rules of the game are well established, and not something we made up.
Those crazy expectations
We have touched on this already, but it is worth emphasizing. You need to create realistic expectations. Clients should know that you are there to find big problems, the kind that would change their mind about buying the property. In looking for the big problems, you will trip across some small ones. Rather than ignore them, we report them, as a courtesy. The problem with this is that it creates the impression (and expectation) that we find every cracked pane of glass, loose tile, soft mortar joint, and so on.
Unless we explain this to the client, who could blame them for expecting more? It is our responsibility to clarify the scope. Some inspectors say the inspection is a sampling process rather than an all-inclusive exercise. Some say they will not respond to any complaints below $500. Others define major problems as life safety items or items over $1,000, and respond only to those issues. Find your own way to get the message across, but make it clear.
The contract itself
There are many contract wordings and we encourage
you to check with your attorney before settling on
any. However, remember that attorneys have a specific
goal – to minimize your liability. Their goal is
not to build your business success, and an attorney
typically has no role in your marketing or customer
service activities. Your goals may include business
growth as well as liability control.
Many contracts have clauses to minimize the
inspector’s exposure. These include the following:
- Limiting the liability
to a fee or similar low number (if allowed
in
your jurisdiction).
- A
statute of limitations that sets a restriction
on how long people have to come after
you for a problem (if allowed).
- A
counter-claim clause that tells the
client that if they sue you and lose,
they will pay your costs.
- A
technically exhaustive inspection
is available at a considerably
higher price. This is designed
to reinforce the idea that a
home inspection has a limited scope.
- Exclusions
for everything you can think
of (radon, lead, mold, building
codes, engineering work,
concealed items, environmental
issues,
operating costs, acoustical
properties, etc.)
- The
inspection is visual
only.
- There
is no inspection
of concealed areas.
- The
inspection identifies
only conditions
that are both
present and apparent
at
the time of the
inspection. Intermittent
problems are
not covered.
- Our
professional
opinions
are often based
on inference
because there
is no direct
evidence
or incomplete
information.
- The
inspection
is not
a guarantee
or a
warranty.
- There
is
no
responsibility
if
repairs
are
done
before
we
can
examine
the
property.
- We
are
not responsible
for betterments
that
put the
client further
ahead of
where we
told them
they
were.
For
example, if
we say
the roof
has 5
years left
and it
has to
be replaced
immediately, we
should
not
provide a
new roof
with
a 15-year
life expectancy.
- We should only provide a roof with 5 years of life remaining.
- The
inspector is not liable
for any consequential loss
(if
the roof leaks and destroys
a $20,000 piece of furniture,
the damage to the furniture
is not our problem).
- The
contract is the entire
agreement (anything
we say
in our advertising
does not matter).
- This
contract replaces
all previous representations
(including what we
may
have said
on
the phone or on our
web
site).
The purpose of the contract
Let’s look at the purpose of the contract. Many say the purpose of a contract is to limit the inspector’s liability. We believe the purpose of a contract is to clearly communicate to the client the scope of the home inspection. Clients should understand what we can and can’t
do. It is fair for them to hold our feet to the fire
within that window of responsibility.
The goal of an agreement, in our opinion, is to have
both the supplier and customer agree on the service
to be delivered. It is the customer’s responsibility to pay for the service when it is delivered. It is the supplier’s
responsibility to deliver the service.
Our contract is short and attempts to explain in
layman’s terms the scope of the inspection. We refer
to the ASHI®/CAHPI Standards of Practice because
it is clear that the exclusions and restrictions
are not specific to our company.
There is, however, a risk in rigidly defining the
scope. If you clearly set out what you are going
to do, and then perform services beyond this scope,
your contract may be thrown out by a court. (“I told you we don’t do things like asbestos, but I thought you should know that there is asbestos on these pipes.”)
If you report on things outside of scope, it can
be argued that you should have reported on other
things outside the scope as well, since you were
clearly not serious about defining your scope.
Promotional materials
We believe that your promotional materials can be
positive without over-promising. Offering “complete peace of mind”, a “total solution” etc.
may expose you to liability.
Professional Liability Insurance
While people have different opinions about whether
you should carry Errors & Omissions insurance,
we encourage you not to advertise the fact, if you
do carry the insurance.
