Terms of use | NRCIA®

The terms that govern use of this site and its content.

Acceptance of these terms

By accessing or using any part of the National Roof Certification and Inspection Association website (nrcia.org), the InspectionPLUS® platform (inspectionplus.net), the member portal, or any content, service, or material we provide, you agree to be bound by these Terms of Use and by our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy, each incorporated here by reference.

If you do not agree, do not use the Sites or the Services.

These Terms apply to every visitor, user, member, member employee, property owner, real estate professional, attorney, insurer, and lender who accesses the Sites, whether as a guest or as an account holder.

If you are an NRCIA member, these Terms govern your use of the Sites and the platform. Your membership, accreditation, credential rights, and mark rights are governed separately by the NRCIA Membership Agreement and the Member Agreement Policy. Where these Terms and the Membership Agreement conflict on a membership matter, the Membership Agreement controls.

Who we are, and who owns what

The National Roof Certification and Inspection Association (“NRCIA,” “the Association,” “we,” “us,” “our”) is a national standards organization operating from 1421 N Wanda Rd, Suite 120P, Orange, California 92867.

We establish and set the standard for roof inspection and certification, we train and credential member inspectors, and we administer the LeakFREE® certification, nationally available.

We do not perform inspections. We do not write inspection reports. We do not repair roofs. We do not certify properties. Accredited members do that work as independent professionals, in business for themselves, responsible for their own licensing, their own insurance, and their own professional judgment. Nothing on the Sites creates an agency, partnership, employment, joint venture, or franchise relationship between NRCIA and any member.

Ownership. The NRCIA marks, the accreditation programs, the certification standards, the InspectionPLUS® platform, and the content on the Sites are owned by Field Gate FLP and licensed to NRCIA. Field Gate FLP is the owner. NRCIA is the licensed operator.

Questions about these Terms: legal@nrcia.org or (888) 687-7663.

Use of the Sites

Permitted use

You may access and use the Sites for lawful purposes. Specifically, you may:

Browse the Sites and view publicly available content.
Search the member directory and contact an accredited member.
Submit an inspection request or an inquiry through our forms.
Verify a LeakFREE® certificate using a certificate number.
Access the member portal or InspectionPLUS® using credentials issued to you.
Download materials we have made publicly available for download.

Prohibited conduct

You may not use the Sites or Services to:

Violate any applicable federal, state, or local law or regulation.
Transmit material that is unlawful, defamatory, obscene, fraudulent, harassing, or otherwise objectionable.
Represent yourself as NRCIA-accredited, as holding an Inspector Title, or as authorized to issue a LeakFREE® certification when you are not. This is the misuse we pursue hardest, because the standard is worth nothing if anyone can claim it.
Reproduce, alter, or issue a certificate, report, badge, seal, or credential that is not genuine, or alter a genuine one.
Impersonate any person or entity, or misstate your affiliation with one.
Attempt to gain unauthorized access to any part of the Sites, the member portal, InspectionPLUS®, or any connected system or network.
Use automated means, including bots, scrapers, spiders, crawlers, or headless browsers, to access the Sites or to collect data from them, including harvesting the member directory, without our express written consent.
Transmit viruses, malware, or other harmful or disruptive code.
Interfere with or disrupt the integrity or performance of the Sites or Services, including through load testing, denial of service, or probing without authorization.
Collect personally identifiable information from the Sites without consent.
Use the Sites or Services for a commercial purpose we have not authorized, including reselling access, republishing the directory, or using our content to train a machine learning model.

We may terminate or restrict your access to the Sites and Services at any time, with or without notice, for a violation of these Terms. For members, access restrictions that affect membership status, accreditation, credentials, or mark rights are governed by the disciplinary process in the Member Agreement Policy, which requires written notice and an opportunity to respond.

Intellectual property

Our content and marks

All content on the Sites and in the member portal, including text, graphics, logos, images, audio, video, software, standards documents, report templates, training material, and the design and arrangement of materials, is owned by Field Gate FLP or its licensors and protected by United States and international copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property law.

