Requesting Inspections

Agency users can request inspections for permits to ensure that they are in compliance.

You request, modify, and cancel inspection requests on the Inspection request page. For information about adding, updating, or canceling scheduled inspections in the Oracle Inspector mobile application, see Managing Scheduled Inspections

Inspection Request Considerations

There are several reasons that you may not be allowed to request or schedule an inspection. When you're making a request for multiple inspections, only those that meet the requirements are created. The system displays the reasons the inspections can't be created. Let's take a look at the issues that may prevent you from creating an inspection.

Issues that prevent an inspection from being created or scheduled

Inspection Issue	Description
Incomplete dependencies	Agencies may only allow inspections to be performed after prerequisite inspections are completed with a passing or corrected result, but agency staff can override dependency requirements when assigning, reassigning, or scheduling inspections. Applicants can't schedule an inspection or update a pending inspection that has prerequisite inspections. If you have selected multiple inspections, you can schedule only the inspections with no dependency requirements or prerequisites that are already complete with a Pass or Corrected result. Agencies identify inspection dependences in the inspection setup on the Inspection Group page.
Missing district	Assigning districts to properties is required setup for inspection requests and scheduling. Agency staff can create pending inspections with an incorrect or missing district if the agency supports pending inspections. Inspections are scheduled and assigned based on the district associated with a property. For properties associated with a parcel, you assign districts to the parcel on the Parcel District page. For properties with an address, but no parcel, use the Address District page to assign districts to a property.
Preexisting pending inspections	If your agency supports pending inspections, the system prevents you from creating a new or duplicate inspection when an inspection of the same type is already pending. You can schedule the existing pending inspection. Use the Inspections section of the agency's Permit Options page to configure how your agency handles pending inspections.
Incomplete required inspections before the final inspection	You can't schedule a final inspection or assign a pending final inspection to an inspector until all of the required inspections for the permit are complete with a passing or corrected result. If one of multiple inspections selected is the final inspection and there are incomplete required inspections, you won't be able to create the final inspection. If the final inspection is in a pending status and there are incomplete required inspections, agency staff or applicants can't assign the inspection. Agencies identify required inspections and the final inspection in the setup on the Inspection Group page. If an inspection type is defined as required in the inspection group, but you turn off the Required switch when the inspection is created, then it's no longer considered a required inspection when completing the final inspection. The reverse is also true: You can turn on the Required switch to make the inspection required.
Permit conditions	Conditions on the permit such as Prevent Inspection Schedule or Prevent Final Inspection can prevent you from scheduling an inspection or prevent you from adding or proceeding with a final inspection.
Permit fees due before the final inspection	Agencies may configure a stop process action in the Business Rules Framework to prevent you from creating or scheduling a final inspection when permit fees are outstanding. The stop process action isn’t triggered by requests sent from the Oracle Inspector mobile app. However, requests sent from a browser running on a mobile device will still trigger the stop process action. Agencies configure stop process actions in the Business Rules Framework.

For information about setting up inspection dependencies, required inspections, and the final inspection, see Setting Up Inspection Groups.

For more information about setting up a business rule to prevent final inspections when permit fees are due, see Setting Up Stop Process Actions.

Requesting an Inspection

1. Click the Add Inspection button from one of the following locations:

   • The Inspections page in the permit details, which you can access by clicking Permits on the Agency Springboard. See Managing Inspections for a Permit.

   • The Inspections page, which you can access by clicking Inspections on the Agency Springboard. See Managing Inspections for an Agency.

     Note: The button is also available to registered public users on the Inspections page, which they access from the registered user public landing page by clicking Inspections or by selecting Schedule an Inspection from the I Want To field. Registered public users can only add an inspection if the permit has a status of About to Expire, Permit Issued, or Inspection.

2. On the Inspection modal page, select the Permit for which you want to request an inspection.

   Note: If you are requesting an inspection from the Inspections page for a specific permit, the Permit is already selected on the modal page.

3. You'll see the inspection types that are available to select based on the inspection group that is associated with the permit type.

   Note: Agency staff can select the Show All Inspection Types check box to make all inspection types available for selection. This check box isn't available to public users.

   For each inspection type listed on the Inspection modal page, you'll see this information:

   Element	Description
   Inspection Type and Description	Indicates the inspection type code and description.
   Dependencies	Lists the prerequisite inspections.
   Required	Indicates that this inspection type is required.
   Final Inspection	Indicates that this is the last inspection that needs to be done.

4. Select the check box next to each Inspection Type that you want to add. You can't select multiple inspections in small form factor or through the Oracle Inspector mobile application.

5. Select the Pending check box to set the status of the inspections to Pending. This check box is available only if the Enable Pending Inspections switch is turned on for the agency. For more information, see Setting Up Agency-Level Options for Permits.

   Note: This switch is not available to registered public users.

6. Click Continue to access the Inspection page.

   The request page for a single inspection looks like this.

   This example shows the Inspection page for a single inspection. The Select a Time button is available because the inspection was set up with the Schedule method.

   

   If you selected more than one inspection type, they are all displayed in the Selected Inspections grid as shown here.

