OVER SPANNED & UNDER CONSTRUCTED

A L.K.Q.S.S. COMPLIANCE & REGULATORY RULING

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OVER SPANNED & UNDER CONSTRUCTED

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It should be noted that an inspection is a visual assessment of the condition of the building at the time of any inspection. The inspection and inspection report are offered as an opinion only. Although every reasonable effort is made to discover and correctly interpret indications of previous or ongoing defects that may be present, it must be understood that no guarantee is implied, or responsibility assumed by the inspector or the inspection company of the actual condition of the building or property being examined.

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Normal wear and tear is relative to the age and type of occupancy which may or may not be extensively detailed by the inspector in a report unless warranted.

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Building inspections are conducted in accordance with accepted industry standards. An inspection is presumed to be of value in that it is a cursory overview by an inspector of the condition of the building and most of its component systems.?The building inspection is described as a non-destructive, visual examination and is not technically exhaustive.

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This means that the inspector has not been authorized to dismantle or damage any part of the property or building components and that specialized instruments or equipment are not used to collect data or make observations. This type of examination must not be confused with the type of analysis that one could reasonably expect from a technician or engineer who may specialize in a particular area or discipline.?The specialist will have much more extensive training and experience in his or her specific discipline and will often be certified as an engineer or other comparable designation.

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Another key consideration pertains to the amount of time available for inspection.?A standard, professional building inspection takes approximately two to four hours to complete.?The specialist analysis of a given building component such as, structural stability for example, will often be developed from information gathered over extended periods of time, often weeks or even months of inquiry.?Where the building inspector may have a general knowledge of the basic principles in several fields, he will usually be able to make topical observations. It is not to be expected that a building inspection will generate the comprehensive, thorough analysis that examination by a specialist or engineer can offer.

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The following limitations therefore necessarily apply to all building inspections conducted in accordance with the recognized industry standards referred to above. Items specifically excluded by these standards from a typical building inspection are underground or otherwise concealed pipes and cables; electrical lines and circuits; swimming pools, spas, water conditioning and well systems; fire or lawn sprinkler systems; on site waste disposal systems; telephone; cable T.V. security and timing systems or household appliances.

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Environmental concerns such as hazardous substances or gasses, including but not limited to carcinogens, fungi, molds, mildews, radon gas, methane gas, formaldehyde or asbestos are not addressed.

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Structural components that are concealed in any way by earth, finished surfaces, furniture or other personal possessions are not observed. This includes conditions existing in crawl spaces, that have a height of less than three feet of headroom or where entry is believed to be hazardous to the inspector, or if the presence of any personal possessions will obstruct access or inhibits visibility.

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Although being built to building code, architecturally designed buildings or complexes often result in the building structure being over spanned and under constructed. When the architect designs the style and use of the building, he generally designs it to be aesthetically pleasing to the eye. It is not uncommon for the roof to have a generous number of hips and valleys as well as the odd roof dormer.

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The building design will not specify materials and sizes of lumber to be used in the construction and this is left up to the specifications portion of the building process to provide this information. Consequently, some designs will require a better quality of material and method of construction.

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In order to attract buyers at a certain income level a budget for that income level must be met. Therefore inexpensive materials and assembly of the components of the building must be attained. This is a common occurrence with detailed roof construction which results in the following observations.

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·??????Typical engineered truss system with long runs of 2 x 4 trusses.

·??????Typically, 2 x 4 rafters installed on flat instead of edge.

·??????Typical approved OBS (strand board) roof sheathing with H clips.

·??????Typical opening made in OBS (strand board) for roof vent (Note: jagged edges).

·??????Typical truss lines under composite roof shingles are visible.

These observations indicate a condition of risk is present which may affect the outcome of any claim by dividing the claim into two directions;

·??????Insurance coverage for replacement cost may be limited strictly to the affected area by an insured peril, while

·??????Building code, and /or building code upgrade, and / or building bylaws of the municipality may bind the contractor making the repairs to the whole panel or section.

In this case there was a leaking roof at a vent caused by a windstorm which with the resulting damage, would normally be a standard loss of around $2,500 including repairs to the interior. But the municipality it occurred in added another $7,500 to the claim because the contractor by repairing the vent was deemed to now be in possession of that entire roof section by assuming ownership of it by making the repairs.

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All three panels to that section had to be repaired including the truss system and it was only brought to the inspector’s attention because the municipal inspector was in the neighbourhood looking at a different job and he happened to drive by. There was no coverage for the faulty workmanship even though it was built to code at the time it was constructed, but the contractor was fortunate in this case because the insurer paid the contractor for the additional work because the exclusion was waived in this case.

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Minimum British Columbia Building Code allows that Mass timber (not to be confused with Timber Framing …. They are not the same) which is a type of engineered wood made by affixing many pieces of wood veneers, flakes, or dimension lumber to form larger, stronger pieces—doesn’t fit easily into the insurance industry’s existing construction classes. It challenges the assumption that combustible materials aren’t suitable for tall buildings. Economic and environmental forces are driving mass timber into mainstream use, so it’s important that insurers understand its advantages and risks.

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Mass Timber do not necessarily fit the insurance class of risk (ISO). Mass Timber should not be considered as a substitute under the Principle of Substitution for buildings originally built before 1979. Examples of Mass Timber are Oriental Strand Board (OSB), Particle Board (K3), Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF) Finger Joint Dressed Lumber, Engineered Joists, Finger Joint Trim, etc. All products made from scrap cut offs or saw or plainer cast offs.

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Mass Timber can be substituted for obsolescence for builders’ grade, or economy, low or fair quality construction materials. They can be considered “Minimum Code Requirements” but they should not be considered in buildings constructed prior to 1979 or for any Class of Construction that is Good, Very Good, Excellent, or better.

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·??????Your name

·??????Your email address

·??????Your phone number

·??????A synopsis of the situation