So you've just purchased a home and a month later (gasp!) the furnace breaks down, the roof starts to leak or the basement starts to flood...you're thinking you bought a lemon and the guy who was supposed to spot the problems in the first place - the home inspector - messed up bigtime. Sometimes that's the case...and sometimes it's just plain old bad luck.
Jack McGraw, owner of Jack's Home Services and longtime home inspector says it is possible for inspectors to miss something. And when that happens you do have options. He says "There's errors and ommissions insurance which basically states we're all human beings and can we make mistakes? Absolutely."
So, if you believe that a mistake has been made and a major home malfunction was missed in your home inspection, the first step is to make a phone call to the company that did the inspection. Give them a chance to come by to see what the problem is and review their original report to determine if they actually missed it, or if at the time of the inspection it didn't show any signs of a problem. McGraw says it's important to make this call before you have the problem fixed on your own - once you do that, there's no way for them to tell if it was actually their mistake in the first place.
In the end, if it is determined that your home inspector missed a sign of problems to come, then McGraw says any reputable inspection company will work with you to find a solution. But as tough as it is to swallow - sometimes the first sign of a problem is when something actually breaks down. Sometimes, it's just plain old bad luck.