« Is ASHI Dead in Texas? | Home | Fed Stands Still – Time to Make Your Move »
TREC Inspector Complaint Process
By John Cahill | August 6, 2008
During a discussion with a fellow inspector the other day with regard to a complaint filed against them it came to my attention that the inspector in question did not really understand how the Texas Real Estate Commission carries out disciplinary actions against inspectors when a complaint is filed. Do you know the process by which inspectors are judged by the TREC?
I am surprised that many inspectors have no idea of the process and how much latitude the TREC has. Let explain briefly how the process generally works:
1) First a complaint is filed. This may be by a consumer, home owner, real estate agent or another inspector. Yes, even listing agents have filed complaints. It does not just have to be the client who hires the inspector. This can be a good thing because it holds the inspector out as a professional before the public and responsible for doing ethical work in the eyes of all involved.
2) When the TREC receives the complaint all parties involved are notified that a complaint has been filed. A TREC investigator is assigned the complaint and contacts all parties involved. The investigator is not a home inspector and is probably not technically knowledgeable. The investigation may only be a phone conversation. You may record it but be polite about it. Often during an investigative process a licensee will say admit or imply they did something wrong. The conversation can be friendly and you might say “ya, I shoulda done that”. That is a noose and whatever you say will be used against you. Do not obstruct justice; answer the questions cooperatively and with the least amount of words; do not be adversarial; if you don’t remember say “I don’t recall at this time” or “I am unsure, can I get back to you on that”. Make sure any written response is reviewed by several people before submitting it. If in doubt consult an attorney. Remember TREC is there to protect the public and not defend you. If they can rule against you they are obligated to do so. That’s why it is called “enforcement” and not “defense”. The information is then compiled and sent to an enforcement attorney with TREC for consideration.
3) The enforcement attorney at TREC then processes the report under the following considerations:
i) If the attorney does not understand the technical aspects of the case they may, but is not required to, consult inspectors in the TREC inspectors advisory committee. If the enforcement attorney does not wish to seek advice of the inspector committee on a matter they may make a judgment without the consideration of the advisory committee.
ii) Historically requests for clarification from outside resources such as members of the TREC inspector advisory committee are done without documentation.
iii) According to one reliable source, the TREC inspector advisory committee was officially involved in one case many years ago and when they disagreed with TREC they were never again consulted in an official manner regarding a complaint. The advisory committee serves the commissioners (TREC) and if they do not compliment them they are replaced with people who will or are ignored.
4) If in the enforcement attorney’s judgment, it is determined that the inspector has violated an aspect of the administrative law or standards of practice the enforcement attorney may decide to pursue an agreed administrative order against the inspector based upon the information; otherwise, the complaint can be dismissed. This is at the discretion of the enforcement officer and such actions, for example a fine, probation or loss of license, may be taken without consent or consideration of the inspector advisory board.
5) If the inspector chooses not to accept the agreed order the inspector may appeal to a judge; however, this may result in an immediate escalation of the severity of the penalty imposed by the TREC in the even that the inspector in question looses.
As you can see from this process it is heavily weighted against the inspector. When unofficial input is provided from an inspector committee member or technical advisor there is no public record of such input to allow the inspector opportunity to cross examine in the event that the inspector feels they have grounds for an appeal to a judge.
The good news is that complaints against inspectors is rare compared to the significant number of complaints against real estate agents. Inspectors are outstanding in their compliance with rules and most complaints are not justified and minor. In fact, if one were to look at the number and type of complaints against inspectors, relative to the number of inspections performed, one could wonder why inspectors are regulated at all!
If you get a complaint stay calm and realize the process can drag on for years. If you need assistance I can help you with risk management for inspectors through my web site at www.prismrca.com. In the past year I have helped inspectors arbitrate their disputes successfully with the complainant and in every case the dispute was settled and the complainant retracted the complaint. Keep in mind that TREC has authority to continue the investigation on a retracted complaint. However, such expense would seem wasteful and punitive when all parties have satisfactorily resolved their differences and are willing to go on about more important matters in life.
Topics: Real Estate Inspectors |