Relating to home inspections, including persons authorized to perform home inspections and requirements for independent home inspection reports, providing penalties, and making penalties applicable

The bill makes a home inspector, an employer of a home inspector, or a person having a financial interest in the employer of a home inspector (1) offering to repair an issue identified in a home inspection report for a fee, (2) inspecting for a fee a property in which the person has an interest in the transfer, (3) offering a fee, commission, or kickback to a seller for a referral for an inspection, or (4) accepting payment for a particular result of a home inspection, an unfair practice. An unfair practice is punishable as provided by law, including by a civil penalty not to exceed $40,000. This prohibition does not apply to a home warranty company that is affiliated with or retains a home inspector if the home warranty company performs repairs pursuant to claims made under a home warranty contract. The bill requires a home inspection report to include certain elements. A home inspection report must include a description of the scope of the report, a list of material defects found during the home inspection, and certain statements about the contents of the report. A home inspector who fails to include a necessary element in a home inspection report is guilty of a simple misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed $500. The bill provides limited circumstances under which a home inspection report may be disclosed to a person other than the person who commissioned the report. The bill prohibits a home inspection report from including an estimate as to repair costs unless the report identifies the source of the estimate, the estimate is stated as a range, and the home inspector suggests that the parties consult a professional in the quoted repair. The bill prohibits a contract to provide a home inspection from limiting the liability of the person providing the home inspection for gross negligence or willful misconduct, or waiving or modifying a provision of the bill. The bill requires a home inspector to maintain insurance against errors and omissions in the performance of a home inspection and general liability, with coverages of not less than $100,000 per occurrence and $500,000 in the aggregate, and with deductibles of not more than $2,500. The bill makes a failure to maintain insurance required by the bill, or a false representation as a person authorized to perform home inspections, a simple misdemeanor for a first offense and a serious misdemeanor for a second or subsequent offense. A simple misdemeanor is punishable by confinement for no more than days and a fine of at least $105 but not more than $855. A serious misdemeanor is punishable by confinement for no more than one year and a fine of at least $430 but not more than $2,560.