Ohio Code 4764.11 – Insurance requirements; recordkeeping
(A) Every licensed home inspector shall maintain, or be covered by, a comprehensive general liability insurance policy or a commercial general liability insurance policy with coverage limits of not less than one hundred thousand dollars per occurrence and not less than a three- hundred-thousand-dollar aggregate limit. The insurance policy shall provide coverage against liability of the licensed home inspector for loss, damage, or expense as a result of an act that occurred while the licensed home inspector was on the premises performing a home inspection. If the employer of a licensed home inspector is not a licensed home inspector and maintains an insurance policy covering the licensed home inspector, the licensed home inspector is not required to maintain the licensed home inspector’s own insurance policy.
Terms Used In Ohio Code 4764.11
- Client: means a person who enters into a written contract with a home inspector to retain for compensation or other valuable consideration the services of that home inspector to conduct a home inspection and to provide a written report on the condition of a residential building. See Ohio Code 4764.01
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Home inspection: means the process by which a home inspector conducts a visual examination of the readily accessible components of a residential building for a client. See Ohio Code 4764.01
- Licensed home inspector: means a person who holds a valid license issued pursuant to section 4764. See Ohio Code 4764.01
- Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
(B) Every licensed home inspector shall retain for a period of five years the original or a true copy of each written contract for the licensee’s services relating to home inspection work, all home inspection reports, and all work file documentation and data assembled in preparing those reports. The retention period begins on the date the report is submitted to the client unless, prior to expiration of the retention period, the licensee is notified that the services or report is the subject of or is otherwise involved in pending investigation or litigation, in which case the retention period begins on the date of final disposition of the litigation.
A licensee shall make available all records required to be maintained under this section for inspection and copying by the superintendent of real estate and professional licensing upon reasonable notice to the licensee.