Unethical Home Inspector

After our parents died we hired a home inspector to give us advise on renovations needed to their 1953 home. The inspection was performed in December 2017. We spent $20,000 on renovations (electrical box, carpet & floor cleaning, 5 rooms were painted, wall paper removal, new sheet rock, new carpet and complete 1/2 bathroom).

Forward to May 2018. The potential home buyers used the same inspection company. They sent us their report. We had no idea they used the same inspection company. The inspectors report said they have never inspected the house before! To our surprise approximately 70% of the report was copied word for word also using the same photos from our original report. The buyers report does not reflect the current condition of the home improvements we made. The photos do not reflect the current condition of the home. Based on the report the sale was terminated.

Do we have any legal right to file a complaint and sue this inspector? Was the home inspector wrong to send the buyer our December 2017 report? Seems unethical business practice to us!!

I would assume that the inspector would at a minimum use the previous report as a reference of condition to the home. In my opinion this is the only use of the previous report that should be used.
A complete inspection should be done for the buyer with a new report written.

Where are you located at?
City and State.

Hearing only half of the story…

That type of action gives all home inspectors a bad name.

Where are you located?

Is the inspector a member of this association? If so, Nick Gromicko, InterNACHI’s founder, has been helpful to others in the past… fastreply@internachi.org

If not, anyone can file suit against anyone else anytime they want to. But, usually, only the lawyers win.

Probably. Forget the “ethical violation” nonsense, though. You will garner little more than yawns from any effort in that regard. You should consult an attorney who is licensed to practice law in your state to explore your legal rights and the possibility of litigation. It is possible that knowingly providing false information (“said they have never inspected the house before”) and incorrect information that damaged you could be considered as tortious interference with a contract in your state.

That’s one inspector that may wind up purchasing your home!

Call the construction contractors board and report them. Show the buyers the past report so they can get another inspection.