Today’s Ask the Expert column features Robert Allender, owner of Pillar to Post Home Inspections in Woodbury, Minn.
Q: How do I find out whether the home I have under contract has any appliance problems?
A: Many consumers have no idea that their appliance has been recalled because they never returned the warranty registration card when they purchased the item. Anyone who inherits these appliances is also inheriting their problems.
The easiest and most effective way to avoid serious risk is to suggest that your clients have a home inspector add a recall report to their inspection service. During the inspection, the model and serial numbers of every appliance in the home will be recorded.
That information is then cross-checked against several databases, including the National Consumer Product Safety Commission’s, and the buyer is emailed a full report.
In addition to providing vital recall information, the report delivers all your buyers’ appliance serial and model numbers in one document.