Registered marks of Field Gate FLP, used under license by NRCIA:

LeakFREE®
Forensic ROOF®
Mr. RoofCheck®
InspectionPLUS®
Today’s Inspection… Tomorrow’s Protection®
Got Leaks?®

Trademarks of Field Gate FLP, used under license by NRCIA:

RoofGUARD™
ForensicGUARD™
DisasterGUARD™
E3GUARD™
Think Like a Raindrop™

You may not use any of these marks without prior written permission. Member rights to display and use the marks are granted only through the NRCIA Membership Agreement and are governed by that agreement and by the Member Agreement Policy. Nothing on the Sites grants a license to anyone else.

You may not reproduce, distribute, modify, display, perform, publish, license, create derivative works from, or sell any content from the Sites without prior written consent. Unauthorized use is infringement, and we pursue it.

Certification marks carry an obligation on our side too. Where a mark is registered as a certification mark, the right to use it depends on continued satisfaction of the published certification standards, applied evenhandedly. We do not refuse certification to anyone who meets and maintains the standards, and we do not condition the right to use a certification mark on anything other than meeting those standards. See the Member Agreement Policy.

Your submissions

If you submit content to us through the Sites, a form, the member portal, or InspectionPLUS®, including inspection data, photographs, reports, briefs, feedback, or other material, you represent that you have the right to submit it and that it infringes no third-party right.

You keep ownership of what you submit. You grant NRCIA and Field Gate FLP a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to host, store, reproduce, and process your submission for the purpose of providing the Services to you, administering the standard, verifying compliance, and issuing and maintaining certifications. For members, the scope, duration, and export rights attached to that license are set out in the Member Agreement Policy, which controls.

We may use anonymized and aggregated data derived from platform activity to improve the Services and to publish industry statistics. Aggregated output never identifies you, a member, a property, or a property owner.

Feedback

If you send us a suggestion for improving the Services, you grant us an unrestricted right to use it without obligation to you. Do not send us anything you consider confidential in a feedback submission.

The member directory, inspection requests, and what we do not warrant

The member directory lists accredited members and their business contact details. We verify credentials, licensure, and insurance at accreditation and at the intervals our programs require.

A directory listing is a statement that a member holds a current NRCIA accreditation. It is not a warranty of that member’s work, workmanship, pricing, timeliness, licensing status on any given day, or fitness for your particular property. Members are independent professionals. You are contracting with them, not with us.

When you submit an inspection request, we pass your contact details to one or more members so they can reach you. Any inspection, report, estimate, repair, warranty, or certification that follows is an agreement between you and that member. We are not a party to it.

Certificate verification. Anyone holding a certificate number can confirm with us whether the certificate is genuine and current. That confirmation tells you the certificate exists, who issued it, what it covers, and when it expires. It is not a re-inspection and it is not an opinion on the condition of the roof today.

Disputes with a member. If you have a dispute with a member, take it up with the member first. If it involves a possible violation of NRCIA standards or the code of conduct, tell us at legal@nrcia.org and we will handle it under the disciplinary process in the Member Agreement Policy. We do not take sides between a property owner and a member. We determine what the evidence shows against the published standard, and we act on it.

Accounts, the member portal, and InspectionPLUS®

Access to the member portal and to InspectionPLUS® is granted to named individuals associated with an active membership or an authorized member company.

Account security

You are responsible for the confidentiality of your credentials and for all activity under your account. Notify us immediately at legal@nrcia.org if you learn of unauthorized use of your account or any other security incident.

We will never ask for your password by email, text, or phone. Do not share credentials with anyone who is not an authorized user of your organization. Multi-factor authentication is required on administrative accounts and available on all accounts. Use it.

Authorized access only

You may not transfer, share, or grant access to your account to any third party without our prior written consent. Credential sharing is grounds for suspension of access and for discipline under the Member Agreement Policy.

