Can I Sue My Inspector?

Question

I recently purchased my first investment property in Florida and about three days after taking ownership sewage started bubbling up through the bathtub.  After we brought a plumber out to take a look, they confirmed that the main pipe connecting the house to the street needs to be replaced with PVC because it's no longer safe to flush solids through it.

Due to the size/location of the pipe, we will need to have a contractor rip up flooring in various parts of the house to fix it so by the time we are done the total cost will be in the neighborhood of $7,000.  My question is do I have any recourse to go after my inspector or possibly even the seller for not catching/disclosing this?

Another thing to note, the seller was in the middle of going through a bankruptcy when I bought the house so even if it was theoretically possible to go after them, I don't think they have much left at this point.

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide!

-Jerry

Kelly R. · Answer

As a home inspector this make me cringe.  I do my best to run as much water as I can during an inspection but there is no way for me to know the conditions of the pipes underground.

If you review your inspection agreement I'd be willing to bet it spells out that "the home inspection is a visual, non invasive inspection of the conditions at the time of inspection".

Now... if your inspector is a InterNACHI certified inspector, and participates in the "buy back" program (as I do), and your inspector missed this,  you may be able to sell the home back to InterNACHI for what you paid for it up to 90 days after closing.

Bob Collett · Answer

If it were me, I would do a little investigating. Neighbors often know quite a lot. Did other homes on street have sewer problems... did seller ever mention problem to neighbors... was there a call to the city? Any repair permits. Who is the go to plumber in the area... there may be a record of a service call. Who was the previous owner prior to your seller... maybe there was a disclosure. Any recent paint in basement?

These are ideas that seek to discover if owner knew of problem

Matthew Kreitzer · Answer

As a Virginia attorney, I'm actually going to slightly disagree with the other posters. (Except Mr. Fisher) The answer is maybe. It depends on far more information than is available in this particular post. Please do not follow any legal advice from someone who is not a licensed attorney in your state. I could imagine a series of facts that, if were found true [and are not foreclosed by any information currently presented], could cause the inspector to be found negligent and liable for damages. Is that a slam dunk case? No. Is it possible? Sure. Need more information. Find a local attorney soon to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of your case, and do not take further legal advice from unlicensed sources.

Disclaimer: The Virginia State Bar may view this post as legal advertising. I do not agree to represent you by virtue of providing this information. Do not act on this information without seeking independent counsel.

Troy Fisher · Answer

Depends, did you pay for Sewage Scoping?  A recent trend out here is for Inspectors is to provide Sewer Scoping as an up-sell, which opens them up to more liability. Here in Washington Home Inspectors have added liability and most carry E&O insurance just like your friendly neighborhood realtor.  And if we get into other things Structural Pest Inspections then we have to carry bonds also.

So, does the inspector have liability? Yes.  Can you sue them? Probably.  Will you get damages? Depends on the contract and local laws.  You might have better luck going after the Seller/Listing Agent for not disclosing.

James Wise · Answer

Probably not. Inspection contracts typically hold the inspector harmless.

Also did you pay extra to have the line camera'd? If no there would be no way for the inspector to even know there was an issue.

Jerry Limber · Answer

Thanks for the advice everyone. @Bob Collett I think I will look into calling some of the main plumbers in town to see if they were aware of the issue.

@Shawn Holsapple - Yes we have had multiple people come out and take a look.  The prognosis is the same and the numbers are all in the same ballpark.

-Jerry

Shawn Holsapple · Answer

Don't forget to have the sewer line scoped and get a second opinion - it may just need to be cleaned out.  I'd do that before dropping $7k on one persons suggestion.  IMHO

Ryan Dossey · Answer

The inspector no. The seller potentially. If this came up just three days after there is a chance that they knew. What does their sales disclosure say? We ran into an issue with a property that had a stop order and the seller lied about it before we closed. The utility company was actually going after the guy but so are we. In Indiana you can sue for 3x damages and the filing fee is under $200.00

Sometimes you have to pick/choose your battles though. On my personal residence the seller stated that there were no water issues. Our first night in the home we could hear water GUSHING through our crawl space vents. The next day there were parts to 5-6 cheap sub pumps down there. The inspector didn't make a note. The seller committed fraud on the disclosure. It cost me $500 to have the yard regraded. It wasn't worth the hassle of going to court.

Justin Fox · Answer

I don't think so.  Inspectors usually just run water and flush the toilets to make sure flow is good.  This can be good one day and bad the day of/after a hard rain.  I've ran into the same issue before and just consider it an expensive lesson.  Unless you can prove the previous owners had a professional come out due to that specific issue, you're probably out of luck.

These types of things always stink.

Can I Sue My Inspector?

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