On September 12th, Appraisal Scoop reported that "The new AppraisalPort® User Agreement scheduled to be effective September 13, 2008 has been deferredto accommodate further industry comments. The current AppraisalPort Subscription Agreement shall remain in effect until further notice."

That deferral was presumably the result of a heated debate over the renewed awareness of the "Hold Harmless" clause that the User Agreement contained.  Here's what the original "Hold Harmless" clause looked like . . .

On November 10, 2008, AppraisalPort issued the following memo to registered appraisers:

"This message is to notify you that the AppraisalPort® User Agreement has been updated and the amended version will become effective for all users on December 13, 2008. Your valuable feedback was taken into consideration in developing this version, which you may view by clicking here. Upon your first login to AppraisalPort after the effective date, you will be asked to acknowledge that the AppraisalPort User Agreement has been amended before you can gain access to your AppraisalPort account."

In contrast, here's what the *New* Hold Harmless clause looks like . .

What do YOU think?!   Does changing the language from "Subscriber" to "User" effect the appraiser's liabililty?   Will this effect how the E&O insurance companies view our liability. 

Join the AppraisalPort discussion on the Appraisers Water Cooler!