Technology has become an important part of almost all business, with many technological developments made in the past few decades having become so commonplace it’s almost as if they’ve always been there. Consider the following:
- Smartphones
- Computer tablets
- Wireless internet with near-instant connection from anywhere to anywhere
- Cloud data storage
Property Inspection Technology
In addition to these technology items used in so many businesses, there are a number of high-tech items especially useful in the property inspection business. As a property inspector, anything you can use to make your job easier, quicker, more accurate, or economically priced can help with the inspection process.
If you’re performing property inspections for an insurance company, they’ll appreciate the quick and accurate delivery of the data you learn during an inspection to help assist in their underwriting efforts. Much of today’s developing insurance inspection technology is geared toward providing a property insurance underwriter with the information needed to complete an honest and accurate risk assessment of a property under consideration for an insurance policy. One of the more important developments in this area is the many web-based property inspection applications now available for use on your mobile devices.
Web-Based Property Inspection Applications
Using property inspection mobile apps has become a popular method for improving the property inspection process. These apps can be loaded onto your smartphone or computer tablet and carried with you as you walk through your inspections. It’s been shown that conducting inspections using a mobile app results in a more thorough inspection and with better, more reliable data than with the old pen/pencil and paper on a clipboard inspection method.
With the use of web-based inspection forms carried on your mobile device while you’re in the field, data obtained during an inspection can be entered directly into the system instead of being first written out onto a paper form and then later transcribed into a program for generating a report. The paper phase of the process is totally eliminated. This makes the inspection process quicker, easier, and more accurate. Digital, mobile inspection forms provide a framework to ensure that everything required during an inspection is covered, with much less likelihood of leaving anything out. If you’re interrupted during the process, you can come right back to where you left off without any confusion as to what to cover next.
Other Advantages to This Useful Inspection Technology
In addition to providing you with easy-to-follow and fill-out forms needed to complete your property inspections, a web-based app gives you numerous other valuable advantages. For example:
- Digital apps save huge amounts of time and effort compared to the old method of writing down information on paper and then having to duplicate those efforts transcribing that same information into a report. When using a digital inspection app, everything needed for the final report is gathered during the inspection on your handheld device, including photos, videos, and comments. Your report is automatically generated and can be completed and sent even while still at the inspection site. It can be immediately saved on the cloud with instant access to all needing the information.
- Using a mobile digital inspection app allows your inspections to be standardized, making it less likely that important steps will be skipped. Not having to transcribe information from paper forms also alleviates the potential for transcription mistakes to occur.
- Reports of previous inspections are easy to access when filed digitally using cloud storage. Easy access to past inspection reports for a property can be helpful for comparison to what’s found on the property today and in determining how well a property has aged and how well it’s been maintained.
Other Developments in Property Inspection Technology
There have been many other developments in property insurance inspection technology besides mobile inspection apps that have made an impact on the inspection business. These include:
- High-resolution cameras that can be mounted on unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), or drones, to capture views of areas that were difficult or dangerous to inspect in the past. This includes high, steep, or slippery roofs or tall communications towers. Cameras on drones also make it easier and faster to view large properties and surrounding areas without the need to have boots on the ground.
- Electronic devices that can “see” through walls for hot spots owing to electrical problems. They can also detect problems in electrical panel boxes and electrical outlets.
- Inspection robots are being used to inspect dark, dirty places such as crawl spaces and sewer pipes.
Forward-thinking property inspection companies such as Insurance Risk Services are utilizing these technologies to stay ahead in the field. For more than 40 years, we’ve been a leading choice in the insurance property inspection business.
