"PB0924" wrote...
I had a termite inspection done and he never notice it, I have some major wood
damage, is anyone liable about this ?

For the termites, read the contract you signed with the inspecting company. If
they are reputable, they will treat the area without charge.

Was the wood damage concealed when you first saw the house? Was it concealed
when you did the final walkthrough prior to closing?

Did you do a final walkthrough after the sellers vacated, and prior to closing?
If not, you (and maybe your real estate agent) are probably liable.

On Mon, 2 Aug 2004 19:27:00 -0700, someone wrote:


Did you do a final walkthrough after the sellers vacated, and prior to closing?
If not, you (and maybe your real estate agent) are probably liable.

How would he agent be liable if the Buyer didn't bother to do a
walk-through??? The Buyer is the principal and calls the shots. The
agent is not a termite inspector. The Buyer HAD a termite inspection.
SO whose duty is it to detect termites? (Clue: NOT the agent's.)

-v.

(PB0924) wrote in message ...
I had a termite inspection done and he never notice it, I have some major wood
damage, is anyone liable about this ?

This is (part of) what I do for a living. See http://dpr.clemson.edu
or http://www.structuralpestexpert.com.

If the damage was in an accessible area and visible then the inspector
is likely liable for not having reported it. In most states the
structural pest control industry performs these inspections, and in
most states the Dept. of Agriculture regulates the pest-control
industry.

Not all states require that "damage" per se be reported. All (to my
knowledge) do, however, require that all visible "evidence of
infestation" be reported in accessible areas. In most cases the
evidence of infestation is damage...

Step 1: Call the Dept. of Agriculture and see who regulates the guys
who did the termite inspection. File a complaint. They'll send a
State inspector out to see if the laws that govern wood-destroying
organism reports have been violated. The State's involvement may be
enough for the company that did the inspection to either fix the
damage, treat the termites, or offer you some money to resolve the
issue.

Step 2: If the damage is substantial, i.e. if it is enough damage to
be worth fighting over, contact a lawyer. The evidentiary standards
that the state has to meet before they can issue a citation are
generally higher than what you would have to meet in a civil court
proceeding. It's the difference between "beyond a reasonable doubt"
for the Government to prosecute you versus winning a civil case by a
"preponderance of the evidence."

As aggravating as it may be, if the damage is not substantial and the
outfit that did the inspection doesn't care about their reputation it
may be easier to just fix it and get on with things.

Your real-estate agent is going to use the same defense you do: you
have no special expertise in this area and thus relied on the
inspector. Unless you can prove conspiracy or a pattern of
non-disclosure involving that real-estate agent and that inspector
(certainly not unknown, but hard to prove) you are, in my opinion,
wasting your time going after the agent.

Good luck,
C