Body Cams and Home Inspectors: A New Application
Managing Risk

Recently, a real estate agent representing a former mutual client contacted Jon Bolton of The Inspectagator in Florida, claiming his team had “ruined” the client’s gutters. The agent sent a photograph of a dent in the gutters with a demand that the inspection company pay to install new ones.
The inspector who surveyed the property had set up his ladder beside the garage. The gutter damage in question was on the opposite end of the home. Without evidence it would have been the client’s word against the inspector’s. Thankfully, the home inspector had worn a body cam.
The footage showed the home inspector setting up his ladder beside the garage, conducting his roof inspection, folding the ladder, and putting it away. As the inspector walked toward and away from the property with his ladder, you can even see the client observing the inspection from the driveway.
Why Home Inspectors Use Body Cameras
Body cams—also known as body cameras, body-worn cameras, wearable cameras, body worn video (BWV), and action cameras—record the wearer’s audio and video footage from a first-person perspective.
With a wide variety of applications, body cams have permeated both commercial and recreational markets. From law enforcement officers and military troops to journalists and filmmakers, body cams’ hands-free recording conveniently and accurately captures the wearer’s experience. And in a profession all about reporting what you can see during your inspection, it’s no wonder home inspectors are adopting the technology.
As indicated in our previous example of Bolton’s inspection company, facing unfair allegations isn’t uncommon for home inspectors. In fact, in 2018, our claims team estimated that 80% of accusations against home inspectors are highly exaggerated, and most have no merit.
Here are five ways body cams are helping inspectors stifle meritless claims.
1. Body Cams Can Dismiss False General Liability Claims.
There is no good way to prove with a written report and photo that the damage existed before the inspector arrived. For example, a claimant could argue their inspector damaged their property and then took a photo. While this doesn’t dismiss the importance of and need for written and photographic evidence, it introduces the need to consider additional forms of documentation.
Body cams may be that additional form of exonerating evidence.
On the first day Matt Hawley of Hawley Home Inspections in Missouri and Illinois wore his body cam, he encountered an extreme example.
“At the end of the inspection, the seller walked over and grabbed a mini blind and ripped it off the wall. While I stood there, recording it, he accused me of breaking his mini blind,” Hawley said. “I walked out, got in the van, called the office, and told them to order [body cams] for all the inspectors [in his company] right then.”
When a homeowner accused Bolton’s team of damaging their roof tile, Bolton used body cam footage to prove the tile was broken before they began their inspection. In the video, Bolton’s inspector can be seen pointing to broken tiles as he approaches them. The audio, too, confirms what the inspector’s doing as he narrates, “Oh, look, there’s a broken one.”
“Had we not had a body cam, we could not prove [our innocence],” Bolton said.
2. They Can Disprove Improper Accusations of Theft.
Body cams can assist in proving you didn’t steal any property, too.
Recently, a seller accused Hawley’s inspectors of stealing nearly $4,000 worth of jewelry. To prove their innocence, Hawley turned the body cam footage from the inspection of the seller’s property over to law enforcement. The police officers watched the footage from beginning to end.
According to the police, not only did the home inspector not steal the jewelry, but there was no jewelry visible throughout the inspection. The seller had to drop the charges.
3. They Can Help Train Employees.
Body cam footage isn’t just for dealing with complaints. It can help you prevent them, too. By reviewing body cam recordings with your employees, you can teach them good inspection practices and help them avoid making mistakes.
Bronson Anderson of Inspector Homes in Virginia recommends using your own body cam footage as a training tool. He also suggests reviewing your employees’ footage to help them uncover anything they might have missed and to give tips on how to improve.
“[New hires] can look at my body camera footage and see what I see and how I look at things,” Anderson said.
“Even when you send new inspectors out on their own, you can go back with your employees and look at what they’re looking at and follow along in their report before they submit it to the client.”
According to Anderson, body cams can also keep employees honest.
“If they’re recording the entire inspection process and they’re skipping over windows, doors, or outlets, you’re able to provide those checks and balances for your employees,” Anderson said. “And it allows them to think twice about taking a shortcut around the inspection process.”
4. Body Cams Can Attest to the Work You Performed.
By recording your entire inspection, body-worn cameras can document what you did and said. Doing so can provide key evidence to dispute claims that you failed to inspect, report, or otherwise do your due diligence.
Body cams can provide evidence that you inspected the components and systems you said you did. For example, another homebuyer claimed Bolton’s inspectors didn’t test the bath, microwave, or water heater. Footage revealed the inspectors testing each one, proving they tested each component and that they functioned at the time of the inspection.
Because BWV captures audio, it can confirm information you provide in your verbal report. Hypothetically, a client could deny that you told them about a component that needed to be repaired or replaced. With recordings of conversations you have with this client, you can prove not only what you said in your report but what you said in person. This can be particularly helpful when clients feign ignorance or suggest you should’ve made them more aware of a defect.