When Things Go Wrong
One of the best ways to handle complaints is to anticipate
them. We include a document called When Things Go
Wrong in our reports. We remind clients of this document
when complaints come in. It is very nice to be able
to say, ‘We told you this would happen’.
Booking the inspection – a risk management
opportunity
There is an opportunity to ask some risk management
questions when an inspection is ordered. This is
a great time to ask about and document specific concerns.
Concerns outside the scope of the inspection can
be identified at this stage and clients can be advised
as to where to get answers to these questions. We
prefer to avoid telling clients, “We don’t inspect for that”. We try to tell them where they can get answers to their specific issue. We also make it clear that when clients ask for things outside our scope, this is not part of a professional home inspection. We don’t
want to leave the impression that other home inspectors
may perform those services and that they have chosen
a poor firm.
A conversation might go something like this:
Client:
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"We are concerned about the septic system”.
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Inspection firm:
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"The
evaluation of a septic system is not part
of a home inspection.
There are firms/septic contractors that
specialize in this and we can coordinate
a septic system
evaluation for you, or refer you to a firm. "
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In this example, we have made it clear to the client that what they are asking for is outside of what any home inspector does, but we have offered to respond on their behalf. There are several variations on this theme, but we encourage you to give some thought to this.
Good home inspectors don’t get complaints!
We thought we might catch your attention with this heading. Actually, we believe that all home inspectors get complaints eventually. Why is this? There are several reasons, but part of the answer may lie in our definition of a home inspection, which goes like this: Home inspection is a high-liability, in-depth, multi-disciplined technical analysis of the home conducted under adverse circumstances in front of a demanding audience, requiring the generation of an incredibly detailed written report prepared in an unrealistically short time frame for an inconceivably low fee.
Does anyone understand how tough our life is?
What to do at the inspection
The risk management process carries through the inspection
itself. A good inspection is fundamental, of course,
but it is also important to document special limitations,
such as no access to a bedroom or roof space.
Consistency
It is important to be consistent between your verbal
comments and your written report. Many home inspectors
have a tendency to understate problems face-to-face
and describe them more harshly in the written report.
This frustrates clients, and if there are witnesses,
the written report may be dismissed as not representative
of the inspection.
Don’t guess, bluff or ignore
Don’t guess about things you are not sure of. If you come across something you are not familiar with, say you will do some research and get back to them. You don’t want to bluff your way through a discussion. If you are caught, this will undermine your credibility on all issues. You can’t afford to ignore things you don’t
understand because they may have a significant effect
on the property.
Don’t show off
We encourage you not to show off. Clients are not well served by home inspectors who use technical language to prove their knowledge. Home inspectors are in the communication business and the best inspection is one that helps your client understand the condition of the home. You will be appreciated for your ability to make things understandable.
Don’t argue
We recommend that you avoid being argumentative.
We are sometimes challenged about technical issues
by one or more of the parties at the inspection.
We think it’s best to avoid a confrontation. Simply
provide authoritative backup for your position in
the report. You should allow others their right to
their own opinions. There is nothing to be gained
from making one of the parties at the inspection
look foolish. You can clarify your position for your
client in private after the inspection if necessary.
Where does your loyalty belong?
We believe impartiality is a key to avoiding complaints. We are often asked to whom we are responsible or loyal during our inspection. Some say we are responsible to the client who pays our fee. Others say our responsibility is to the agent who brought us together with the client. Still others say that we are responsible to the seller whose home we are in. In our opinion, our loyalty lies with none of these. We believe our loyalty is to the home, we should represent its condition as accurately as possible to anyone who ever reads our report
.
Some tools to avoid and resolve complaints
Home warranties
Some inspectors offer a home warranty to clients.
The warranty itself may address a problem. Some inspectors
offer a home warranty to help in responding to complaints.
The conversation might go something like this: “It is too bad you didn’t take advantage of the home warranty that we offered you during the inspection. The warranty would have addressed this issue.” The
offer of a home warranty in itself is an indication
to clients that the home inspection cannot predict
future problems. This helps to adjust unrealistic
expectations and again reinforces the scope of the
home inspection.
Pre-possession checklists
Some inspectors give clients a checklist to complete
before taking possession of the home. This puts some
responsibility on the client to identify visible
defects. If a client later calls to complain about
a stain, crack or bulge, for example, the inspector
points out to the client that they did not note it
on their pre-possession checklist, so clearly it
was not visible at the time of the inspection.
