PHPIC MembershipNo other Canadian professional home inspection association can match the credentials of a PHPIC inspector. PHPIC’s, PHPI™ inspectors are the only Canadian Home Inspectors who have received accreditation through an independent certification body. PHPIC has four levels of membership:
Practicing PHPIC members will be at one of three stages – ‘Candidate’, ‘Provisional’ or ‘PHPI™’. The ‘Candidate’ stage is for individuals who have the appropriate training and who have displayed the required degree of competence to be home and property inspectors but lack experience to obtain certification. The ‘Provisional’ stage is for individuals that have attained the required training, education and competence to apply to the NHICC to write the National Exam and undergo the TIPR. The ‘PHPI™’ stage is for individuals who have fulfilled the training, experience and competence requirements of the National Home Inspector Program. This three-stage approach allows inexperienced inspectors an opportunity to gain experience while working within the National Home Inspector Program. This allows the National Certification Body (NHICC) to exercise a degree of regulation over the practice of those individuals at the candidate stage, while recognizing their achievement along the way. National Home Inspector Certification Council The National Home Inspector Certification Council received approval by the Construction Sector Council of Canada to become the National Certification Body and create a National Certification Council. The NHICC National Certification Council will be empowered with the authority to certify individuals as being competent to practice or work within the home and property inspection occupation. The development of a national certification model for Home and Property Inspectors, and the authority to certify will reside at the national level. The National Home Inspector Certification Council is an independent certification corporation not affiliated with PHPIC and is a member of the Institute for Credentialing Excellence. Administrative Contracts - As a national home inspection association fully supporting the National Home Inspector Program, PHPIC has an Administrative Contract with the National Home Inspector Certification Council.
An Overview of PHPIC’s Membership Requirements
Background Review To determine where an individual fits within the National Home Inspector Program, an assessment process called a ‘background review’ is used. Background review is the process that our Admissions Board uses to determine where an individual should be within program, and at what stage. An individual would apply to PHPIC and present their personal background. An individual’s personal background would be presented through a structured application form completed by the individual. The criteria used to assess an individual during the background review process includes benchmarking the individuals “background” against the structured evaluation system based on awarding merit points for documented achievements. The PHPIC Admissions Board uses the information provided by the applicant on the application to determine the “placement” of the individual into the National Home Inspector Program. Points are given to specific types of appropriate inspection related training, experience and competence. All documentation provided with the application is verified by the Admission Board for authenticity. National Occupational Standards The competency requirements for home and property inspectors are defined in the National Occupational Standard (NOS). To facilitate the understanding of the nature of the occupation, the work performed by home and property inspectors is divided into blocks, tasks, sub-tasks and supporting knowledge and abilities. A key component in determining the criticality of the tasks identified in the NOS is Task Priority Analysis or TPA. TPA is an assessment technique that is used to help determine which tasks are critical in the NOS and MUST be evaluated as part of the certification process. The TPA allows for the rank ordering of tasks based on their importance, and allows for recommendations on which tasks MUST be evaluated under the certification process. This is assessed through the National Home Inspector Exam as well as the Test Inspection/Peer Review process. Ethics and Professional StandardsA key component of PHPIC’s governance is ‘ethics and professional standards’. Ethics and professional standards provide the public with assurance that individuals who are members of PHPIC will abide by a set of rules and be governed by standards of practice that are enforceable. This component of PHPIC’s governance is part of the ISO Standards criteria for being in reasonable compliance to the Standards Council of Canada CAN-P-9 criteria. The American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI) Code of Ethics and Standard of Practice for the Home and Property Inspection occupation is the baseline for all our members. A word on grand parenting- Due to the comprehensive nature of the certification process, the Canadian Home Inspector & Building Officials (CHIBO) Working Committee decided that the National Home Inspector Program for the Home and Property Inspector occupation needed to be rigorous and defensible. As a result, the Working Committee determined that the National Home Inspector Program for Home and Property Inspectors would not include a grand parenting or grand-fathering component. Instead, any individual who is interested in becoming a member of PHPIC would present their personal background to the Admissions Board for background review. The Admissions Board would make a decision on whether to place the individual within the National Home Inspector Program, and if so at what stage. 2012 – Membership Requirements NEW INSPECTORS: Need a minimum total of 950 points from all sections of the application to move to our ‘Provisional Member’ designation.
