Victory Inspections LLC Agreement

Hello, and thank you for choosing Victory Inspections. 

This pre-inspection agreement is guidelined by InterNACHI and New York State standards of practice.

Please review the following pre-inspection agreement and submit the form below.

Please submit this form prior to the day of the inspection. 

This is an agreement between you{{CLIENT_NAME}}, the undersigned Client, and us, the Inspector, pertaining to our inspection of the Property at: {{ADDRESS}}. The terms below govern this agreement.

The fee for our inspection is ${{PRICE}}, to be paid in full before the appointment.

In the event of a cancelation at least two hours prior to the appointment time, we will refund you your payment but will have to deduct a $10 cancelation fee. This fee helps us cover the technology (transaction) fee that we get charged on our end. This technology fee is not created by us but by our payment processing company. This fee is regardless of how you make your digital payment and regardless of who (buyer/seller/agent/lawyer/etc.) cancels the appointment. 

If the appointment is canceled or needs to be rescheduled during or within two hours of the appointment time, we will refund your payment but deduct a $50 cancelation fee. This fee is regardless of how you make your digital payment and regardless of who (buyer/seller/agent/lawyer/etc.) cancels the appointment. 

No fees will be charged if the inspection is rescheduled at least two hours before the scheduled appointment time, provided that a refund has not been issued yet.

If, for any reason, Victory Inspections LLC needs to cancel your appointment prior to the appointment time, we will refund you in full, free of any fees.

The payment needs to be fully processed before we can issue the refund. This may take some time.

We ask that you and your agent contact the homeowners before the inspection and ask the following. 

Failing to do the following may result in a cancellation of the appointment.

• Please have all pets/animals removed from the home or put away. We will be moving in and out of the house multiple times, bringing equipment in and out as well, and we wouldn't want a family pet to sneak out. Even a "friendly" pet can be upset or aggressive when they see a stranger entering with tools and equipment. 

• We do ask and recommend that we have the home to ourselves throughout the inspection and walkthrough with our clients. We understand this is not always possible, but it is very much preferred. It allows us to speak freely with the clients and access all areas/rooms. Sometimes, sellers or renters can be distracting from our inspection process.

• Please confirm we have access to the entire home and/or all apartments. Victory Inspections is a member of the GSAR and has access to Supra Lock Boxes. If the home does not have a Supra Lock Box, please let us know how we will get into the home before the inspection.

• It is crucial before the inspection to have the homeowner create access to all rooms and major systems of the home. For example, closets with attic hatches, basement/attic steps, areas in front and around electric panels, thermostats/furnaces, water heaters, etc... As a New York State inspector, we are not permitted to move homeowners' belongings. We may not enter an area such as an attic or crawl space if deemed unsafe or difficult to access. These areas may be void in the report due to a lack of safe or easy access. Locations such as attics need to be safe to walk through; this means having flooring, not just ceiling/floor joists. 

• Have all utilities/services on in the home. Gas, Water, Electrical, etc... As an NYS Inspector, we are not permitted to operate main cutoff switches, breakers, or valves. Please ensure that water heaters are operational by verifying that the thermostat is turned on and not set to vacation mode or off. We cannot light pilot lights or start fires.

In accordance with the New York State Department of State - “Home inspectors are licensed by the NYS Department of State. Home Inspectors may only report on readily accessible and observed conditions as outlined in this pre-inspection agreement, Article 12 B of the Real Property Law, and the regulations promulgated thereunder, including, but not limited to, the Code of Ethics and Regulations and the Standards of Practice as provided in Title 19 NYCRR Subparts 197-4 and 197-5 et seq.  Home inspectors are not permitted to provide engineering or architectural services.”; and

• (a)   “If immediate threats to health or safety are observed during the course of the inspection, the client hereby consents to allow the home inspector to disclose such immediate threats to health or safety to the property owner and/or occupants of the property.”

• (b)   Home inspectors shall discuss the scope of the inspection with the client and only perform services that have been duly authorized by the client.

