At the 2002 Annual Meeting of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), of course, the target audience was engineers; but the message from the seminar “How to Avoid Being Sued for Negligence: What Every ASHRAE Member Should Know About the Standard of Care in Systems Design, Comfort, and IAQ,” carries over to all HVAC professionals, including contractors.
The question of the standard of care was pivotal, if you recall, in the South Carolina Association of Heating and Air Conditioning Contractors’ (SCAHACC’s) “Mock Mold Trial,” reported here in The News in March and voted on at The News’ website (www.achrnews.com). The standard of care, presented strongly enough, could turn a contractor’s “not guilty” verdict into “guilty.”