Contractor Didn't Finish Work
I had a one-man company do repair work on my house. We have a contract
saying what he will do and for how much. When his workers said they finished, he and I looked and agreed orally that they didn't finish. We also agreed orally that they broke something. He said he would finish and fix everything. I paid him all but $350. I didn't hear back for two weeks. I called once a week for the next three weeks and left voice mails. I still didn't hear back. The contract does not have a time limit. I can finish the work and fix the broken thing myself for a tenth of $350. What do you think I should do? |
Contractor Didn't Finish Work
wrote in message ... I had a one-man company do repair work on my house. We have a contract saying what he will do and for how much. When his workers said they finished, he and I looked and agreed orally that they didn't finish. We also agreed orally that they broke something. He said he would finish and fix everything. I paid him all but $350. I didn't hear back for two weeks. I called once a week for the next three weeks and left voice mails. I still didn't hear back. The contract does not have a time limit. I can finish the work and fix the broken thing myself for a tenth of $350. What do you think I should do? Call him and give him a time limit, if he wants the balance |
Contractor Didn't Finish Work
On Sep 21, 8:10*pm, "
wrote: I had a one-man company do repair work on my house. We have a contract saying what he will do and for how much. When his workers said they finished, he and I looked and agreed orally that they didn't finish. We also agreed orally that they broke something. *He said he would finish and fix everything. *I paid him all but $350. *I didn't hear back for two weeks. *I called once a week for the next three weeks and left voice mails. *I still didn't hear back. *The contract does not have a time limit. *I can finish the work and fix the broken thing myself for a tenth of $350. What do you think I should do? whats 350 worth to you? He's hoping you will go away, and not talk, is your time fixing it going to be shorter than chasing this loser down and getting him to do a half as$ job? In a level voice and with compete honesty and sincerity, tell him what you honestly think of his character, tell him you'll finish it yourself, and that, anyone you ever talks to will know not to use his services. then forget about it. Dave |
Contractor Didn't Finish Work
Take photographs and put all correspondence in writing, so he doesn't
say that it's done and you agreed that it's done. |
Contractor Didn't Finish Work
wrote in message ... I had a one-man company do repair work on my house. We have a contract saying what he will do and for how much. When his workers said they finished, he and I looked and agreed orally that they didn't finish. We also agreed orally that they broke something. He said he would finish and fix everything. I paid him all but $350. I didn't hear back for two weeks. I called once a week for the next three weeks and left voice mails. I still didn't hear back. The contract does not have a time limit. I can finish the work and fix the broken thing myself for a tenth of $350. What do you think I should do? Finish the work yourself. If he calls, tell him you had to hire someone else to finish his work, paid the man the $350, and if he has a question with it, you would be happy to accompany him to the Contractor's board and discuss the issue (and the money due to you from his surety bond) with them. I guarantee if you don't call him, you'll never hear from him again, and if you do, and tell him you will do whatever the Contractor's Board tells you to do, you will never hear from him again. He IS licensed, isn't he? In some states, contracting without a license is a FELONY, and even offering to do work and no work being done or no money changing hands constitutes contracting. (Nevada for one.) Good luck. You've waited a "reasonable" amount of time, and made "reasonable" efforts to contact him. Steve |
Contractor Didn't Finish Work
"SteveB" wrote in message ... wrote in message ... I had a one-man company do repair work on my house. We have a contract saying what he will do and for how much. When his workers said they finished, he and I looked and agreed orally that they didn't finish. We also agreed orally that they broke something. He said he would finish and fix everything. I paid him all but $350. I didn't hear back for two weeks. I called once a week for the next three weeks and left voice mails. I still didn't hear back. The contract does not have a time limit. I can finish the work and fix the broken thing myself for a tenth of $350. What do you think I should do? Finish the work yourself. If he calls, tell him you had to hire someone else to finish his work, paid the man the $350, and if he has a question with it, you would