Q: We had a home inspector who missed numerous things costing $4K to fix - how do we get $ from ther failed inspection?
The old owner had a low-budget handyman install a new shower surround and floor pan. It was install very poorly with no support in the walls for the panel seams, no support for the floor pan, and a loose drain. It took about $4k to have the shower disassembled and walls re-studded to handle the wall seams, and 4 bags of leveling concrete for the floor pan. If the home inspector would have stepped into the shower it would have been obvious but never did. It was unsafe to use and would have flooded the below apartment. We filed a claim with the inspection company and the basically responded with "to bad". We want to get the cost of repairs + time back. The company has an insurance policy that covers missed things". (UPDATE) The inspection report listed the shower in good condition which is was NOT.
A: You need to review the contract with the home inspector very carefully. If you did not negotiate and modify the contract, it insulates the inspector from most if not all claims, and, when it doesn't insulate them, it limits damages to refunding your inspection fee. That will surely be. shock to you when you read it, but it is a good reason to consult counsel when buying a home. Real estate agents get paid only if the deal goes through, so they are less interested in effective home inspections, and, indeed, that's an important reason to hire the inspector yourself and be present at the inspection. For a $4,000 case, I doubt you can find counsel to assist, but perhaps you should schedule a contract review to see if your contract is as bad as many of them.
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