Building & Timber Pest Inspection Agreement
TYPE OF PROPOSED INSPECTION ORDERED BY YOU:
Inspection & Report: The inspection will be of the Building Elements as outlined in Appendix C of AS4349.1-2007 except for Strata title properties where the inspection will be according to Appendix B of AS4349.1-2007.
A copy of the appropriate Standard with Appendices may be obtained from Standards Australia.
Upon receipt of the white copy, We will carry out the inspection and report ordered by You in accordance with this agreement and You agree to pay for the inspection.
In ordering the inspection, You agree that the inspection will be carried out in accordance with the following clauses, which define the scope and limitations of the inspection and the report.
SCOPE OF THE INSPECTION & THE REPORT
The interior
The subfloor
The roof void
The roof exterior
The exterior
LIMITATIONS
iii. alterations or other problems to the property known to them
GENERALLY
23. In the event of a dispute or a claim arising out of, or relating to the inspection or the report, or any alleged negligent act, error or omission on Our part or on the part of the inspector conducting the inspection, either party may give written notice of the dispute or claim to the other party. If the dispute is not resolved within fourteen (14) days from the service of the written notice then either party may refer the dispute or claim to an independent mediator. The cost shall be met equally by both parties or as agreed as part of the mediation settlement. Should the dispute or claim not be resolved by mediation then one or other of the parties may refer the dispute or claim to the Institute of Arbitrators and Mediators of Australia who will appoint an Arbitrator who will resolve the dispute by arbitration. The Arbitrator will also determine what costs each of the parties are to pay.
We will not be liable for any loss, damage, cost or expense, whatsoever, suffered or incurred by any Person other than You in connection with the use of the Inspection Report provided pursuant to this agreement by that Person for any purpose or in any way, including the use of this report for any purpose connected with the sale, purchase, or use of the Property or the giving of security over the Property, to the extent permissible by law. The only Person to whom We may be liable and to whom losses arising in contract or tort sustained may be payable by Us is the Client named on the face page of this Agreement
Note: In the ACT under the Civil Law (Sale of Residential Property) Act 2003 and Civil Law (Sale of Residential Property) Regulations 2004 the report resulting from this inspection may be passed to the purchaser as part of the sale process providing it is carried out not more than three months prior to listing and is not more than six months old.
The Report may not be sold or provided to any other Person without Our express written permission, unless the Client is authorised to do so by Legislation. If We give our permission it may be subject to conditions such as payment of a further fee by the other Person and agreement from the other Person to comply with this clause.
However, We may sell the Report to any other Person although there is no obligation for Us to do so.
You release Us from any and all claims, actions, proceedings, judgments, damages, losses, interest, costs and expenses of whatever nature that the Person may have at any time hereafter arising from the unauthorised provision or sale of the Report by You to a Person without Our express written permission.
You indemnify Us in respect of any and all liability, including all claims, actions, proceedings, judgments, damages, losses, interest, costs and expenses of any nature, which may be incurred by, brought, made or recovered against Us arising directly or indirectly from the unauthorised provision or sale of the Report by You to a Person without Our express written permission.
DEFINITIONS:
You should read and understand the following definitions of words used in this Agreement and the Report. This will help You understand what is involved in a property and building inspection, the difficulties faced by the inspector and the contents of the Report which We will provide You following the Inspection.
Acceptance Criteria: The Building shall be compared with a building that was constructed in accordance with the generally accepted practice at the time of construction and which has been maintained such that there has been no significant loss of strength and serviceability.
Access hole (cover) means an opening in the structure to allow for safe entry to carry out an inspection.
Accessible area means an area of the site where sufficient safe and reasonable access is available to allow inspection within the scope of the inspection.
Building Element means a portion of a building that, by itself or in combination with other such parts, fulfils a characteristic function.
Client means the person(s) or other legal entity for which the inspection is to be carried out. If ordered by the person(s)’s agent then it is agreed that the agent represents the person(s) and has the authority to act for and on their behalf. (See also “You/Your” below)
Defect means a fault or deviation from the intended condition of the material, assembly or component.
Inspector means the person or organisation responsible for carrying out the inspection. (See also “Our/Us/We” below.)
Limitation means any factor that prevents full achievement of the purpose of the inspection.
Major defect means a defect of sufficient magnitude where rectification has to be carried out in order to avoid unsafe conditions, loss of utility or further deterioration of the property.
Minor defect means a defect other than a Major defect.
Person means any individual, company, partnership or association who is not a Client.
Property means the structures and boundaries etc. up to thirty (30m) metres from the exterior walls of the main building but within the boundaries of the land on which the main building is erected.
Report means the document and any attachments issued to You by Us following Our inspection of the property.
Structural Inspection means the inspection shall comprise visual assessment of accessible areas of the property to identify major defects to the building structure and to form an opinion regarding the general condition of the structure of the property.
The Report will not include those items noted in Clause A3 of AS 4349.1-2007 e.g. Condition of roof coverings, partition walls, cabinetry, doors, trims, fencing, minor structures, ceiling linings, windows, non-structural & serviceability damp issues, rising damp, condensation etc.
Safe and Reasonable Access does not include the use of destructive or invasive inspection methods or moving furniture or stored goods.
The Standard defines the extent of safe and reasonable access as follows:
“The extent of accessible areas shall be determined by the inspector at the time of inspection, based on the conditions encountered at the time of the inspection. The inspector shall also determine whether sufficient space is available to allow safe access. The inspection shall include only accessible areas and areas that are within the inspector’s line of sight and close enough to enable reasonable appraisal.”
It also defines access to areas as defined in the Table below.
Access Table from AS 4349.1-2007
Area
Access hole
Crawl space
Height
Roof interior
400mm x 500mm
Crawl space: 600mm x 600mm
Accessible from a 3.6m ladder
Roof Exterior
Accessible from a 3.6m ladder placed on the ground.
Table Notes:
Our/Us/We means the company, partnership or individual named below that You have requested to carry out the property inspection and report.
You/Your means the party identified on the face page of this agreement as the Client, and where more than one party all such parties jointly and severally, together with any agent of that party.
You agree that in signing this agreement You have read and understand the contents of this agreement and that the inspection will be carried out in accordance with this document. You agree to pay for the inspection on delivery of the report.
If You fail to sign and return a copy of this agreement to Us and do not cancel the requested inspection then You agree that You have read and understand the contents of this agreement and that We will carry out the inspection on the basis of this agreement and that We can rely on this agreement.
Note: Additional inspection requirements requested by You may incur additional expense in regard to the cost of the inspection.
AS 4349.3 Pre-purchase Timber Pest Inspection.
INSPECTION.
SCOPE OF THE INSPECTION & REPORT.
AS 4349.3-2010 the Inspection and resulting Report will be confined to reporting on the discovery, or non-discovery, of infestation and/or damage caused by subterranean and dampwood termites (white ants), borers of seasoned timber and wood decay fungi (rot), present on the date and time of the Inspection.
LIMITATIONS.
DETERMINING EXTENT OF DAMAGE.
Report means the report issued to You by Us following Our inspection of the property.
Termites means subterranean and dampwood termites (white ants) and does not include Dry wood Termites.
Timber Pests means subterranean and dampwood termites (white ants), borers of seasoned timber and wood decay fungi (rot).
Our/Us/We means the company, partnership or individual named below that You have requested to carry out a timber pest or termite inspection and report.
You/Your means the party identified as the Client on the face page of this agreement, and where more than one party all such parties jointly and severally, together with any agent of that party.
UNDERSTANDING.