PRO-SPECT BUILDING REPORTS
HEALTHY HOMES STANDARDS ASSESSMENT
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
Definitions
– “You” or “Client” means the person or entity purchasing the Services.
– “Services” means Healthy Home Assessment.
– “Pro-Spect”, “company”, “us” or “we” means Pro-Spect Building Reports Ltd.
– “Report” means the report furnished by Pro-Spect to the Client following completion of the Services.
1. Reasonable access to be provided
a. You agree to ensure that Reasonable Access can be gained to the property including but not limited to the roof cavity and foundations spaces and that any such spaces if they exist are made accessible for an inspection to be carried out.
b. “Reasonable access” means access that is safe, unobstructed and which has the
minimum clearance specified below (or if the minimum clearance is not available, the area is within the Inspector’s unobstructed line of vision).
Reasonable Access and dimensions:
Roof interior: 450 x 400 mm manhole access, 600 x 600 mm crawl space and accessible from 3.6 m ladder* *Or such other means of access that meet HSWA requirements.
Sub floor: 500 x 400 mm manhole access
Timber floor: 400 mm from Underside of bearer, Concrete floor: 500 mm
Roof exterior: Access from 3.6 m ladder*
2. Report Scope and Limitation
a. This inspection and report relates only to the five aspects under subparts 2 – 6 specific to the Residential Tenancies Healthy Homes Standards (HHS) Regulations 2019, being insulation, heating, ventilation, moisture exclusion, drainage, and draught control for rental homes unless stated otherwise in the report scope. The purpose is to identify and document compliance or issues with these five aspects of the HHS.
b. This is not an all-encompassing report dealing with the property from every aspect.
c. This is not a building survey under the property inspection Standard NZS4306:2005.
d. The HHS inspection and report is a prescriptive, limited scope inspection and report that relates only to the compliance requirements set out within the HHS. There could be other identifiable issues with the home that may affect the health and wellbeing of the occupants, however, falls outside the scope of the HHS inspection and will therefore not be covered. This report should be seen as a reasonable attempt to identify compliance needs or issues, specific to the HHS in a residential property within the identified scope, at the time of the survey.
We always recommend a full, whole of house maintenance survey is conducted under NZS4306:2005 to understand the current condition of the home and to ensure a smart, proactive maintenance program is applied.
e. We are unable to carry out any probe or destructive testing, nor move any furnishings or appliances, in a visual inspection. Accordingly, the client recognises that defects may become evident as items are moved, or invasive or remedial investigation is undertaken.
f. The report expresses the opinions of the Inspector, based upon his visual impressions of the conditions that existed at the time of the inspection only.
g. No disassembly of equipment, opening of walls, moving of furniture, appliances or stored items, or excavation was performed (we will however, unscrew roof or foundation access hatches but will not force hatches open. All components and conditions, which by the nature of their location are concealed, camouflaged or difficult to inspect, are excluded from the report.
h. Systems and conditions which are not within the scope of the inspection include, but are not limited to the identification of: formaldehyde, lead paint, asbestos, toxic or flammable materials, and other environmental hazards; pest infestation, playground equipment, internal or underground drainage or plumbing, any systems which are shut down or otherwise secured; cosmetics or building code conformity. Any general comments about these systems and conditions are informational only and do not represent an inspection.
i. Other than for the purposes relating to the HHS, the inspection report should not be construed as a compliance inspection of any governmental or non governmental codes or regulations. The report is not intended to be a warranty or guarantee of the present or future adequacy or performance of the structure, its systems, or their component parts. This report does not constitute any express or implied warranty of fitness for use regarding the condition of the property and it should not be relied upon as such.
j. Any opinions expressed regarding adequacy, capacity, or expected life of components are general estimates based on information about similar components and occasional wide variations are to be expected between such estimates and actual experience.
k. To the best of our knowledge and belief, all statements and information in this report are true and correct.
l. Should any disagreement or dispute arise as a result of this inspection or report, it shall be actioned as per section 3 of these Terms and Conditions.
m. You accept that the Inspector will not detect some faults because:
i. The fault only occurs intermittently.
ii. Part of the home has not been used for a while and the fault usually occurs after regular use (or detection of the fault would only occur after regular use).
iii. The type of weather that would normally reveal the fault is not prevailing at, or around, the time of the inspection.
iv. The fault has been deliberately concealed.
v. Furnishings are obscuring the fault
vi. We have been given incorrect information by you, the property manager, or any other person or source.
vii. The fault is/was not apparent on a visual Inspection.