5. They Can Provide Evidence of Any Wrongdoing Done to You.
Inspecting homes is a dangerous job. From slippery roofs to electrical hazards, rotted subflooring to invisible toxins, the average home inspector encounters countless perils during their careers. Unfortunately, some of those dangers are the fault of others.
Even if you don’t experience bodily harm, you can experience financial and reputational harm if someone lies. Members of Hawley’s team confirm that clients have signed the pre-inspection agreement and don’t have any questions—with the camera rolling. By recording this Hawley has evidence to disprove possible allegations of him not giving clients the agreement or pressuring them to sign it.
Investments Insepctors Make
When introducing body cams to their inspections, home inspectors must make several up-front investments. Common investments include equipment and storage.
Equipment
Body cameras run anywhere from $150 to $500 depending on features like battery life, memory, infrared, and resolution. Several makes and models are available through online retailers like Amazon or through the manufacturers themselves. RoadScan Canada markets and sells body cams specifically to home inspectors.
Storage
For body cams to adequately defend your inspection business, you need to store their footage. Since inspection-long video files tend to be large, your computer is unlikely to be able to store the footage on its own. Home inspectors must invest in additional digital storage solutions, such as external hard drives or cloud storage.
Once recorded, how long should you keep body cam footage around? Claims professionals urge home inspectors to keep inspection assets—including body cam videos—for a minimum of five years.
Limiting Your Liability
Although wearable cameras are not a new technology, their application in the home inspection industry is still relatively recent. As such, there isn’t much claims data to definitively indicate best practices. However, based on body cam usage in law enforcement and risk mitigation techniques for other types of claims, we can provide some educated guidance on how to use body cams safely.
Be a Good Inspector.
Just as BWVs capture law enforcement’s best and worst behavior, your body cam will reveal what you’re really up to at inspections. If you’re thorough, knowledgeable, and conscientious, that will come across in your footage. If, however, you are rushed, inexperienced, and inconsiderate, that, too, will be apparent from your footage. Body cam footage can only help you if you’re a good inspector. But if you’re not, the video footage is likely to open you up to additional liability should it be obtained by others.
“If you’re worried that it’s going to prove you didn’t do something, you’re not doing it to begin with,” Hawley said.
“If you’re doing your job and you’re doing it right,[a body cam] will protect you. If you’re cutting corners and you are doing a sloppy inspection, it will bust you every time.”
It takes some practice to be a good inspector with a body cam, too. Invest time into figuring out the best way to secure the body cam to capture quality footage. Will Kading of Master Building Inspection & Environmental in California recommends practicing recording with your body cam before ever recording for a paid inspection.
Continue to Take Still Photos.
Just because you’re capturing video, it does not mean you should stop taking still photos. In case you haven’t heard it enough, here’s the old adage again: A picture is worth 1,000 words. In an industry like home inspections, photos can do wonders. They can help inspection clients understand your findings and put them into context. They can bring reports filled with descriptions laced with technical jargon to life.
Note that some body cams allow you to take still photos during and post-inspection. While Kading prefers taking photos with his traditional camera, he will also go through the video footage after the inspection and take stills to supplement the ones he’s already taken.
It may seem tedious taking photo after photo. However, inspection photos are one of the best ways to manage risk. Don’t let your next allegation be a battle of “he said, she said.” Take lots of pictures so you have a photo to back you up in every scenario.
Don’t Release the Footage to Clients.
No technology is perfect, not even body cams. The cameras can only record what they’re facing, and so they may provide an incomplete picture of what you’re seeing. Even though cameras capture what you’re inspecting, without your insight, your client may not be able to contextualize the footage.
Additionally, you’re not perfect. Even the best of inspectors can make mistakes. If your body cam captures an issue you missed, it could be used against you in a court of law. And there’s nothing you can put in your pre-inspection agreement to prevent clients from using your own footage against you.
While the footage would be discoverable—or usable—in litigation, you’re not required to share the footage unless you’re getting sued. Thus, we recommend not releasing the footage to clients unless you’re required to as part of a lawsuit.
If you include the footage in your report anyway, we recommend talking through the inspection while you perform it. This way your clients will have context to what you’re seeing and doing. Also, make sure you review the video post-inspection. A review will give you a second chance to see something you might have missed.
Body Cams and Home Inspections
Are you tired of having arguments with clients? Do you want a way to prove your team didn’t damage or steal any property? Are you looking for a way to better dismiss frivolous claims?
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, perhaps it’s time for your inspectors to start wearing body cams.
“When [an inspector] does something right, like they’re supposed to, it’s just wrong for people to roll the blame, trying to collect a check so they don’t have to pay for it,” Bolton said. “Both [the insurance company] and I would be continuing to write checks if we didn’t have body cams.”
Note: The Managing Risk column with InspectorPro Insurance provides home inspectors with tips to protect their businesses against insurance claims and examines best practices for crafting effective pre-inspection agreements.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author only and do not necessarily reflect the opinions or views of ASHI. The information contained in the article is general and readers should always independently verify for accuracy, completeness and reliability.
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