Personal background: (100 Points Maximum) • Applicants can earn up to 100 points through background experience. • Degrees and diplomas that are relevant to the home inspection industry will be worth 50/per credential. • Degrees or diplomas not related to the home inspection industry are worth 25/per credential to a maximum of 50 points Education: (700 Points Maximum) • Can receive up to 700 points for education • Up to 450 points for courses a) Courses with Proctored exams – 3 pts per hour b) Courses without proctored exams – 1 pt per hour • Mentored (supervised) field work – 3 pts per hour - Maximum 240 pts. • Pass the NHICC National Exam and a TIPR (Test Inspection with Peer Review) (80% on both) plus inspection requirements to qualify to be a PHPI™.
Fee paid inspections: (500 Points Maximum) Completed 150 inspections (1 point per home inspection) Some NHICC approved mentoring could be substituted for inspections. (2 hours mentoring equal one inspection but minimum number of inspections would be 75) Final Requirements: • When all requirements are met, including a TIPR, the individual can become an NHI through the NHICC. • When all requirements are met except the TIPR, the individual can become a ‘Provisional Member’. • Inspectors may stay in ‘Provisional’ category no longer than 24 months.
INSPECTORS ALREADY WORKING IN THE INDUSTRY: • Submit completed Application for Background Review • Provide copies of all relevant documentation • Need a minimum total of 950 points from all sections of the application. Personal Background: (100 Points Maximum) • Applicants can earn up to 100 points through background experience. • Degrees and diplomas that are relevant to the home inspection industry will be worth 50/per credential • Degrees or diplomas not related to the home inspection industry are worth 25/per credential to a maximum of 50 points Education: (700 Points Maximum) • Can receive up to 700 points for education • Up to 450 points for courses a) Courses with Proctored exams – 3 pts per hour b) Courses without proctored exams – 1 pt per hour • Mentored (supervised) field work – 3 pts per hour - Maximum 150 pts. • Pass the NHICC National Exam and a TIPR (80% on both) plus inspection requirements to qualify to be a PHPI/NHI. Fee Paid Inspections: (500 Points Maximum) • Qualify to be PHPI if above requirements are met and: a) In business for 1 year, and b) Completed 150 inspections (1 point per home inspection) c) Some NHICC approved mentoring could be substituted for inspections. (2 hours mentoring equal one inspection but minimum number of inspections would be 75) If an inspector is short in educational points but has worked five years and has passed the National Exam, he/she can earn: • 80% on exam 200 points • 85% on exam 225 points • 90% or more on exam 250 points Final Requirements: • When all requirements are met, including a TIPR, the individual can become an NHI through the NHICC. • When all requirements are met except the TIPR, the individual can become a ‘Provisional Member’. • Inspectors may stay in ‘Provisional’ category no longer than 24 months. Insurance: Inspectors in the program are encouraged to carry adequate Errors and Omissions and CGL insurance coverage. This is only a mandatory requirement in jurisdictions that require inspectors to be insured.