Platform content and availability

Documents, inspection records, photographs, reports, certificates, and invoices in the platform are confidential and intended for the authorized user and the member of record.

We aim for high availability but we do not guarantee uninterrupted access. We perform maintenance, and we will give advance notice of planned downtime where we reasonably can.

Your data on departure. If your membership ends, the Member Agreement Policy sets out what you may export, in what format, and by when, and what happens to inspection records associated with a company. Read it before you leave. We preserve records and take no side while an individual and a company work out ownership between them.

Fees, dues, and automatic renewal

Membership dues, program fees, event fees, and platform fees are governed by the NRCIA Membership Agreement, the Member Agreement Policy, and the order form or enrollment document you signed. Those documents state the term, the package, and the price.

Purchases made through the Sites are processed by a third-party payment processor. By submitting payment information you authorize the charge to the payment method you designate. We do not receive or store full card numbers or security codes.

Automatic renewal. Where a membership or subscription renews automatically, we obtain your express affirmative consent to the renewal terms before we charge you, we send an initial notice before your billing information is confirmed, we send an annual renewal reminder stating the amount and how to cancel, we give advance notice of any price change, and we provide a cancellation path in the same medium you used to sign up, including online click-to-cancel. Full detail is in the Member Agreement Policy.

All fees are in United States dollars. We are not responsible for currency conversion charges or fees imposed by your bank or card issuer.

Third-party links and services

The Sites contain links to third-party websites, platforms, and services, including member business websites and the providers named in our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy. These links are for your convenience.

We do not endorse, control, or take responsibility for the content, privacy practices, or terms of any third-party site or service. Your use of one is governed by that site’s own terms and privacy policy. The presence of a link implies no affiliation with or approval of the linked site.

Disclaimers

THE SITES, THE INSPECTIONPLUS® PLATFORM, AND ALL CONTENT AND SERVICES PROVIDED THROUGH THEM ARE OFFERED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED.

To the fullest extent applicable law permits, we disclaim:

Implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title, and non-infringement.
Any warranty that the Sites will be uninterrupted, timely, secure, or free of error, virus, or other harmful component.
Any warranty as to the accuracy, completeness, currency, or reliability of content on the Sites.

Information on the Sites is general information about roof inspection, certification, and the NRCIA standard. It is not professional, legal, engineering, insurance, or financial advice, and it is not a substitute for an inspection of your property by a qualified professional. Do not make a purchase, sale, repair, insurance, or litigation decision based on general content published here.

Certification disclaimer. A LeakFREE® certification is a written statement, issued by an accredited member, that a specific roof met specific published criteria on a specific date, subject to the written terms, conditions, exclusions, and duration printed on the certificate itself. It is not a guarantee that a roof will not leak. It is not insurance. It does not cover conditions excluded on its face. Read the certificate. The certificate controls. Nothing on the Sites expands, modifies, or supplements the terms of any certificate.

Limitation of liability

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT APPLICABLE LAW PERMITS, NRCIA, FIELD GATE FLP, AND THEIR PARTNERS, OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, AND LICENSORS SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR LOST PROFITS, LOST REVENUE, LOST DATA, OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION, ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO YOUR USE OF THE SITES OR SERVICES.

This limitation applies regardless of the theory of liability, whether contract, tort, negligence, strict liability, or otherwise, and even if we were advised of the possibility of such damages.

Cap. Our total cumulative liability for all claims arising out of or related to your use of the Sites or Services shall not exceed the greater of (a) the total fees you paid to NRCIA in the 12 months preceding the event giving rise to the claim, or (b) one hundred United States dollars ($100.00).

Carve-outs. Nothing in this section limits liability for fraud, fraudulent misrepresentation, willful misconduct, gross negligence, death or personal injury caused by negligence, or any liability that applicable law does not permit to be limited or excluded.

