Virginia Senate Bill 627 will have an adverse effect on the Home Inspection Industry in Virginia causing many businesses to close because of the proposed legislation due do the risk and unreasonable burden associated with unlimited liability. Liability insurance costs will likely rise due to increased risk exposure. Small, one man, inspection companies will likely fold due to the increase cost of liability insurance. For the businesses that remain will be forced to raise prices due to these increases in insurance premiums if this bill is passed. Not only will this have a detrimental effect on home inspectors but also future home buyers in Virginia due to increased fees associated with purchasing a new home.

Most businesses have limitation of liability clauses in their contracts and are typically tied to the amount of fees that are charged to the services provided. The Inspection Agreements used by our company provide for the same limitations. Why is the Home Inspection Industry being unfairly regulated when other industries are allowed reasonable Limited Liability Clause in their contracts.

Home inspectors are generalists. We cannot be expected to predict when something in a home will fail in the future due to normal wear; such as a roof leak, a furnace or water heater failure, or a basement leak due to a future system failure. Many components in the home at the actual time of the inspection may be in working order but can fail over time due to normal wear. It is unjust to expect me or any other inspection to be liable to a judgement that is out of our control and unable to predict. The Home Inspection is a visual inspection at a certain given moment in time. The inspection isn't invasive, we can't open walls to see what lurks behind them, we can't completely dismantle a furnace to see the heat exchanger or see inside the duct work inside the wall. We can't see electrical wiring hidden by drywall. So if something is hidden behind a wall or floor, or poor construction was used but not visible, how can any human being such as a home inspector be held liable for latent defects.

I'm a licensed home inspector in the Commonwealth of Virginia and have always operated with honesty and integrity as do other home inspectors in Virginia.

I am not in favor of Virginia Senate Bill 627 and respectfully request that this bill be killed.

Sincerely,

Anthony Lane