3. Disputes
a. Should any dispute arise as a result of the inspection or report, it must be submitted to us in writing immediately.
c. You agree that if, after raising a dispute, you use the Inspection or report to make an unconditional offer or confirm a sale and purchase agreement, that you waive all of your rights to continue with the dispute, and/or raise any future dispute or claim against us.
d. In the event of a claim/dispute regarding damage to a home, you will allow us to investigate the claim prior to any repairs to the home be undertaken or completed. You agree that if you do not allow us to investigate the claims of damage before any repairs are carried out that you waive your rights to continue with and/or make any future claim against us. If it is proven that the inspector is not responsible for any damages, you agree to pay for any fees to cover the cost of the investigation.
e. In the event of any dispute, you agree not to disturb, repair, or attempt to repair anything that may constitute evidence relating to the dispute, except in the case of an emergency.
f. Any complaints will be subject to our internal complaints process.
4. Limitation of Liability
a. Subject to any statutory provisions, if we become liable to you, for any reason, for any loss, damage, harm or injury in any way connected with the completion of the Inspection and/or report, our liability shall be limited to a sum not exceeding the cost of the Inspection and report. We will not be liable to you for any consequential loss of whatever nature suffered by you or any other person injured and indemnify us in respect of any claims concerning any such loss.
5. Terms of Trade
In consideration for us providing you with the Inspection and Report, you agree that:
a. Payment is due prior to the release of any report. Accounts not paid by the due date shall incur a late payment interest charge of 15% of the total amount owing for each calendar month the account is overdue, together with all debt collection costs. Payments are due within 7 days from the inspection date unless agreed otherwise in writing.
b. All work in progress will be billed monthly, with a final invoice issued on completion.
c. If a quotation is given for the Inspection/Report, any expenses incurred in addition to the quote, will be on the basis of cost to us, plus 15%.
d. If, after a subsequent quotation/estimate, any additional work is found to be required you will be contacted for your approval before any further work is completed.
e. We have no responsibility or liability for any cost, loss or damage arising from:
i. any errors or omissions from information, data or documents not prepared by us, our employees, or other persons under the direct control of us;
ii. any act or omission, lack of performance, negligent or fraudulent act by you;
iii. any act or omission, lack of performance, negligence or fraud by any consultant, contractor or supplier to you, or any of your employees or agents.
f. All commercially sensitive information obtained by either party during the preparation of the report shall remain confidential.
g. The contents of the report, or any other work prepared by us is confidential and has been prepared solely for you and shall not be relied upon by any third parties. We accept no responsibility for anything done or not done by any third party in reliance, whether wholly or partially, on any of the contents of the report.
h. Where the content of any report is relied upon for industry research or evaluation purposes, such research or evaluation shall not include any information that may allow for the identification of any property or any personal information included in the report in any way.
i. You shall pay all costs and expenses (including legal costs on a solicitor/Client basis) resulting from any breach of these terms of trade by you or the enforcement by us of these terms of trade.
j. The parties agree that the Laws of New Zealand govern these terms and conditions and proceedings taken by the other party shall be heard in the District or High Court at Tauranga, New Zealand, regardless of the location of your place of business/residence. (Please note that this may be subject to change at the discretion of Pro-Spect Building Reports Ltd.)
l. If Reasonable Access to an area of the property is not possible at the time of inspection for any reason, it will be noted in the report. If you require any uninspected area to be inspected when it becomes accessible, then a re-inspection fee of $120 including GST + travel costs if outside of Tauranga.
m. Should you wish to seek further advice regarding the contents of the report, all phone consultations are free of charge. Any on-site consultations will incur a fee.
n. Any repair work not conducted by a suitably qualified tradesperson will require a reinspection and will incur a fee of $120 including GST, plus travel costs if outside of Tauranga.
o. If a reinspection is not required, any repair work to address non-compliant items must be performed by a suitably qualified tradesperson who can provide an invoice or a written statement detailing their professional services for the completed work. This documentation must reference the failed items as noted in the report for validation purposes. The Client acknowledges that the installer has addressed all failed items in the report. Upon receipt of this documentation, a compliance certificate will be issued.
p. We reserve the right and at our discretion, to charge you in any circumstance where there is nobody at the property to provide access for us to complete our services, a no-show fee of $120 including GST + travel costs if outside of Tauranga.
q. If you have also engaged us to organise access to any rental properties directly with the tenant, we will make 3 attempts over 3 days to contact the tenant and arrange access for us to inspect the property. If no contact can be made or access is not granted for any reason, then we will keep a record of all communications and we will contact you regarding the lack of access. You will then be required to provide direct access for us to provide the services.
6. Cancellation Fee
If you cancel the inspection, you agree that, in consideration for us arranging a time for the inspection, you will pay us a cancellation fee of $99 including GST, at our discretion. However, if we receive twenty-four hours’ (one full working day) written notice of cancellation, no fee will be payable.
7. Agreement
By engaging Pro-Spect Building Reports Ltd services, you agree to comply with the terms and conditions laid out in this contract between the client and the company.