1. INSPECTOR agrees to perform a visual inspection of the home/building and to provide CLIENT with a written/digital report identifying the defects that INSPECTOR both observed and deemed material. INSPECTOR may offer comments as a courtesy, but these comments will not comprise the bargained-for report. The report is only supplementary to the seller's disclosure. Unless otherwise inconsistent with this agreement or not possible, INSPECTOR agrees to perform the inspection in accordance with the current Standards of Practice of the International Association of Certified Home Inspectors ("InterNACHI") posted at Nachi.org/sop as well as New York state standards of practice. Although INSPECTOR agrees to follow Standards of Practice, dos.ny.gov - CLIENT understands that these standards contain limitations, exceptions, and exclusions. CLIENT understands that InterNACHI is not a party to this agreement and has no control over INSPECTOR or representations made by INSPECTOR and does not supervise INSPECTOR. Depending on the needs of Victory Inspections LLC, we may or may not be an active member of InterNACHI at the time of this agreement. We are, however, always to be in good standing with New York State and fully licensed at the time of this agreement.  

2. Unless otherwise indicated with your chosen service, CLIENT understands that INSPECTOR will NOT be automatically testing for the presence of radon. This colorless, odorless, radioactive gas may be harmful to humans. The CLIENT understands that INSPECTOR will NOT be testing for mold. The CLIENT understands that INSPECTOR will not test for compliance with applicable building codes or the presence of potential dangers arising from asbestos, lead paint, lead water, formaldehyde, molds, soil contamination, and other environmental hazards or violations. As part of New York state standards of practice, we will perform visual, non-intrusive inspections of all major systems around the home but will not exceed limitations or standards of practice unless the INSPECTOR deems it applicable and safe to do so on a situational basis. For example, New York State home inspectors are not required to walk on roofs but will perform safe visual inspections. For example two, New York State home inspectors are not permitted to run air conditioner units if the temperature is below 65 degrees within the past 24 hours. For example three, the Inspector can only visually inspect attics and crawlspaces that have appropriate and/or safe access. We are not required to walk or crawl in spaces deemed unsafe by the Inspector and/or do not have proper floors. If areas do not have safe, reasonable, walkable headroom or access, we have the right to choose not to enter. We also can not move the homeowner's belongings to gain access to these spaces. These are just examples; a full breakdown of New York State standards of practice for Home Inspections can be found at dos.ny.gov. 

3. The inspection and report are for the use of the CLIENT only, who permits INSPECTOR to discuss observations with real estate agents, owners, repairpersons, and other interested parties. The client understands that as per New York State standards of practice, “If immediate threats to health or safety are observed during the course of the inspection, the client hereby consents to allow the home inspector to disclose such immediate threats to health or safety to the property owner and/or occupants of the property.” INSPECTOR shall be the sole owner of the report and all rights to it. INSPECTOR accepts no responsibility for the use or misinterpretation by third parties, and third parties who rely on it in any way do so at their own risk and release INSPECTOR (including employees and business entities) from any liability whatsoever. If you or any person acting on your behalf provide the report to a third party who then sues you and/or us, you release us from any liability and agree to pay our costs and legal fees in defending any action naming us. 

4. INSPECTOR'S inspection of the Property and the report are in no way a guarantee or warranty, express or implied, regarding the future use, operability, habitability, or suitability of the home/building or its components. All warranties, express or implied, including warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose, are expressly excluded to the fullest extent allowed by law. If any structure or portion of any structure that is to be inspected is a log home, log structure, or includes similar log construction, CLIENT understands that such structures have unique characteristics that make it impossible for an inspector to inspect and evaluate them. Therefore, the scope of the inspection to be performed pursuant to this agreement does not include decay of the interior of logs in log walls, log foundations or roofs, or similar defects.

