COMPLETE HOME INSPECTION INC

Mr. Jackson arrived promptly and over the course of 2 hours appeared to perform a thorough inspection and explained problems, made suggestions for repairs, and gave advice for maintaining the home. This was followed up with what seemed to be a complete report supported with color photos of the damaged areas. We later learned that Mr. Jackson did not note certain code violations, but the most significant incident occurred with regards to the chimneys. During the inspection I had mentioned our intent to order chimney inspections. Mr. Jackson recommend that we hire a mason to perform the inspection citing the opinion that chimney sweeps were more likely to recommend excessive repairs. [We believe this is misleading as our subsequent research has revealed that most masons are not trained in chimney inspections]. At the end of the inspection I was having a disagreement with our Realtor in which we wanted to pay for a chimney inspection but our Realtor wanted the sellers' to pay for the chimney inspection explaining that the sellers would be more likely to trust recommendations made by someone they had hired. Mr. Jackson intervened and led us back to the fireplaces where he appeared to thoroughly inspect the chimneys up through the fireplaces. At each one he announced it was fine. Mr. Jackson specifically said that the "Liners" were fine, there was no damage except for some visible mortar deterioration at the top of the chimneys, and we would be safe allowing the sellers to perform the chimney inspection. His written report lists "Chimneys: Satisfactory: Flue Lining - Clay tile." To make a long story short, the seller's inspection revealed liner damage and 2 other companies confirmed liner damage causing carbon monoxide & fire hazards. Repairs cost $10,000 which we had to pay out of pocket. It took months to determine the extent of the damage and even longer to learn that the Liners were NEVER VISIBLE from the fireplaces. In 2007 we addressed our complaint to Mr. Jackson who referred us to his attorney. His attorney did not respond when our attorney tried to make contact on our behalf. At the second inspection, Mr. Jackson reviewed repairs but when we questioned how he knew certain repairs were correctly performed we felt he became terse and uncommunicative. Specifically he had reported that the light switches were incorrectly installed as they overheated when turned on. Following repair the switches still felt warm to touch but Mr. Jackson reported the switches were correctly repaired. When we asked how he knew the repair was correctly performed we felt he became terse and did not answer. In a subsequent email he advised that licensed professionals were required to determine if repairs were properly performed. We felt it was unprofessional to perform and charge for an inspection if he was not qualified to perform the task.