2. RECEIVING COMPLAINTS
Respond immediately if not sooner!
The single biggest mistake you can make when you
learn of a complaint is delaying your response. Catching
things early is great. Letting them fester is a serious
problem. Non-response makes you look guilty, rude
and evasive. You don’t calm an angry bull by poking him with a stick. If you take nothing else from this article, take away the thought that complaints are priority issues. Now, if we have convinced you that you must respond, let’s
look at how.
It’s not about you!
How can it not be about you? Well, because it is
about your client. And it is about their home. And
it is about your business, not about you. It is unfortunate
that in the home inspection profession it easy to
confuse business and personal issues. Our emotional
reactions are understandable personal responses.
But they are not useful to us in dealing with complaints
and can contribute to poor business decisions.
Let’s look at an example. If you owned a store that sold toasters, and someone called to say their toaster didn’t work, how would you feel? You would take steps to show the client how to use the toaster, fix the toaster or replace the toaster as needed. But it probably wouldn’t ruin your day. You didn’t
make the toaster. You just sold it.
It’s not a personal attack, really!
Unfortunately, in our business, you designed and built the toaster, packaged it, advertised it and delivered it. To the client, it is a problem with a product or service, but to you, it feels like a personal attack.
The call
Complaints commonly come in by telephone or letter.
The telephone call often goes something like this: “Hello, my name is John Doe. You inspected the house we bought in October and we moved in at the beginning of December and two days later it rained and the roof leaked into the family room and totally destroyed the hardwood flooring and everything got moldy and the dog who has asthma had a bad reaction to the mold and when my sister came over for the holidays, she tripped on the buckled flooring…”
The conversation often includes a list of problems and considerable emotion.
Listen first
The first rule is to listen, saying nothing. This
is much harder than it sounds, especially for home
inspectors. The second rule is to keep listening.
The third rule is not to be defensive. It is important
to let the client get absolutely everything on the
table, without interruption, and without being challenged.
Say thanks!
When we are sure that they have told us the whole
story, the first thing we do is thank them for calling!
We tell them this must have been a difficult call
to make and that we appreciate the fact that they
cared enough to call us and give us a chance to help
them out. This lowers the energy level of the conversation
and usually takes the client aback. They are expecting
a fight. Don’t fight with them.
Resolve the problem
We move quickly into a mode of helping them resolve their problem. We approach complaints by assuming the client just wants to get a problem resolved, rather than worrying about who is responsible for it. Something in their home is not working and needs to be corrected. The issue of responsibility is secondary.
After we have let the client describe their problem
and thanked them for the call, we ask a number of
questions. We typically say something like, ”Let me ask you a few questions to make sure I understand.” You
may want to have a standard list of questions that
include such things as:
- Can you tell me the details of the problem? What does it look like? Exactly where is it? When did you first notice it?
- What
was the date of the inspection and what was
the date you moved in?
- What
was the weather was like at the time
of the inspection? What was the weather
like
when the problem first showed up?
- Was
there any evidence of a previous
problem in this area?
- Has
any work been done in this part
of the house since you moved
in?
- Did
you have any notes on your
pre-possession checklist
about this area?
Was there a seller’s disclosure form completed?
Does it address this issue? - Have
you had any other inspections done on the
property?
- Was
the house vacant or occupied at the time
of the inspection?
- Do
you know how long the previous occupants
lived in the house?
- Have
you had any experts offer opinions
on the problem?
- Have
any repairs been undertaken
yet? (Has the client removed
your opportunity to examine
the situation, and defend yourself?)
- Have you had any other work done in the home? (Was the problem caused by other work being done?)
- How was the problem discovered? (The use of special tools and dismantling are beyond the scope of an inspection.)
The last question is an interesting one. In some cases, we find that clients discover that all of their windows suddenly leak. This only makes sense when we learn that a conventional furnace has been replaced with a high-efficiency furnace, and the water on the windows is condensation, not leakage. Clients do not generally understand that a house is a complex set of interrelated systems and that changes in one area can affect others.
Is it in the Report?
Complaints are often about problems that are documented in the report. Many clients do not look at the report before calling to complain.
Don’t believe anything you are told
You should record all the responses, but not consider any of them as factual. We are always surprised at the amount of misinformation we receive from emotional clients telling us about their problems.