5. LIMITATION ON LIABILITY AND DAMAGES. INSPECTOR assumes no liability for the cost of repair or replacement of unreported defects or deficiencies, either current or arising in the future. CLIENT acknowledges that the liability of INSPECTOR, its agents, and/or employees for claims or damages, costs of defense or suit, attorney's fees, and expenses arising out of or related to the INSPECTOR'S negligence or breach of any obligation under this agreement, including errors and omissions in the inspection or the report, shall be limited to liquidated damages in an amount not greater than 1.5 times the fee paid to the INSPECTOR, and this liability shall be exclusive. CLIENT waives any claim for consequential, exemplary, special, or incidental damages or for the loss of the use of the home/building. The parties acknowledge that the liquidated damages are not intended as a penalty but are intended (i) to reflect the fact that actual damages may be difficult and impractical to ascertain; (ii) to allocate risk among the INSPECTOR and CLIENT; and (iii) to enable the INSPECTOR to perform the inspection at the stated fee.

6. INSPECTOR does not perform engineering, architectural, plumbing, or any other job function requiring an occupational license in the jurisdiction where the inspection is taking place unless the Inspector holds a valid occupational license, in which case he/she may inform the CLIENT that he/she is so licensed, and is, therefore, qualified to go beyond this basic home inspection, and for an additional fee, perform additional inspections beyond those within the scope of the basic home inspection. Any agreement for such additional inspections shall be in separate writing. 

7. If you believe you have a claim against us, you agree to provide us with the following: (1) written notification of your claim within seven days of discovery, in sufficient detail and with sufficient supporting documents that we can evaluate it; and (2) immediate access to the premises. Failure to comply with these conditions releases us from liability.

8. The parties agree that any litigation arising out of this agreement shall be filed only in the court having jurisdiction in the County in which the INSPECTOR has its principal place of business. In the event that CLIENT fails to prove any claims against INSPECTOR in a court of law, CLIENT agrees to pay all legal costs, expenses, and fees of INSPECTOR in defending said claims. CLIENT further understands that the INSPECTOR may not be an active member of InterNACHI on the day of this Agreement, and any legal action against InterNACHI itself allegedly arising out of this Agreement or INSPECTOR's relationship with InterNACHI must be brought only in the District Court of Boulder County, Colorado. No such action may be filed unless the plaintiff has first provided InterNACHI with 30 days' written notice of the nature of the claim. In any action against INSPECTOR and/or InterNACHI, CLIENT waives trial by jury.

9. If any court declares any provision of this agreement invalid, the remaining provisions will remain in effect. This agreement represents the entire agreement between the parties. All prior communications are merged into this agreement, and there are no terms or conditions other than those set forth herein. No statement or promise of INSPECTOR or its agents shall be binding unless reduced to writing and signed by INSPECTOR. No change shall be enforceable against any party unless it is in writing and signed by the parties. This agreement shall be binding upon and enforceable by the parties and their heirs, executors, administrators, successors, and assignees. CLIENT shall have no cause of action against INSPECTOR after one year from the date of the inspection.

10. Past-due fees for your inspection shall accrue interest at 8% per year. You agree to pay all costs and attorney's fees we incur in collecting the fees owed to us. If the Client is a corporation, LLC, or similar entity, you personally guarantee payment of the fee.

11. If the CLIENT requests a re-inspection, the re-inspection is also subject to all the terms and conditions set forth in this agreement.

12. This agreement is not transferable or assignable.

13. If a court finds any term of this agreement ambiguous or requiring judicial interpretation, the court shall not construe that term against us by reason of the rule that any ambiguity in a document is construed against the party drafting it. You have the opportunity to consult qualified counsel before signing this.

14.  If there is more than one CLIENT, you are signing on behalf of all of them, and you represent that you are authorized to do so. 

15. The CLIENT acknowledges that once the CLIENT receives the report, it is their responsibility to save the report and keep it on file. Our inspection software, SPECTORA, stores the inspection report on its servers, but it may be at risk of loss and should not be considered a reliable source of storage. The CLIENT has the opportunity to download, save, and print a physical copy of the report immediately upon receiving it. 

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By signing this, you give authorization for us to share findings and the report with your real estate agent, unless you have specifically in writing asked us not to do so. As stated prior(3), we are not permitted to do so without your consent. 

BY SIGNING THIS, THE CLIENT OR CLIENT'S REPRESENTATIVE HAS CAREFULLY READ THE FOREGOING, AGREES TO IT, AND ACKNOWLEDGES RECEIPT OF A COPY OF THIS AGREEMENT.