CURRENT CANDIDATES – BRITISH COLUMBIA: Note: This category is unique to British Columbia home inspectors who currently hold a BC ‘Transitional’ license that expires on March 31, 2011. They need not currently be registered with the NHICC, but if not, in the immediate future, they should: • Transfer or apply to the NHICC • Submit completed Application for Background Review • Provide copies of all relevant documentation • Need a minimum total of 950 points. Personal Background: • Applicants can earn up to 100 points through background experience. • Degrees and diplomas that are relevant to the home inspection industry will be worth 50/per credential. • Degrees or diplomas not related to the home inspection industry are worth 25/per credential to a maximum of 50 points Education: • Can receive up to 700 points for education • Up to 450 points for courses a) Courses with Proctored exams – 3 pts per hour b) Courses without proctored exams – 1 pt per hour • Mentored (supervised) field work – 3 pts per hour - Maximum 150 pts. • Pass the NHICC National Exam and a TIPR (80% on both) plus inspection requirement to qualify to be a PHPI/NHI. Note: This is a temporary policy to process individuals with BC ‘Transitional’ licenses that will expire soon. In addition to or in conjunction with all of the above, applicants must: • Pass the NHICC National Exam with a mark of at least 80% by March 31, 2011 a) If successful, the ‘Transitional’ license would be extended up to September 30, 2011. b) If unsuccessful, the Transitional license would be suspended until the inspector wrote the exam again no sooner than 10 days after the first time but before April 30, 2011. • Successfully participate in a TIPR prior to September 30, 2011 • If an inspector does not have enough inspections they may substitute some NHICC approved mentoring. (2 hours mentoring equal one inspection but minimum number of inspections would be 75) Insurance: • Inspectors in the program are encouraged to carry adequate Errors and Omissions and CGL insurance coverage. This insurance is a pre-requisite for an individual to be licensed to perform home inspections in British Columbia. • Proof of insurance coverage must be provided.
NEW CANDIDATES – BRITISH COLUMBIA:
Note: This category is unique to British Columbia home inspectors who have not yet applied for licensing in BC. They will likely be new inspectors with little or no experience, but there will be some individuals who have previously been performing inspections. They need not currently be registered with the NHICC, but if not, in the immediate future, they should: • Transfer or apply to the NHICC • Submit completed Application for Background Review • Provide copies of all relevant documentation • Need a minimum total of 950 points. Personal Background: Applicants can earn up to 100 points through background experience. Degrees or diplomas not related to the home inspection industry are worth 25/per credential to a maximum of 50 points Education: • Can receive up to 700 points for education • Up to 450 points for courses a) Courses with Proctored exams – 3 pts per hour b) Courses without proctored exams – 1 pt. per hour • Mentored (supervised) field work – 3 pts per hour - Maximum 150 pts. • Pass the NHICC National Exam and a TIPR (80% on both) plus inspection requirement to qualify to be an NCH (NHI). If inspector is short in educational points but has worked five years and has passed the National Exam, he/she can earn: • 80% on exam 200 points • 85% on exam 225 points • 90% or more on exam 250 points This is a policy to process individuals in BC who are new to the industry but who need a license to perform fee paid inspections. In addition to or in conjunction with the above, applicants must: • Pass the NHICC National Exam with a minimum mark of 80%. a) If successful, they would be granted a ‘Provisional’ NHICC National Home Inspector and could qualify for a ‘Transitional’ license valid for 12 months. b) If unsuccessful, they could rewrite the exam no sooner than 10 days after the first time but within 90 days. • Successfully participate in a TIPR within 12 months of receiving their ‘Transitional’ license. • If an inspector does not have enough inspections to receive their NHICC National Home Inspector, they may substitute some NHICC approved mentoring. (2 hours mentoring equal one inspection but minimum number of inspections would be 75) Insurance: • Inspectors in the program are encouraged to carry adequate Errors and Omissions and CGL insurance coverage. This insurance is a pre-requisite for an individual to be licensed to perform home inspections in British Columbia. • Proof of insurance coverage must be provided. Home Inspectors – Alberta
Note: All Alberta home inspectors must meet ALL of the requirements of the Alberta Fair Trading Act – Regulation 75/2011.
Maintenance Requirement To ensure the sustained competency of our members, PHPIC incorporates a maintenance requirement. Maintenance activities include the following and must total 20 CEC’s a year:
All claims for Continuing Education Credits (CEC’s) must be properly and completely documented with proof attached. 50% of all CEC’s must be from education. |
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