HB 315

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to home inspection services; creating s.
3	501.935, F.S.; providing definitions; providing
4	requirements for practice; providing exemptions; providing
5	prohibited acts and penalties; requiring liability
6	insurance; exempting from duty to provide repair cost
7	estimates; providing limitations; providing for
8	enforcement of violations; providing an effective date.
9
10	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
11
12	Section 1.  Section 501.935, Florida Statutes, is created
13	to read:
14	501.935  Home inspection services; requirements;
15	exemptions; prohibited acts and penalties; insurance;
16	limitations and enforcement.--
17	(1)  DEFINITIONS.--As used in this section, the term:
18	(a)  "Home" means any residential real property, or
19	manufactured or modular home, that is a single-family dwelling,
20	duplex, triplex, quadruplex, condominium unit, or cooperative
21	unit. The term does not include the common areas of condominiums
22	or cooperatives.
23	(b)  "Home inspector" means any person who provides or
24	offers to provide a home inspection for a fee or other
25	compensation.
26	(c)  "Home inspection" means a limited visual examination
27	of one or more of the readily accessible installed systems and
28	components of a home, including the structure, electrical
29	system, HVAC system, roof covering, plumbing system, interior
30	components, exterior components, and site conditions that affect
31	the structure, for the purposes of providing a written
32	professional opinion of the condition of the home.
33	(2)  REQUIREMENTS FOR PRACTICE.--
34	(a)  A person shall not work as a home inspector unless he
35	or she:
36	1.  Has successfully completed a course of study, which
37	requires a passing score on a valid examination in home
38	inspections which is not less than 80 hours and which includes,
39	but is not limited to, each of the following components of a
40	home: structure, electrical system, roof covering, plumbing
41	system, interior components, exterior components, site
42	conditions that affect the structure, and heating, ventilation,
43	and cooling systems.
44	2.  Completes 8 hours of continuing education related to
45	home inspections annually.
46	3.  Discloses each of the following to the consumer in
47	writing and prior to contracting for or commencing a home
48	inspection:
49	a.  The home inspector meets the education and examination
50	requirements of this subsection.
51	b.  The home inspector maintains the commercial general
52	liability insurance policy required by this section.
53	c.  The scope and any exclusions of the home inspection.
54	d.  A statement of experience which shall include either
55	the approximate number of home inspections the home inspector
56	has performed for a fee or the number of years of experience as
57	a home inspector.
58	e.  Home inspectors are not regulated by any state agency,
59	but any violation of this section may be an unfair and deceptive
60	trade practice under part II of this chapter.
61	(b)  A business entity may not provide or offer to provide
62	home inspection services unless each of the home inspectors
63	employed by the business entity satisfies all the requirements
64	of this section.
65	(c)  A business entity may not use, in connection with the
66	name or signature of the business entity, the title "home
67	inspectors" to describe the business entity's services unless
68	each of the home inspectors employed by the business entity
69	satisfies all the requirements of this section.
70	(3)  EXEMPTIONS.--The following persons are not required to
71	comply with this section when acting within the scope of
72	practice authorized by such license, except when such persons
73	are conducting, producing, disseminating, or charging a fee for
74	a home inspection or otherwise operating within the scope of
75	this section:
76	(a)  A construction contractor licensed under chapter 489.
77	(b)  An architect licensed under chapter 481.
78	(c)  An engineer licensed under chapter 471.
79	(d)  A building code administrator, plans examiner, or
80	building code inspector licensed under part XII of chapter 468.
81	(e)  A certified real estate appraiser, licensed real
82	estate appraiser, or registered real estate appraiser licensed
83	under part II of chapter 475.
84	(f)  An inspector whose report is being provided to, and is
85	solely for the benefit of, the Federal Housing Administration or
86	the Veterans Administration.
87	(g)  An inspector conducting inspections for wood-
88	destroying organisms on behalf of a licensee under chapter 482.
89	(h)  A firesafety inspector certified under s. 633.081.
90	(i)  An insurance adjuster licensed under part VI of
91	chapter 626.
92	(j)  An officer appointed by the court.
93	(k)  A master septic tank contractor licensed under part
94	III of chapter 489.
95	(l)  A certified energy auditor performing an energy audit
96	of any home or building conducted under chapter 366 or rules
97	adopted by the Public Service Commission.
98	(m)  A mobile home manufacturer, dealer, or installer
99	regulated or licensed pursuant to the requirements of chapter
100	320 and any employees or agents of the manufacturer, dealer, or
101	installer.
102	(4)  PROHIBITED ACTS; PENALTIES.--
103	(a)  A home inspector, a company that employs a home
104	inspector, or a company that is controlled by a company that
105	also has a financial interest in a company employing a home
106	inspector may not:
107	1.  Perform or offer to perform, prior to closing, for any
108	additional fee, any repairs to a home on which the inspector or
109	the inspector's company has prepared a home inspection report.
110	This paragraph does not apply to a home warranty company that is
111	affiliated with or retains a home inspector to perform repairs
112	pursuant to a claim made under a home warranty contract.
113	2.  Inspect for a fee any property in which the inspector
114	or the inspector's company has any financial or transfer
115	interest.
116	3.  Offer or deliver any compensation, inducement, or
117	reward to the owner of the inspected property, or any broker or
118	agent therefor, for the referral of any business to the
119	inspector or the inspection company.
120	4.  Accept an engagement to make an omission or prepare a
121	report in which the inspection itself, or the fee payable for
122	the inspection, is contingent upon either the conclusions in the
123	report, preestablished findings, or the close of escrow.
124	(b)  Any person who violates any provision of this
125	subsection commits:
126	1.  A misdemeanor of the second degree for a first
127	violation, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
128	2.  A misdemeanor of the first degree for a second
129	violation, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
130	3.  A felony of the third degree for a third or subsequent
131	violation, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or
132	s. 775.084.
133	(5)  INSURANCE.--A home inspector must maintain a
134	commercial general liability insurance policy in an amount of
135	not less that $300,000.
136	(6)  REPAIR COST ESTIMATES.--Home inspectors are not
137	required to provide estimates related to the cost of repair of
138	an inspected property.
139	(7)  STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.--Chapter 95 governs when an
140	action to enforce an obligation, duty, or right arising under
141	this section must be commenced.
142	(8)  ENFORCEMENT OF VIOLATIONS.--Any violation of this
143	section constitutes a deceptive and unfair trade practice,
144	punishable as provided in part II of this chapter.
145	Section 2.  This act shall take effect January 1, 2006.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.