Have you ever asked to see your mold assessor’s license before letting them perform work in your home or business? If not, how do you know if they’re licensed to work in the State of Florida? Over the years, I have found that there are many unlicensed mold assessors in Florida, a situation that has led to many complications, conflicts, and liabilities for those who have hired the assessor. So, what I’d like to do is help you avoid that situation. Let’s talk about the State of Florida’s “direct supervision” clause and how you can ensure that the mold assessment that you’re paying for will suffice to meet your needs without costing you unnecessarily:
Firstly, let’s clarify one thing: To perform or directly supervise a mold assessment where ten square feet or more of known, suspect, or potential mold is present (that could be in the air, in drywall, furniture, behind the wall, anywhere visible or invisible) a person must be licensed as a mold assessor by the State of Florida, whether paid or unpaid (e.g., see Chapter 468, Part XVI; Florida Statute 468.8411; and Rule 61-31).
Can someone work under someone else’s license? No. There is no such statute that allows an exemption for unlicensed individuals working under a licensed professional’s name. However, under Florida Statutes § 468.841, there is an exemption for an individual who works under the “direct supervision” of a licensed professional. What’s the difference? Great question.
An employee of a licensed mold professional, who shows up to your home or office and (1) does not hold his/her own license to perform a mold assessment (2) and is not accompanied by a licensed mold assessor is acting as an individual working under someone else’s license. This is illegal.
An employee, who shows up to your home or office and (1) is accompanied by a licensed mold assessor (2) and is only performing general non-assessment tasks (e.g., cleaning and documentation per the licensed mold assessor’s instructions), is an individual under “direct supervision”. Can remote technology be used by the licensed mold assessor to direct the unlicensed individual’s actions? Under certain circumstances, Florida Admin. Code R. 61-31.101 allows interactive audio and video technology (i.e., that which combines sound and visual content integrated into a single digital experience, e.g. live video calls) to be used – if the method of supervision is documented and disclosed. This typically means keeping records such as (1) logs of remote sessions, (2) notes describing oversight activities, (3) and proof of interactive audio/video use (e.g., recording the entire assessment process and providing it to the client as part of the reporting value of service).
In the end, this means that the individual that is performing your mold assessment must be licensed in the State of Florida.
I encourage everyone reading this to go to the State of Florida’s website and confirm the individual who is doing the mold assessment is licensed (as a mold assessor, himself or herself) by the State of Florida – before letting him or her start the mold assessment.
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