Research
We thank the client again for calling and tell them we will pull our files and call them back in 60 minutes. We always look at our report before responding to any complaint. If it was another inspector who performed the inspection, we also encourage you to speak to that inspector before responding to the client. Resist the temptation to defend yourself even if you are reasonably sure that you have no liability.
Call back soon!
Call the client back before you said you would. If
you tell them you will call them back in 60 minutes,
then call them back in 30 minutes. If you need more
time, tell them you’ll call them back in 3 hours,
24 hours or whatever, but always call them back before
you said you would. There is little to be gained
and much to be lost in further aggravating a client
by keeping them waiting. This requires no additional
effort on your part and is simply good customer relations.
The problem is covered in the report!
You may find the problem is documented in the report.
In this case, call the client back promptly and be
positive and helpful. Remember, the client is looking
for a solution and not a scapegoat. Offer to send
them the appropriate section of the report and accept
some of the responsibility for the miscommunication.
Offer to go over the issue to make sure they understand
what action is needed. Once again, thank them for
calling and ensure that they are comfortable with
your response.
The problem is out of scope
Sometimes the problem is clearly outside of the scope of the inspection. When you call back, explain this but more importantly, show them that you told them earlier it was outside of the scope. You may refer them to the contract, to the Limitations section of your report, to the Standards of Practice,
to When Things go Wrong , etc. Be positive and proactive.
Ask if there is anything you can do to help. You
may offer to help them find a specialist, for example.
Before ending the conversation, ensure that they
understand this was not something that any home inspector
would identify. Thank them again for calling and
encourage them to call back if they have any other
issues.
You may have made a mistake
If the problem is not included in your report and
it seems to be within the scope of an inspection,
schedule a revisit to the property. There are several
reasons for this.
- The information reported is often incorrect or incomplete.
- The
client’s assessment of the cause may be wrong.
- The
client’s assessment of the implication
may be wrong.
- There are a number of issues that cannot be confirmed over the phone.
- There may be circumstances that prevented you from discovering the problem.
- The client will take some comfort in your revisit. You are responding rather than ignoring them.
The role of the contractor
In some cases, a contractor has discovered the problem.
The contractor may have said, “Your home inspector should have seen this and told you about it!” If
this is the case, ask to have the contractor to attend
the revisit.
Written complaints
Before we go any further with responses to complaints,
let’s go back and look at what happens if you get
a written complaint. This may be a letter from a
client or an attorney. We believe you should call
the client, no matter who sent the letter. This is
an opportunity for you to re-establish your relationship
with the client. It is also a chance to keep the
problem from escalating.
Call, don’t write
Writing a defensive letter to a client or attorney may resolve the issue, but it more often aggravates the problem. As we said earlier, verbal communication is better than written communication in many ways. There is an opportunity for immediate feedback and the tone of voice and speech pattern are useful. Speaking is also less work than writing. Many people are intimidated by writing and are reluctant to write as much as they are willing to say. You will learn more in a conversation than in writing (assuming you can listen effectively), and knowledge is power in this situation.
The attorney’s disadvantage
Understand that the attorney has a problem. Attorneys
are inevitably told one side of the story. Clients
almost always frame the story so they don’t appear foolish, and often leave out key pieces of information, or add details. Attorneys’ letters
always take strong positions based on hearing one
side of the story.
The attorney is doing their job but does not have
all the information. Responding antagonistically
to an attorney does nothing to help resolve the issue.
Almost without exception, we find that the attorney
has not seen our report, has not reviewed the contract
and is missing some key pieces of information.
Responding in writing
We suggested that you call when you get a complaint
letter. But we are betting you won’t follow all of our advice, so here are some suggestions if you are responding by letter. Choose your words carefully; you can’t take them back. Do not reply via email; it’s
just too easy to widely distribute emails. Avoid
being defensive or aggressive. This is a business
issue, not a personal issue. It can be very difficult
to separate the two, but you need to retain perspective.
In your response, do not accept any of the information in the complaint. Ask for the opportunity to revisit the property. Avoid building a defense based on the material presented in the complaint letter, since it is rarely accurate and complete.
If the letter is from an attorney and contains a demand for payment, you may want to turn the matter over to your insurance company. This is a business decision for you. Some inspectors avoid reporting claims to their insurance company for fear of the impact it will have on premiums. Others worry about insurance companies settling quickly in the amount of the deductible. We will avoid this discussion in the interests of keeping the article length within reasonable limits.
