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Inspection Request

The party requesting the inspection must fill in the form below and mail, fax or email it to the BCFCA along with payment information. See below for the cost and other details on the process.

Inspection policies of the BCFCA Consumer Affairs Committee

Please note: No inspector or member of the BCFCA or employee of the BCFCA will appear in court in connection with any inspection. The service is intended to resolve issues and keep participants out of court.

The BC Floor Covering Association has a committee of experts that volunteer to perform inspections for the Association. These are individuals experienced in various fields of the manufacturing and installation of all products and in the maintenance of same.

The process

  1. An inspection request is received with payment.
  2. An effort is made to contact all participants in the manufacture, sale and installation of the floor to obtain the complete history of the floor being examined. The complainant is asked NOT to reveal the name of the dealer or installer to the inspectors.
  3. The information obtained is passed to an inspector who is responsible for contacting a second inspector or partner. The inspector then calls the client and makes an appointment to inspect. Every effort is made to have two inspectors at an inspection.
  4. The consumer is asked to show the inspectors the area of concern and leave them alone to perform their inspection.
  5. A field report is submitted to the BCFCA office. This is put in letter form on BCFCA letterhead by a staff member. The content is confirmed by the inspector(s), and it is then sent to the client who paid the inspection fee. After 7 days, the report is public and all participants can receive a copy.
  6. This completes the role of the inspector and the association unless there is a need for a second examination of the flooring or product. Inspectors do not appear in court for any reason, although the parties involved may use the report in any way they wish.

Cost

The cost of an inspection is:

  • $350 + HST to members & consumers who did business with a BCFCA member.
  • $400 + HST to consumers who did business with a non-member of the BCFCA.
  • $450 + HST to a renovation company, builder, contractor, insurance company or architect who did business with a member.
  • $500 + HST to a non-member flooring company, renovation company, builder, contractor, insurance company or architect who did business with a non-member.

Any significant travel costs will be added to an invoice.

Any additional site visit will be billed at 50% of original inspection fee.

Any additional communication will be billed at $100 per incident. With the exception of any communication or additional site visit that is the result of perceived bias or where critical information was found to be not in the inspectors’ hands at the time of inspection.

The BCFCA does not have a laboratory. Any testing that may require the services of an outside lab must be arranged independently.

The BCFCA inspection, recording and measuring methods are non-destructive / non-intrusive test methods only.

The inspectors

The inspectors are experienced individuals who have no connection with the flooring being examined. They are not there as members of the firms for whom they work, but as volunteer BCFCA inspectors.

Their role is to review all of the history provided, view the complaint and submit a report noting if the product is performing to specification, if the installation meets the industry standard and to make recommendations to bring a floor to standard. They will not attend any court proceedings.

Should an inspector have any personal or professional connection with the people or the product being examined, they are expected to advise the BCFCA office and another inspector will be assigned. Also, should the inspector expect to be providing any service related to or as a result of the inspection to the client they are to advise the BCFCA office and another inspector will be assigned.

Inspectors cannot lift flooring to examine an installation or the product. They can witness this process and report on the findings. All BCFCA inspection methods are non-destructive.

Bias

All inspectors are expected to notify the BCFCA office if there is any conflict of interest related to any inspection that they are assigned to perform and another inspector will be assigned.

Inspectors are to be shown the area of concern and left alone to examine the flooring and installation. Unless it has been specially arranged nobody is to accompany the inspectors. All information is to be submitted to them from all parties involved prior to the inspection. No new information will be received on site. It is important that the name of the dealer and the inspectors remain anonymous.

Should something be inadvertently overlooked and a conflict arises after an inspection, the BCFCA will send two additional, unbiased inspectors to re-examine the flooring in question. Where this is the responsibility of the BCFCA there will be no additional charges.

Inspections will be made by BCFCA inspectors to determine two factors:

  1. If the product is performing the way it should and according to its specification.
  2. If the installation meets the industry standard.

Inspections are performed by the BCFCA to assist all parties in resolving ongoing and difficult disputes. Members must abide by the decisions made by association inspectors as per membership requirements. However, non-members or consumers may wish to pursue court action. In such cases report letters may be taken to court but inspectors and/or staff will not appear. Records are kept in the BCFCA office for 6 months.

Other than the inspector’s camera, no recording, video or copying devices are permitted during an inspection.

ID: 50:340
Page updated July 13, 2010.

© 2012 British Columbia Floor Covering Association.