Fellow ASHI Members

I would like to take this opportunity to make a few announcements about the coming year. We are moving forward on many fronts, and this will be an exciting year for ASHI Georgia. First, as you may be aware, the landscape for the home inspection business in Georgia may undergo significant changes in the next few years. We started this year by meeting with Representative Stephanie Benfeild of the State Legislature to discuss House Bill 903 (HB 903).

The purpose of HB 903 is to provide greater consumer protection in the home inspection business. There has been consumer complaints of negligence – typically home inspections performed by those without any professional certification and probably with little experience or training. I know each and every one of you works hard at building your individual reputation, and we together as ASHI Georgia have made home inspections a valuable consumer service. However, these few “bad apples” are threatening the reputation of the entire profession. One aspect of HB 903 is especially disconcerting to me, and I’m sure to you as well, is the removal of limits of liability in our contracts. If this happens, our insurance cost will probably skyrocket, ultimately raising the cost of inspections to the consumer. It may drive out the incompetent, but it can also discourage the qualified among us from practicing. We are working with Rep. Benfield and the Legislature to look at alternatives to protect the public. One possibility is the introduction of licensing as proposed by ASHI National. Regardless, as we are in for a few years of hard work to preserve what we have accomplished.

Shannon Cory
ASHI Georgia, President