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Michael Leavitt & Co Inspections, Inc.

MONDAY MORNING MESSENGER

Message prepared especially for Members of the American Institute of Inspectors® as well as Home Inspectors abroad

October 1, 2001

GOOOOOD MORNING, A.I.I.™....

It's a great day here in Las Vegas, Nevada! That's right, this issue of the MMM is being created while looking down the Las Vegas strip while the ITA conference is taking place. The course load is filled with 3 days of information geared to both the seasoned inspectors as well as the rookies. It is great to rub shoulders with old friends while learning more about our profession.

I encourage all of you to register for the AII Annual Meeting in Reno in just about a month. If you can't make the AII conference, then register for one of the other conferences around the nation in the next couple of months. These conferences are very therapeutic because you get to share war stories and realize that you are not the only one that has made mistakes.

Yesterday, we had a training that hit the nail on the head as to the key to success in this business. To be successful as a Home Inspector you must be excellent in dealing with people. You must learn how to relate with different types of clients, seller's agents, buyer's agents, as well as every person you come into contact with. Each personality is so different. You cannot just take the high and mighty road that you know it all, and that you are the top dog. When you deal with people you are building relationships and with every relationship comes compromise. You cannot compromise your integrity, but you must sometimes compromise your position.

There has been one similar theme in sharing all of the war stories with these other veterans in the business. The common thread is that nobody wins in a customer complaint. This is a losing battle. Bill Schwahn says "Return the complaint phone call quickly.... Visit the site..... Write the check..... Get on with your life. Allowing it to wait and fester a couple of days does absolutely no good!" Nobody is winning these battles by standing up for their "I'm right" position. This is sad because in most of these situations the complaints deal with items that the Home Inspector did not miss and in many cases was not even responsible for. Defending your position makes everybody mad and the eventual result is a loss in business....... I'm going to have to give this topic a lot more thought.

What are your thoughts about fighting the moral battles of a customer's complaint? Do you pick your battles carefully, or take them all head on?

CPSC AMANA RANGE RECALL

For Immediate Release Gas Range Recall Hotline: (800) 266-3535

September 26, 2001 CPSC

Contact: Scott Wolfson Release # 01-236 (301) 504-0580 Ext. 1189

Maytag Media Contact: Jim Powell (641) 787-8392

CPSC, Maytag Corp. Announce Recall to Repair of Amana Gas Ranges

WASHINGTON, D.C.- In cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Maytag Corp., of Newton, Iowa, is voluntarily recalling to repair about 50,000 Amana Big Oven gas ranges. Maytag acquired Amana Appliances on July 31, 2001. During the broil and self-clean modes, the range can emit high levels of carbon monoxide (CO), presenting the potential for CO poisoning to consumers. Additionally, during the broil and self-clean modes, the temperature of the storage drawer can become extremely high, presenting the risk of burn injuries to consumers. The ranges are safe to use for baking and for cooking on the surface burners. Maytag has received one report of the temperature on the storage drawer becoming extremely high. No injuries have been reported.

The 30" self clean gas ranges have the following model and serial numbers:

MODEL # SERIAL # ACF3315A (T) (K) Serial Nos. 0005 thru 0103 (First 4 digits of the 10 digits) ACF3335A (W) (C) (B) (S) Serial Nos. 0005 thru 0107 (First 4 digits of the 10 digits) ACF3375A (W) (C) (B) (S) Serial Nos. 0006 thru 0107 (First 4 digits of the 10 digits)

The model and serial numbers can be located by opening the storage drawer and looking at the tag on either the left or the right side. The brand name "Amana" appears on the front of the gas range.

Appliance and retail stores nationwide sold these gas ranges from May
2000 through July 2001 for between $600 and $850.

Consumers should stop using the self-clean or broil functions of the ranges immediately. Consumers should call Amana toll-free at (800) 266-3535 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. CT Monday through Friday for an in-home inspection and free repair. Consumers also can log on to the company's website at www.amana.com.

To see a picture of the recalled product(s) and/or to establish a link from your web site to this press release on CPSC's web site, link to the following address: http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml01/01236.html. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission protects the public from unreasonable risks of injury or death from 15,000 types of consumer products under the agency's jurisdiction. To report a dangerous product or a product-related injury, call CPSC's hotline at (800) 638-2772 or CPSC's teletypewriter at (800) 638-8270, or visit CPSC's web site at http://www.cpsc.gov/talk.html. For information on CPSC's fax-on-demand service, call the above numbers or visit the web site at http://cpsc.gov/about/who.html. To order a press release through fax-on-demand, call (301) 504-0051 from the handset of your fax machine and enter the release number. Consumers can obtain this release and recall information at CPSC's web site at http://www.cpsc.gov.

Have you seen these ranges?

PC #74 FEEDBACK - SETTLED A/C

What creative reporting statements would you use to describe this all too common condition?

The A/C compressor(and pad)are out of level with an apparent strain on the cooling line connections - application is substandard which will most likely result in poor (or less than average) performance of the compressor and reduce the life expectancy of the appliance - refer to a licensed HVAC contractor for any further evaluation and repair at this time. Mark VanBuskirk - Bay Area, CA

The support pad for the A/C compressor is not level. This condition should be corrected to prevent compressor damage. It might also be necessary to lengthen the connections to it from the residence. Ron Cloyd - Klamath Falls, OR

PHOTO CHALLENGE #75

QUOTABLE QUOTE: "Return the complaint phone call quickly.... Visit the site..... Write the check..... Get on with your life. Allowing it to wait and fester a couple of days does absolutely no good!" Bill Schwahn - Montanna

HAVE A GREAT WEEK! Michael Leavitt & Co Inspections, Inc.

The Most Qualified Inspector in Northern Utah!