   This example shows the Inspection page for multiple inspections. Each inspection has a different scheduling method. The inspection with the Select a Time button has the Schedule method and the inspection preferred date and time fields has the Request method.

   

7. Turn the Required switch on or off. The Required switch defaults to the inspection type setting on the Inspection Group Details page. If the inspection is outside of the inspection group, the setting defaults to Not Required.

8. Depending on the scheduling method set up for the inspection type, agency staff and applicants can enter times in the preferred date and time fields or ready by date and time fields, or select a time.

   The Select a Time button appears only for inspection types with a Scheduling Method of Schedule. See the section, "Selecting an Inspection Time" for more information.

9. (Optional) Click the Delete button to remove any inspection types that you don't want to include in your inspection request.

10. Click Submit.

If the Inspection Requested communication event is configured, the system automatically creates an email notification for the permit technician that an inspection request has been created. For more information, see Delivered Communication Events.

Selecting an Inspection Time

The Select a Time button on the Inspection request page appears only for inspection types with a Scheduling Method of Schedule. Both agency staff and applicants can select a time on the Scheduling modal page. Only inspections supervisors can see the inspector names and override availability.

The dates and times that are available for inspection scheduling are based on the following factors:

• Type of inspection and when the inspection can be performed.

• District of the parcel or district associated with the address.

• Inspectors assigned to the district and inspection type.

• Availability of the inspectors according to work schedules, holiday schedules, and inspection calendars.

For more information on scheduling inspections as a supervisor and an example of the Scheduling modal page, see Assigning Inspections Using the Supervisor Calendar.

For more information, see Setting Up Inspection Scheduling.

Modifying an Inspection Request

1. Select the View Request action for an inspection from one of the following locations:

   • The Inspections page in the permit details, which you can access by clicking Permits on the Agency Springboard. See Managing Inspections for a Permit.

   • The Inspections page, which you can access by clicking Inspections on the Agency Springboard. See Managing Inspections for an Agency.

     Note: The action is also available to registered public users on the Inspections page, which they access from the registered public user landing page by clicking Inspections or by selecting Schedule an Inspection from the I Want To field.

2. Update the field values on the Inspection page.

   Note: You can’t edit the Inspection Type field. In addition, you can’t edit any fields on this page if the status of the inspection is Canceled or Completed.

   • Turn the Required switch on or off to override the default required inspection setting for the inspection. The Required switch defaults to the inspection type settings on the Inspection Group Details page. If the inspection is not part of the inspection group, the setting defaults to not required.

   • If the link is available, you can click Assign to me to claim an inspection assigned to another inspector. The inspector who claims the inspection must have the Building Inspector job function with district and inspection type job attributes that match the inspection's district and type attributes.

     When an inspector claims the inspection, they can also select a new inspection date and time. If the Inspection Rescheduled communication event and template are configured by your agency, the system generates a notification when you reschedule the inspection.

3. If an inspection time has already been selected, you can click Select a Different Time to select a different inspection date and time on the Scheduling modal page.

   Note: The Select a Different Time button appears only for inspection types with a Scheduling Method of Schedule. The button is not available if the status of the inspection is Canceled or Completed. In addition, the button is not available once the time to the scheduled inspection is less than the number of hours defined in the Schedule Change Policy field for the inspection type. For more information on inspection types, see Setting Up Inspection Types.

4. Click Save.

When you or the applicant reschedule an inspection, the applicant, inspection contact, inspector, and inspection supervisor can receive a notification, depending on the communication template setup.

Canceling an Inspection Request

Note: An inspection request is canceled automatically when an agency staff member withdraws the application associated with the request.

1. Select the Cancel Inspection action for an inspection from one of the following locations:

   • The Inspections page in the permit details, which you can access by clicking Permits on the Agency Springboard. See Managing Inspections for a Permit.

   • The Inspections page, which you can access by clicking Inspections on the Agency Springboard. See Managing Inspections for an Agency.

     Note: The action is also available to registered public users on the Inspections page, which they access from the registered public user landing page by clicking Inspections or by selecting Schedule an Inspection from the I Want To field. The Cancel Inspection action doesn't appear for inspections with a status of Canceled or Completed. In addition, the action isn't available once the time to the scheduled inspection is less than the number of hours defined in the Schedule Change Policy field for the inspection type. For more information on inspection types, see Setting Up Inspection Types.

2. Enter a Cancellation Reason on the Cancel Inspection modal page. Your agency may require comments, depending on settings in the agency options.

3. Click Confirm.

When you or the applicant cancel an inspection, the applicant, inspection contact, inspector, and inspection supervisor can receive a notification, depending on the communication template setup.

Interactive Voice Response Inspection Requests

When interactive voice response (IVR) is enabled for your agency, registered public users can request inspections over the phone. IVR is compatible with the Request and Schedule scheduling methods. Regardless of which of these two scheduling methods is associated with an IVR inspection request, a user chooses a preferred date and time period (morning or afternoon). For inspections with a Request scheduling method, the selected date and time period are recorded as the Preferred Date and Preferred Time. For inspections with a Schedule scheduling method, the system uses the selected date and time period to automatically assign a specific time slot and inspector.

For more information on IVR, see Setting Up Agency-Level Options for Permits.