Members are independent. We are not liable for the acts, omissions, workmanship, professional judgment, warranties, or business practices of any member. A member is not our agent and cannot bind us.

Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of certain damages. In those jurisdictions our liability is limited to the maximum extent the law permits.

Indemnification

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless NRCIA, Field Gate FLP, and their partners, officers, directors, employees, agents, and licensors from and against any claim, damage, obligation, loss, liability, cost, or expense, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, arising from:

Your use of or access to the Sites, the member portal, or InspectionPLUS®.
Your violation of these Terms.
Your violation of any third-party right, including intellectual property, privacy, or proprietary rights.
Any content you submit, post, or transmit through the Sites or the platform.
Your misuse or unauthorized use of any NRCIA mark, certificate, credential, or Inspector Title.

This obligation does not extend to any claim arising from our own negligence, willful misconduct, or breach of these Terms. It survives termination of these Terms and of your use of the Services.

Confidentiality

Through the member portal, InspectionPLUS®, or a business relationship with us you may receive non-public information about our operations, standards development, methodologies, pricing, systems, and relationships (“Confidential Information”).

You agree to hold Confidential Information in confidence, to use it solely for the purpose of your relationship with us, and not to disclose it to any third party without our prior written consent.

This does not apply to information that is or becomes public through no fault of yours, that you lawfully received from a third party without restriction, that you independently developed, or that you are required to disclose by law or court order, provided you give us reasonable advance notice so we can seek protection.

We undertake the same obligation as to your non-public business information shared with us, subject to the same limitations and to the Privacy Policy.

Governing law and dispute resolution

Governing law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to conflict of law principles. The United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods does not apply.

Step one: talk to us first

Before starting any formal proceeding, send written notice of the dispute to legal@nrcia.org with “Dispute Notice” in the subject line, describing the issue and the relief you want. We will work in good faith to resolve it within 30 days. We will do the same before bringing a claim against you.

Step two: arbitration, and only for account holders

If you hold an NRCIA member account, an InspectionPLUS® account, or a member portal account, and the dispute is not resolved within the 30-day period, you and NRCIA agree to resolve it by binding arbitration administered by JAMS under its Streamlined Arbitration Rules, seated in Orange County, California, before a single arbitrator.

The following terms apply to that arbitration and cannot be waived by us:

We pay the forum. NRCIA pays all JAMS filing, administrative, and arbitrator fees for any claim you bring, regardless of outcome. You pay only what it would have cost you to file the same claim in court.
No blanket secrecy. Neither party is required to keep the existence of the dispute, the fact of the award, or its outcome confidential. Confidentiality applies only to material actually designated confidential in the proceeding.
Public injunctive relief is preserved. Nothing in this section waives your right to seek public injunctive relief, and that claim may be brought in court if it cannot be brought in arbitration.
The version in effect when the claim arose governs it. Amendments to this section do not apply retroactively to a dispute that already exists.
Small claims stays open. Either party may bring an individual claim in small claims court if it qualifies.
Opt out. You may reject arbitration by writing to legal@nrcia.org with “Arbitration Opt-Out” in the subject line within 30 days of first accepting these Terms. Opting out costs you nothing and affects nothing else.

Class action waiver. Arbitration proceeds on an individual basis. You and NRCIA each waive the right to bring or participate in a class, collective, or consolidated action in arbitration. This waiver does not extend to a claim for public injunctive relief. If a court finds this waiver unenforceable as to a particular claim, that claim proceeds in court and the remaining claims stay in arbitration.

Step two, alternative: court, for everyone else

If you do not hold an account with us, meaning you are a visitor, a property owner, a real estate professional, or any other member of the public using the public Sites, there is no arbitration requirement. Any dispute is resolved in the state or federal courts located in Orange County, California, and you and NRCIA consent to the exclusive jurisdiction and venue of those courts.

Why the split: an arbitration clause imposed on a homeowner through a website footer is both unfair and, in California, frequently unenforceable. We would rather have a clean, honest forum rule for the public and a properly balanced arbitration clause for the business relationships where arbitration actually makes sense.

