Anyone can call themselves a “Building Inspector”!!!
Jan 26 2017
Would you trust a tiler, a plumber, a landscaper, a drywall installer, or even a truck driver or hairdresser to conduct a professional building inspection on your new property? Many people unknowingly do – don’t be one of them!
DO NOT assume that because you see a BLD licence, your building inspector is in fact licensed and qualified.
Considering that the building inspection industry is currently unregulated in South Australia with no licensing requirements whatsoever, and there are unfortunately many unqualified “building inspectors” offering lower cost “building inspections”, buyers requiring pre-purchase-inspections prior to the expiry of the contractual cooling-off period or auction certainly run the gauntlet.
One way that building inspectors claim credibility is by advertising that they have a “builder’s licence” by displaying their BLD number on the homepage of their website, on their business cards or on their work vehicles.
A person must be licensed as a Building Contractor to perform any kind of building work for others in South Australia, thus there is a BLD number for almost every different building trade out there.
The ideal BLD license for building inspectors to hold is an unrestricted BUILDING WORK SUPERVISORS LICENSE which enables them to supervise an entire build and to sign off on the requisite compliances (Regulation 74 / Part A Statement of Compliance etc).
These licenses demonstrate a wide-ranging expertise of building practices and reflect a balanced knowledge requisite in any reputable, qualified building inspector’s repertoire.
Many Adelaide “building inspectors” who promote their BLD numbers, however, are purposefully misleading you, the buyer, by implying that they are licensed builders or building work supervisors when they are in fact nothing of the sort. Some are licensed tilers, plumbers, and even landscapers.
Sure, these licenses grant the holder the claim of expertise in their particular fields, but when viewed in the context of a comprehensive pre-purchase building inspection where every building element must be expertly analysed, do these hobbled licenses really lend any feasible trustworthiness?
Clearly the answer is NO!
Admittedly a BUILDING WORK SUPERVISORS LICENSE is not the be-all and end-all in regards to building inspector qualifications. A rich and diverse building industry experience through various disciplines along with a strong mentorship from other senior inspectors can certainly place an up-and-coming building inspector in very good stead. The purpose of this article is merely to highlight the deceptive nature of certain building inspectors who market their BLD licenses as a form of overarching accreditation even though their license may only be applicable to plumbing etc.
In any case, the unregulated nature of the building inspection industry certainly poses a pending liability for the unknowing consumer. Buying a home is often the most significant financial decision most people will make in their lives, thus it is of the upmost importance for buyers to thoroughly investigate the credentials of prospective building inspectors prior to engaging them. Please click here to read my detailed blog “How do I select the correct building inspector?”.
Before you decide on a building inspector, first verify their BLD “Building License” number by visiting the Consumer and Business Services license check webpage – https://secure.cbs.sa.gov.au/OccLicPubReg/index.php
If you are looking for professional building inspectors please visit www.summertonbuildinginspections.com.au for more information. Also don’t forget to follow us on Google + : building inspectors in Adelaide
