"Chris Birkett" wrote in message
ps.com...
My dad recently had a guy in to repair the chimney, and he quoted a
specific amount for a basic repair. After he started working on it, it
became obvious the chimney needed much more extensive repairs, and he
gave my dad a new quote, which they agreed on. My dad was in the US
for most of the time the repairs were being done, and the guy has now
given him a bill that's $1100 higher than the quote, saying he had to
do "extra work" and my dad wasn't available to discuss it (though my
mother was here the whole time). He also hasn't done a couple of minor
jobs he agreed to do at the same time.

As far as I can tell, he doesn't have a leg to stand on since he gave
us a quote, but I just wanted to check with other people. I'm located
in Ontario, by the way.

Presumably this will end up in small claims court (I am making the wild
assumption you have small claims courts). Judges there are more concerned
with fairness than legality. If the contractor can convince the judge that
he did everything properly, gave good value, and had a good reason not to
have gotten approval first for the extra work, he will probably win. If he
can't, he will lose. And if you think about it, if the contractor is right,
he deserves to get paid, doesn't he?