be happy to accompany him to the Contractor's board and discuss the issue (and the money due to you from his surety bond) with them. I guarantee if you don't call him, you'll never hear from him again, and if you do, and tell him you will do whatever the Contractor's Board tells you to do, you will never hear from him again. He IS licensed, isn't he? In some states, contracting without a license is a FELONY, and even offering to do work and no work being done or no money changing hands constitutes contracting. (Nevada for one.) Good luck. You've waited a "reasonable" amount of time, and made "reasonable" efforts to contact him. Steve " I can finish the work and fix the broken thing myself for a tenth of $350." So I guess we are talking about a 35 dollar fix....What exactly are you talking about ??? Touching up paint ?? What got broke ??? I doubt he would walk away from 350 bucks for such an easy fix without a reason...Perhaps you could enlighten us with just a few more details.... |
Contractor Didn't Finish Work
"benick" wrote in message . .. "SteveB" wrote in message ... wrote in message ... I had a one-man company do repair work on my house. We have a contract saying what he will do and for how much. When his workers said they finished, he and I looked and agreed orally that they didn't finish. We also agreed orally that they broke something. He said he would finish and fix everything. I paid him all but $350. I didn't hear back for two weeks. I called once a week for the next three weeks and left voice mails. I still didn't hear back. The contract does not have a time limit. I can finish the work and fix the broken thing myself for a tenth of $350. What do you think I should do? Finish the work yourself. If he calls, tell him you had to hire someone else to finish his work, paid the man the $350, and if he has a question with it, you would be happy to accompany him to the Contractor's board and discuss the issue (and the money due to you from his surety bond) with them. I guarantee if you don't call him, you'll never hear from him again, and if you do, and tell him you will do whatever the Contractor's Board tells you to do, you will never hear from him again. He IS licensed, isn't he? In some states, contracting without a license is a FELONY, and even offering to do work and no work being done or no money changing hands constitutes contracting. (Nevada for one.) Good luck. You've waited a "reasonable" amount of time, and made "reasonable" efforts to contact him. Steve " I can finish the work and fix the broken thing myself for a tenth of $350." So I guess we are talking about a 35 dollar fix....What exactly are you talking about ??? Touching up paint ?? What got broke ??? I doubt he would walk away from 350 bucks for such an easy fix without a reason...Perhaps you could enlighten us with just a few more details.... If the OP is satisfied with saving the $350 and doing the work himself, what's the difference? Lots of contractors walk away from as much as 10% retention held as final payment because there is just too much work left to be done, they're busy, they're idiots, lots of reasons. At that time, the person has several options. Finish the work themself. Pay someone to finish the work. Or pay someone to finish the work, and file a claim on the contractor's surety bond. Or, in the case the person is unlicensed and unbonded, sue them in small claims court, which sets low limits on the amount that can be sued for. Or send over a couple of friends to tune the guy up. BTW, one tenth of $350 is $35, and if the OP is happy with that, why do you require a detailed explanation? Sheesh. Steve |
Contractor Didn't Finish Work
.. *Or send over a couple of friends to tune the
guy up. I like it. |
Contractor Didn't Finish Work
On Sep 22, 8:03*am, Van Chocstraw
wrote: wrote: I had a one-man company do repair work on my house. We have a contract saying what he will do and for how much. When his workers said they finished, he and I looked and agreed orally that they didn't finish. We also agreed orally that they broke something. *He said he would finish and fix everything. *I paid him all but $350. *I didn't hear back for two weeks. *I called once a week for the next three weeks and left voice mails. *I still didn't hear back. *The contract does not have a time limit. *I can finish the work and fix the broken thing myself for a tenth of $350. What do you think I should do? Call a lawyer or he will take you to court for the $350 AFTER YOU finish the work. Calling a lawyer isn't going to do anything to prevent him from taking you to court if he decides to do so, which is unlikely. I think after waiting 5 weeks and trying to contact him numerous times, he has breeched and you are justified in finishing the work yourself. The amount you are legally entitled to keep however, may not be the $350. It would be what it actually costs to complete the work. Make sure to take pics and keep all bills. Then, I would not worry that he is going to sue you. If he does, it will be in small claims and the most you could lose is the $350 plus maybe another $50 in court costs. The chance he will sue is small and the chance you would lose is even smaller. If you want an additional measure of protection, send him a letter two ways, one with a return receipt proving delivery and one regular mail. The regular mail one is to cover the possibility that he will not sign for a letter. In the letter tell him he has one week to finish or your are keeping the $350. Also keep any phone records that you have showing the number of times you called his number. |
