The High Cost of a "Free" Mold Inspection

Many people are lured by the advertisements for "free" mold inspection that many mold remediation contractors offer. But the truth is that these "free" inspections often become extremely--and unnecessarily--expensive!

What happens is that the company will send out an inspector for "free", then they will tell you that there is no way of telling you that you have a mold problem or not without taking samples. Now, that is true - sampling is the only way to tell if there is a problem (see my post "I Don't See Any Mold") and how big the problem may be. Then they overcharge for the samples. One company I inquired with charged $350 for the first two air samples and $175 per sample after that - And yes, I'm aware that the math works out to six of one/half a dozen of the other; but that's the great deal on samples I was told about by the lady on the phone. For comparison & full disclosure: My company and many other independent environmental testing firms charge $250 for an inspection and $100 per sample if needed.

Now you may be thinking that there's not a big difference in those price figures, however, independent environmental testing firms are not in the business of securing expensive remediation contracts. There is no incentive to find or exaggerate problems as there is for remediation companies offering "free" mold inspections. Now, am I saying that all remediation companies operate like this? No. But it isn't uncommon. Like in anything: removing the temptation factor is always the wisest course of action.

Too often I've been called for a "second opinion" inspection and found that the problem wasn't as bad--or expensive--as the "free" inspection found. I also get to hear many stories from people about how they got scammed by contractors by "free" mold inspections.

Mold is an issue that should be taken seriously. Unfortunately, there are a lot of scam-artists out there trying to make a quick buck from people by scaring and misinforming them. To avoid being taken advantage off when you think you may have a mold problem always look for independent inspection & testing firms and remediation contractors that are not also in the inspection & testing business.

I and my associates take pride in our work. We make sure that we always treat our clients respectfully and professionally. It bothers us when we see people out there taking advantage of people. So we want to inform you and "call out" the scam-artists.

If you would like more information, please see "Mold Scams and How to Avoid Them". Don't hesitate to contact me via email or telephone if you need to talk to someone to see if you may be getting scammed. Even if you're not in our service area... we're here to help and may be able to refer you to someone in your local area that will treat you right.