Injunctive relief

Either party may seek temporary or preliminary injunctive relief in court to protect intellectual property, confidential information, or the integrity of the certification program, without waiving any part of this section.

Digital Millennium Copyright Act

We respect intellectual property rights and expect users of the Sites to do the same. If you believe content on the Sites infringes your copyright, send written notice to our designated agent containing:

A physical or electronic signature of the copyright owner or authorized agent.
Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to be infringed.
Identification of the material claimed to be infringing and its location on the Sites.
Your name, address, telephone number, and email address.
A statement that you have a good-faith belief the use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law.
A statement, under penalty of perjury, that the information in the notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on the owner’s behalf.

DMCA Agent Attn: DMCA Agent, National Roof Certification and Inspection Association 1421 N Wanda Rd, Suite 120P, Orange, CA 92867 legal@nrcia.org, subject line “DMCA Notice”

We respond to valid notices, remove or disable access to infringing material, and terminate access for repeat infringers. You may submit a counter-notice under 17 U.S.C. § 512(g) if you believe material was removed by mistake.

Privacy

Your use of the Sites and Services is also governed by our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy, both incorporated into these Terms by reference.

California residents have additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act. Those rights are described in the Privacy Policy and on the Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information page.

Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms. When we do, we revise the “Last updated” date at the top and retain the prior version in our records.

For material changes, we give at least 30 days’ advance notice by email to registered account holders and by a notice displayed on the Sites. Continued use after the effective date of a change constitutes acceptance. If you do not accept a change, stop using the Services and, if you hold an account, contact us to close it.

A change to section 13 does not apply to a dispute that arose before the change took effect.

General

Entire agreement. These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy, the Cookie Policy, and, for members, the NRCIA Membership Agreement and the Member Agreement Policy, constitute the entire agreement between you and NRCIA regarding your use of the Sites and Services.

Severability. If a provision is found invalid, illegal, or unenforceable, it will be modified to the minimum extent necessary to make it enforceable, or severed, without affecting the remaining provisions.

Waiver. Our failure to enforce a right or provision is not a waiver of it. A waiver must be in writing and signed by an authorized representative of NRCIA.

Assignment. You may not assign these Terms or any right or obligation under them without our prior written consent. We may assign them in connection with a merger, acquisition, financing, reorganization, or sale of assets.

Force majeure. We are not liable for delay or failure to perform caused by circumstances beyond our reasonable control, including natural disaster, severe weather, government action, labor dispute, power outage, network failure, or third-party service interruption.

No third-party beneficiaries. These Terms create no right in any person who is not a party, except that Field Gate FLP is an intended beneficiary of every provision concerning ownership, intellectual property, disclaimers, limitation of liability, and indemnification, and may enforce them directly.

Survival. Sections 04, 09, 10, 11, 12, 13, and 17 survive termination.

Headings. Headings are for convenience and do not affect interpretation.

Notices. Notices to you may be sent to the email address on your account or posted on the Sites. Notices to us go to legal@nrcia.org and, where a formal notice is required, also by mail to the address below.

NRCIA marks, programs, and platform technology are owned by Field Gate FLP and used under license. LeakFREE®, Forensic ROOF®, InspectionPLUS®, Mr. RoofCheck®, Today’s Inspection… Tomorrow’s Protection®, and Got Leaks?® are registered trademarks of Field Gate FLP. RoofGUARD™, ForensicGUARD™, DisasterGUARD™, E3GUARD™, and Think Like a Raindrop™ are trademarks of Field Gate FLP.

Privacy desk

Questions about this policy?

Ask us anything about nrcia terms of use, or make a request about your personal information.

Name: National Roof Certification and Inspection Association
Address: 1421 N Wanda Rd., Orange, CA 92867
Phone: 1 (888) 687-7663
Email: legal@nrcia.org