Contractor Didn't Finish Work
Shaun Eli wrote:
Take photographs and put all correspondence in writing, so he doesn't say that it's done and you agreed that it's done. Good advice, document everything. That way even if the OP agrees to let it go and finish the work himself the contractor can't come back looking for money he'll claim he's owed. He with the most pieces of paper tends to win that sort of argument. |
Contractor Didn't Finish Work
On Sep 21, 10:13*pm, "SteveB" wrote:
snip Finish the work yourself. *If he calls, tell him you had to hire someone else to finish his work, paid the man the $350, and if he has a question with it, you would be happy to accompany him to the Contractor's board and discuss the issue (and the money due to you from his surety bond) with them. snip Why lie about it when there are numerous honest alternatives? Joe |
Contractor Didn't Finish Work
On Mon, 21 Sep 2009 23:13:57 -0600, "SteveB"
wrote: BTW, one tenth of $350 is $35, and if the OP is happy with that, why do you require a detailed explanation? The concern (as expressed by others here) is that the contractor comes back later, says "look, see, it's all done!" and asks/sues for the full $350, or says "okay, you have receipts for for $35, so I'm entitled to $350-$35=$315". I agree with others that say send a letter giving a deadline, after which the OP is willing to consider the job closed for the amounts already paid, with the $350 considered "liquidated damages". Giving the contractor one last chance to come back or at least object to this arrangement will be useful if he tries to collect laer. Josh |
Contractor Didn't Finish Work
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Contractor Didn't Finish Work
"SteveB" wrote in message ... "benick" wrote in message . .. "SteveB" wrote in message ... wrote in message ... I had a one-man company do repair work on my house. We have a contract saying what he will do and for how much. When his workers said they finished, he and I looked and agreed orally that they didn't finish. We also agreed orally that they broke something. He said he would finish and fix everything. I paid him all but $350. I didn't hear back for two weeks. I called once a week for the next three weeks and left voice mails. I still didn't hear back. The contract does not have a time limit. I can finish the work and fix the broken thing myself for a tenth of $350. What do you think I should do? Finish the work yourself. If he calls, tell him you had to hire someone else to finish his work, paid the man the $350, and if he has a question with it, you would be happy to accompany him to the Contractor's board and discuss the issue (and the money due to you from his surety bond) with them. I guarantee if you don't call him, you'll never hear from him again, and if you do, and tell him you will do whatever the Contractor's Board tells you to do, you will never hear from him again. He IS licensed, isn't he? In some states, contracting without a license is a FELONY, and even offering to do work and no work being done or no money changing hands constitutes contracting. (Nevada for one.) Good luck. You've waited a "reasonable" amount of time, and made "reasonable" efforts to contact him. Steve " I can finish the work and fix the broken thing myself for a tenth of $350." So I guess we are talking about a 35 dollar fix....What exactly are you talking about ??? Touching up paint ?? What got broke ??? I doubt he would walk away from 350 bucks for such an easy fix without a reason...Perhaps you could enlighten us with just a few more details.... If the OP is satisfied with saving the $350 and doing the work himself, what's the difference? Lots of contractors walk away from as much as 10% retention held as final payment because there is just too much work left to be done, they're busy, they're idiots, lots of reasons. At that time, the person has several options. Finish the work themself. Pay someone to finish the work. Or pay someone to finish the work, and file a claim on the contractor's surety bond. Or, in the case the person is unlicensed and unbonded, sue them in small claims court, which sets low limits on the amount that can be sued for. Or send over a couple of friends to tune the guy up. BTW, one tenth of $350 is $35, and if the OP is happy with that, why do you require a detailed explanation? Sheesh. Steve BTW I already said it was 35 bucks but we will still try to act amazed at your math skills....The reason I asked for a FEW more details is because he seemed intentially vague , for whatever reason... But since he hasn't bothered to post back it doesn't really matter anyway....... |