We believe that if you choose to respond to an attorney’s letter with a letter, you increase your risk. Your insurance company may feel that you have prejudiced their opportunity to defend, and if so, you may find that coverage is not available or is restricted. Again, we don’t
want to get too far into this discussion but you
should discuss these strategies with your insurance
broker or carrier ahead of time.
Complaints through the real estate agent
Sometimes the real estate agent will make the complaint
on behalf of their client. It is important to deal
directly with the client so that the communication
is good. But keep the real estate agent informed
at every step. The agent will have heard only one
side of the story, and you need to ensure that both
sides are communicated clearly. Perhaps more importantly,
you need to let the agent know that you are handling
the issue promptly and professionally. This is an
opportunity to educate the realtor and create a positive impression of your firm. Do not assume that the client will pass any message on to the agent.
3. PERFORMING REVISITS
The “mean scale” We like revisits because they help
to put people in the right place on the mean scale.
The mean scale is our in-house term that means:
It is easiest for people to be mean in writing.
It is harder for people to be mean on the phone.
It is hardest to be mean face-to-face.
Corollary: it is easy to be mean in writing, on the phone and face-to-face, when speaking about someone else.
Revisit basics
When you go out on a revisit, there are a number of things we recommend:
- Take your report
- Have your inspection report with you, although you may not want to refer to it directly. This is a strategic decision. Do not, however, rely on your memory of what is in your report. There may be an opportunity for you to present the report, resolve the issue and create a happy ending. You may also want to refer to your report privately to refresh your memory, clarify details, etc.
- Take another inspector
- If you did not perform the inspection, take the inspector who did with you. There are several reasons for doing this, but two that are fundamental.
- You will
have no knowledge of what site conditions were
during
the inspection. The inspector may recall a
crowded bookshelf along a wall that is now exposed.
The
bookshelf would not have been documented in
the report as a limitation because the inspector
would have assumed it was staying with the home.
The client will find it more difficult to accuse the inspector of inappropriate behavior if the inspector is standing there. It helps keep people honest, and keeps them at the right end of the mean scale .
If you did the inspection, take another inspector
from your firm or a colleague from your association
chapter, for example. Again, there are several benefits
to having someone else with you, but the biggest
is that they are not emotionally involved.
You are fact finding
Do not act defensively or aggressively. Your role
is to help solve a problem. Your focus is not on
the blame, at least not at this stage. Ask lots of
questions. You may even repeat the standard list
of questions that you asked on the telephone. The
answers are often surprisingly different. This can
be helpful later on in the resolution process.
You may also want to create more questions based on the initial answers you received.
You may offer steps to solve the problem. But don’t
discuss responsibility for the problem.
Photos
Take photographs to document the situation. Some courts will not accept digital photos because they are so easy to alter. A 35mm camera may be better.
No fancy tools
Do not use tools that you don’t use during a home inspection.
If you use fancy devices at the revisit, you may
be asked why you didn’t use them during the home
inspection.
Contractors should attend
We mentioned earlier that if it was a contractor
who found the problem, it is wise to have the contractor
attend the revisit. You might ask when they discovered
the problem. If it was after work began, ask why
their original quote did not mention this problem.
If it should have been apparent to an inspector who
is a generalist, it should have been apparent to
a contractor who is a specialist.
In most cases, the problem will have been discovered
part way through the project. Try to have the contractor
admit the uncertainty and unpredictability rather
than challenging the contractor’s responses directly.
Thinking on your feet
As evidence unfolds, you will need to ask follow-up
questions. This requires mental agility and focus.
Emotions get in the way. This is another reason that
two people should attend the revisit. Two heads are
better than one, especially since the inspector who
did the inspection will tend to justify or rationalize
their original position. It is simply human nature.
When you have collected information on site, advise the client what the next steps will be. Give them a date and time you will get back to them, and then get back to them sooner.
4. RESOLVING COMPLAINTS
The responsibility yardstick After the revisit, pull out the responsibility yardstick, and see how you measure up.
There are six points on the yardstick.
1. Is there in fact a problem?
a. If No, explain to your client why the thing that looks like a problem is really a normal condition.
b. If Yes, go to Point 2.
2. If there is a problem, was it documented in the
report?
a. If Yes, show the client that your report addresses
the situation.
b. If No, go to Point 3.
