What happens if I miss an item on my PDI form in Ottawa?

Missing an item on your PDI form does not by itself end your warranty coverage. Tarion says: "The PDI Form does not represent a request for warranty service, so if you fail to note an item this does not necessarily impact your warranty coverage. However, the PDI Form is a useful piece of evidence if you have a conciliation inspection."

The PDI and the warranty forms do different jobs. The PDI is the builder's floor-by-floor walk-through before you get the keys, recording items that are incomplete, damaged, missing, inaccessible or not operating properly. Warranty items are reported on Tarion's forms, which have fixed dates counted from possession:

• Initial Form: items from 1 day after possession; submitted automatically on day 41.
• Mid-Year Form: from day 42; submitted automatically on day 183.
• Year-End Form: from day 183; submitted automatically on day 365, with a 10-day grace period. Tarion calls it "your final opportunity to report items covered by the one-year warranty."
• Second-Year Form: any time during the second year.
• Major Structural Defect Form: after the second year, no later than seven years from possession.

An item you missed at the PDI can go on the form whose window you are in. Tarion describes the one-year warranty as including items such as defects in work and material, the two-year warranty as including items such as water penetration, heating and electrical, and the seven-year warranty as covering major structural defects. Tarion also says it is important to notify your builder before you make a claim.

If you want a second set of eyes before a deadline, Tarion places no restriction on who you bring to the PDI or send as your designate, so a home inspector you hire can go; a designate who signs the PDI Form needs your written authority to the builder. That is an option, not a Tarion requirement.

Whether a particular item is covered is Tarion's call, so check its forms page for the window you are in, and talk to a lawyer if you end up in a dispute with your builder.