In the past year or two, indoor mold
has emerged as a major homeowner
health scare. Mold-related lawsuits
against builders, landlords, and insurance
companies have become so common
that Mealey Publications — a
national clearinghouse of litigation
news and information — now devotes a
separate category to them, as it does to
suits involving lead, asbestos, and
tobacco. Even Rex Morgan, the fictional
comic-strip doctor, has weighed in with
a multi-week story revolving around
unexplained mold-related illnesses.
“It’s become a phobia,” says Daniel
Friedman, a home inspector in
Poughkeepsie, N.Y. “Scary news articles
do everyone an injustice, because
when people are scared, there are
always other people who find a way to
make money on their fear.”
What is mold? Mold