Is radon a latent defect?

Published on September 17, 2021

Presence of radon in a home at the time of sale may constitute a hidden defect. When is it the case, and how can you protect yourself as a buyer or seller? Let us shed light on the subject.

If the presence of radon in a home at the time of sale is serious (in a concentration greater than 200Bq/m³, not apparent, unknown to the buyer, and exists at the time of sale (but is undeclared), it may constitute a latent defect.

A legal opinion obtained by CAA-Quebec confirms that, at the time of the sale of the residence, the owner is required to report the presence of radon in the building if they are aware of it. In addition, even if the issue has been resolved (as demonstrated by supporting invoices), the prospective buyer should be notified of the history of radon infiltration in the affected residence. On the other side of the equation, cautious buyers should always have a pre-purchase home inspection conducted and may even request a radon test at their own expense before purchasing a home.

How do I protect myself from radon when buying or selling a home?

Sellers should be transparent, and buyers, vigilant, especially if:

The building is in a risk area;
The basement has (or will have) a bedroom, office, or any other room where at least one member of the household will spend several hours a day.

You can make an offer conditional on a radon test and ask your seller to allow you to have the test performed. You can then work with the seller to lower the purchase price of the home or request that the situation be corrected immediately.

No time to have a radon test performed before closing the deal? In that case, you can stipulate in the sales contract that a trust account be created in which the seller will deposit an amount that you can use to have the appropriate mitigation work done if necessary and within a period agreed upon in advance. If the test reveals that the radon level is not a concern, the amount in the trust can be recovered by the seller.

To learn more about radon

Here are some resources offering reliable information on radon:

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