Inspectors Newsletter - October 2015

Sorry - We've been collecting our thoughts!

As with all volunteer efforts, we are very much dependent upon the ability of our volunteers to provide support to our ongoing member services. Unfortunately with this year being so strange (see below), many of our volunteers have had to concentrate on earning a living rather than working on Newsletters...so we've missed a few editions. We hope to rectify this situation in the coming months.

Here's October's edition, and we hope it will be followed by November's. If any member would like to advertise or have any local news, relevant to the Home Inspection profession, or would like to submit an editorial, which we can link back to their website, please let us have copy before the 15th of each month and we'll attempt to get it in the following newsletter.

You can send your copy to secretary@ontarioachi.ca

We are always looking for volunteers to assist on various committees or other duties. The more volunteers we have, the better service we can offer you and your fellow members.

OntarioACHI AGM and Mini-conference

While the mini-conference was a great success, we unfortunately did not manage to get sufficient members attending to have a quorum for the AGM to take place.

We had some fantastic speakers on the day, with areas for suppliers to the profession presenting their wares and services.

Insurance

Dwayne Vanderhout from Mac Vanderhout Insurance talked about Insurance topics ranging from Professional Insurance, including E&O, Group insurance and even tips on home insurance coverage that might be impacted by the decision to work from home. Dwayne and his team have developed a Group insurance program for OntarioACHI members. Information about this program is available online at http://www.ontarioachi.ca.

Safety: Working at heights

Alec Caldwell and Monica Olenroot, directors from the Canadian Association of Renovators and Home Services (http://carahs.org) presented on the working at heights legislation and how it affects home inspectors in our daily functions. Some interesting information about the way in which the Ministry of Labour can levy heavy penalties with no recourse for defence was extremely enlightening.

Safety: Avoid working at heights

Mark Hendley from Eyestick was present to explain how his system can support home inspectors avoid the need to climb ladders exterior of the dwelling and remain compliant with the requirements of the Standards of Practice. There was a conference offer for the Eyestick product which we have negotiated for our members as an ongoing benefit.

Ancillary Services: Mold, Asbestos and radon

EMSL provided us once again with a fantastic presentation on the processes and protocols of mold, asbestos and radon sampling. Once again, the questions were fast and furious and well answered by Sneha Panchal, biology lab manager at EMSL, Toronto.

WSIB and Bill-119

A presentation was given of the impacts and risks that Bill-119 has made to the profession and the penalties that can be expected if an inspector falls foul of the inconsistent policies of the WSIB. We also heard what OntarioACHI has done over the past 18 months to try to work with both the Ministry of Labour and the WSIB to get these policies reviewed and the lack of action so far on behalf of the Government and it's agencies.

Give-aways

A number of door prizes were won by various attendees. These prizes ranges included flashlights, inspection tools and star prizes of an Android tablet and a copy of Noticeware Reporter courtesy of Jeff Moll and his team.

Hot Tub Health & Safety Tips for your clients

HEALTH & SAFETY ISSUES Hot tub health and safety issues can be thought of in three categories:

• related illnesses;

• people who are particularly at risk;

• and common accidents.

ILLNESSES Let’s start by looking at the illnesses which are likely to strike hot tub users. In many ways, hot tubs are the perfect breeding grounds for …

Let us work for you!

Did you know that people searching for services are now using Social Media, connected to links to find them, more than normal search engines?

We have designed an integrated network of Social Media sites and will be updating this architecture regularly.

• Start by liking the OntarioACHI site.

• Post something and don't forget to link your post back to your website.

• We will then spread the word using the web services we have built for you.

OntarioACHI Inspector Search service inspector

Are you missing out?

As part of our ongoing service improvements, we have updated the tool to Find an Inspector, which includes the public profile of ALL members registered or fully-paid. It is important that you keep your public profile up to date, as this what will be displayed when people use this search tool.

You can check out what your profile looks like by using the search facility.

Membership is growing

Recognizing this last year has been a strange one for home sales in Ontario, with many homes being sold without inspections due to pressure from the realty market, we are pleased to see that the Membership in OntarioACHI is slowly, but steadily growing.

In the last two months we have seen four new members and two Canadian Certified Home Inspector certifications awarded. The examination service is now fully operational, and we hope more members will choose to apply for the CCHI designation. The Canadian Certified Home Inspector designation provides the holder with proof of achieving a higher level of education, skills and practice with proctored examinations and a high standard of professional conduct.

The CCHI program is fully aligned with the recommendations given to the government for regulation in Ontario and we hope that all CCHI designation holders will be accepted as having reached the requirements when regulation is announced sometime in the early part of 2016.

You can find more about the CCHI program on the OntarioACHI website here