Mold Standard In Development

By E. E. Mazier

NU Online News Service, Sept. 5, 11:39 a.m.EST?The pennywise, pound-foolish approach to mold issuesis the root of the insurance industry crisis regarding such claims,according to an expert with a group developing microbialremediation standards.

"The insurance companies' downfall is that they tend to eitherthrow money at a problem or to ignore it until an absolute crisisdevelops, and then they get into a reactive mode instead of aproactive one," said Jeff Bishop, chairman of certification boardof Vancouver, Wash.-based Institute of Inspection, Cleaning andRestoration Certification.

"The whole thrust of the IICRC is to be proactive on theseissues," he said of the non-profit independent certificationorganization and registry of inspectors, cleaners andrestorers.

This proactiveness is evident from the recent inaugural meetingof IICRC's Mold Remediation Standard Task Force in Sacramento,Calif.

Mr. Bishop explained that the Task Force brings togetheracademics and field technicians to develop a "practical standard"for mold remediation. He also said that the IICRC's recentlydeveloped course of study and certification in mold remediationwill serve as the foundation for developing the standard.

Some asbestos remediators now hold themselves out as moldremediators. While certain asbestos-removal techniques apply tomold remediation, the inherent differences between mold andasbestos mean that "more extensive training must be undertaken tobetter handle mold remediation--or microbial remediation as weprefer to call it," Mr. Bishop stated.

The Task Force aims to publish a white paper on a moldremediation standard within six months. Mr. Bishop said the whitepaper would then be published in a scientific journal for peerreview and comments. After a review period, the Task Force willtake all of the information gathered and write a mold remediationstandard, he said.

While mold remediation standards or guidelines put out by otherentities are generally developed "very quickly" and have been basedmostly on others' work, Mr. Bishop said that the Task Force will bebasing its standard on more "original lab study work that simulatesfield conditions."

Mr. Bishop stressed that the work of the Task Force will focuson the remediation, not the medical, aspect of mold. He believesthat only the federal government has the funds and the time for aproperly conducted epidemiological study on the relation, if any,of mold and symptoms such as respiratory distress.

As to the current mold crisis, Mr. Bishop noted that it is nowvery common for claims adjusters to tell policyholders that theirinsurer will not cover mold claims stemming from water damage.

"Instead of attacking the problem when it's fairly minor, theyallow the problem to grow and amplify to the point that it gets outof control and you wind up with something that was avoidable andblown out of proportion, such as the Ballard case down in Texas,"he said.

Mr. Bishop was referring to a case last year that resulted in a$34 million judgment for the owners of a mold-infested Texasmansion. The verdict is on appeal.

He said that "in a perfect world, if everyone had the knowledgethat they needed to respond" to the mold problem in the Ballardcase, the matter most likely could have been handled "quickly andefficiently for ?a couple of thousand dollars."

Mr. Bishop also said that IICRC (www.iicrc.org) for many yearshas specialized in "the preventive aspect of the program, somethingthat insurance companies seem to have a hard time grasping."

In fact, "the ultimate in short-sightedness" stemming from fearof mold-related claims is the refusal by some insurers to coverindividuals involved in water-damage restoration, "the people whocan get out there quickly so that mold never becomes an issue," Mr.Bishop said.