3. If there is a problem, and it is not documented in the report, is it within the scope of the inspection?
a. If No, help the client understand why a home inspection would not reveal this problem.
b. If Yes, Go to Point 4.
4. If there is a problem, it is not documented in
your report and it is within the scope of the home
inspection, ask yourself, “Would a competent inspector
identify this problem?”
a. If No, help the client understand that no home inspector would have discovered this.
b. If Yes, go to Point 5
5. Did it exist at the time of the inspection? (This may be difficult or impossible to determine.)
a. If No, explain this to your client.
b. If Yes, go to Point 6.
6. Was it visible at the time of the inspection? (This too, may be difficult or impossible to determine. Check for limitations in your report. Check for changes or demolition that expose the problem.)
a. If No, explain this to your client.
b. If Yes, you probably have some responsibility.
Let’s assume we are at 6 b.
Issues to consider:
Circumstances in which the problem is apparent
What were the circumstances? There are lots of things
that may have prevented you from identifying the
problem. A badly damaged floor may have been covered
with broadloom. Ceiling tiles may have concealed
rotted joists. Roofs may only leak when conditions
are right – ice damming or wind-driven rains from
the southeast, for example. Basements may only leak
when thawing snow is combined with heavy spring rains
on frozen ground.
Shared responsibility
Consider whether there is any shared responsibility.
- Did a seller, tenant or other third party conceal or misrepresent the problem?
- Did a contractor, installer or homebuilder perform poor work?
- Did a contractor conceal the problem?
- Is
the product under a manufacturer’s warranty?
- Is
the problem covered under a homeowner’s
insurance policy?
- Is the problem covered under a home warranty?
- Is
there a manufacturer’s recall on
the product?
- And so on.
Recreating the inspection situation
One of the most difficult things is to recreate the
circumstances of the inspection. This is an argument
for a statute of limitations on home inspectors’ responsibility.
So many things can change in a home, and inspectors
cannot remember the conditions from previous inspections.
The negotiations
Let’s look at the three possible situations:
1. You conclude that you have no responsibility. You have a communications task to move the client to the point of understanding why you have no responsibility.
2. You may or may not have responsibility. There
is a problem that was not documented that is within
the scope of the home inspection, but you don’t know
whether you or your inspector should have identified
it.
3. There is clearly a problem with respect to the
inspection. Situation 2 is the most difficult to resolve. What does the client think is fair? One of the first steps is to find out what the client thinks is fair. You’ll notice we didn’t
ask you to find out what would make the client happy
. We much prefer asking the client what he thinks
is fair. We are sometimes surprised at how little
the client is looking for. In some cases, an apology
is what is required. In other cases, helpful advice
in resolving the problem satisfies the client. In
many cases, a refund of the inspection fee restores
the relationship.
We try to look at the issue from the client’s perspective but avoid being drawn into the client’s
situation.
The three philosophies
At the outset, we talked about three philosophies that may guide you. At this point, it becomes important to have taken a position as to whether you are one of those who denies all claims (hard liner), one who accepts valid claims (validater) or one who tends to settle all claims (conciliator). Your next steps will be based on the philosophy you have adopted. You may well find that your position is based on the way your client has been acting and reacting. It may not be logical, but we tend to react more favorably to people we deem as behaving rationally, professionally and with courtesy.
Unclear responsibility
In many cases, you are negotiating a compromise and
you may make an offer as a business decision whether
you think you made an error or not.
Be careful with offers
Touch base with your attorney and your insurance
company before making an offer, to make sure you
will be able to defend yourself if the offer is not
accepted.
Only settle for business reasons if it helps your business!
Consider settling with a client only if the client
is satisfied with the offer. It may not be a great
investment to pay money and still have an unhappy
client.
Get a release
Get an attorney’s advice on what kind of release
you need in exchange for a settlement. A release
is a form signed by the client that frees you completely
or partially from any further liability claims on
that property.
Avoid betterment
We talked earlier about the roof that was 5 years
old being replaced with a new roof that might last
15 or 20 years. It’s fair to pay for part of a new
roof to put the client back to the point the report
said they were.
Other responsible parties?
If there are others who may share responsibility, you may advise the client of this and encourage them to seek compensation in those areas. Your attorney and insurer should know about these, if things go that far. These may include the seller, the real estate agent,
contractors, builders, manufacturers, homeowners’ insurance
policies and home warranties.
Turning it over to the insurance company
You may choose to have your insurance company handle
the complaint. This can be an emotional relief, but
it may be expensive. It also probably eliminates
the possibility of having a satisfied client. The
insurance company’s world is typically adversarial.
The exception may be if the insurance company offers
to settle quickly for the amount of your deductible.
Talk to your insurance company before you are in
the situation, so this problem does not arise during
the handling of a complaint.
Conclusion
Handling complaints is no fun. Having a strategy
developed for handling them in advance makes it less
painful and less likely that you will make a serious
mistake. We hope that this information is useful
at least in part, and encourage you to use the parts
that fit your business model.
WHEN THINGS GO WRONG
There may come a time that you discover something wrong with the house, and you may be upset or disappointed with your home inspection.
Intermittent Or Concealed Problems
Some problems can only be discovered by living in a house. They cannot be discovered during the few hours of a home inspection. For example, some shower stalls leak when people are in the shower, but do not leak when you simply turn on the tap. Some roofs and basements only leak when specific conditions exist. Some problems will only be discovered when carpets were lifted, furniture is moved or finishes are removed.
No Clues
These problems may have existed at the time of the inspection but there were no clues as to their existence. Our inspections are based on the past performance of the house. If there are no clues of a past problem, it is unfair to assume we should foresee a future problem.
We Always Miss Some Minor Things
Some say we are inconsistent because our reports
identify some minor problems but not others. The
minor problems that are identified were discovered
while looking for more significant problems. We note
them simply as a courtesy. The intent of the inspection
is not to find the $200 problems; it is to find the
$2,000 problems. These are the things that affect
people’s decisions to purchase.
Contractors’ Advice
The main source of dissatisfaction with home inspectors
comes from comments made by contractors. Contractors’ opinions often differ from ours. Don’t
be surprised when three roofers all say the roof
needs replacement when we said that, with some minor
repairs, the roof will last a few more years.
Last Man In Theory
While our advice represents the most prudent thing
to do, many contractors are reluctant to undertake
these repairs. This is because of the “Last Man In Theory”. The contractor fears that if he is the last person to work on the roof, he will get blamed if the roof leaks, regardless of whether the roof leak is his fault or not. Consequently, he won’t
want to do a minor repair with high liability when
he could re-roof the entire house for more money
and reduce the likelihood of a callback. This is
understandable.
Most Recent Advice Is Best
There is more to the “Last Man In Theory”. It suggests that it is human nature for homeowners to believe the last bit of “expert” advice they receive, even if it is contrary to previous advice. As home inspectors, we unfortunately find ourselves in the position of “First Man In” and
consequently it is our advice that is often disbelieved.
Why Didn’t We See It
Contractors may say “I can’t believe you had this house inspected, and they didn’t find this problem”.
There are several reasons for these apparent oversights:
Conditions During Inspection
1. It is difficult for homeowners to remember the
circumstances in the house, at the time of the inspection.
Homeowners seldom remember that it was snowing, there
was storage everywhere in the basement or that the
furnace could not be turned on because the air conditioning
was operating, et cetera. It’s impossible for contractors
to know what the circumstances were when the inspection
was performed.
The Wisdom Of Hindsight
2. When the problem manifests itself, it is very easy to have 20/20 hindsight. Anybody can say that the basement is wet when there is 2 inches of water on the floor. Predicting the problem is a different story.
A Long Look
3. If we spent 1/2 an hour under the kitchen sink
or 45 minutes disassembling the furnace, we’d find
more problems too. Unfortunately, the inspection
would take several days and would cost considerably
more.
We’re Generalists
4. We are generalists; we are not specialists. The heating contractor may indeed have more heating expertise than we do. This is because we are expected to have heating expertise and plumbing expertise, roofing expertise, electrical expertise, et cetera.
An Invasive Look
5. Problems often become apparent when carpets or
plaster are removed, when fixtures or cabinets are
pulled out, and so on. A home inspection is a visual
examination. We don’t perform any invasive or destructive
tests.
Not Insurance
In conclusion, a home inspection is designed to better your odds. It is not designed to eliminate all risk. For that reason, a home inspection should not be considered an insurance policy. The premium that an insurance company would have to charge for a policy with no deductible, no limit and an indefinite policy period would be considerably more than the fee we charge. It would also not include the value added by the inspection.
We hope this is food for thought.
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