Contractor Didn't Finish Work
"Joe" wrote in message ... On Sep 21, 10:13 pm, "SteveB" wrote: snip Finish the work yourself. If he calls, tell him you had to hire someone else to finish his work, paid the man the $350, and if he has a question with it, you would be happy to accompany him to the Contractor's board and discuss the issue (and the money due to you from his surety bond) with them. snip Why lie about it when there are numerous honest alternatives? Joe To get the flake not to bother you again? Steve |
Contractor Didn't Finish Work
"benick" wrote in message . .. "SteveB" wrote in message ... "benick" wrote in message . .. "SteveB" wrote in message ... wrote in message ... I had a one-man company do repair work on my house. We have a contract saying what he will do and for how much. When his workers said they finished, he and I looked and agreed orally that they didn't finish. We also agreed orally that they broke something. He said he would finish and fix everything. I paid him all but $350. I didn't hear back for two weeks. I called once a week for the next three weeks and left voice mails. I still didn't hear back. The contract does not have a time limit. I can finish the work and fix the broken thing myself for a tenth of $350. What do you think I should do? Finish the work yourself. If he calls, tell him you had to hire someone else to finish his work, paid the man the $350, and if he has a question with it, you would be happy to accompany him to the Contractor's board and discuss the issue (and the money due to you from his surety bond) with them. I guarantee if you don't call him, you'll never hear from him again, and if you do, and tell him you will do whatever the Contractor's Board tells you to do, you will never hear from him again. He IS licensed, isn't he? In some states, contracting without a license is a FELONY, and even offering to do work and no work being done or no money changing hands constitutes contracting. (Nevada for one.) Good luck. You've waited a "reasonable" amount of time, and made "reasonable" efforts to contact him. Steve " I can finish the work and fix the broken thing myself for a tenth of $350." So I guess we are talking about a 35 dollar fix....What exactly are you talking about ??? Touching up paint ?? What got broke ??? I doubt he would walk away from 350 bucks for such an easy fix without a reason...Perhaps you could enlighten us with just a few more details.... If the OP is satisfied with saving the $350 and doing the work himself, what's the difference? Lots of contractors walk away from as much as 10% retention held as final payment because there is just too much work left to be done, they're busy, they're idiots, lots of reasons. At that time, the person has several options. Finish the work themself. Pay someone to finish the work. Or pay someone to finish the work, and file a claim on the contractor's surety bond. Or, in the case the person is unlicensed and unbonded, sue them in small claims court, which sets low limits on the amount that can be sued for. Or send over a couple of friends to tune the guy up. BTW, one tenth of $350 is $35, and if the OP is happy with that, why do you require a detailed explanation? Sheesh. Steve BTW I already said it was 35 bucks but we will still try to act amazed at your math skills....The reason I asked for a FEW more details is because he seemed intentially vague , for whatever reason... But since he hasn't bothered to post back it doesn't really matter anyway....... Not to me. I know this will keep me from falling asleep tonight for about five seconds. Steve |
Contractor Didn't Finish Work
"Smitty Two" wrote in message ... In article , "¦ Reality Check© ¦" wrote: wrote in message ... I had a one-man company do repair work on my house. We have a contract saying what he will do and for how much. When his workers said they finished, he and I looked and agreed orally that they didn't finish. We also agreed orally that they broke something. He said he would finish and fix everything. I paid him all but $350. I didn't hear back for two weeks. I called once a week for the next three weeks and left voice mails. I still didn't hear back. The contract does not have a time limit. What idiot would sign a construction contract without a completion deadline? At least you made it that far in the reasoning process. I never got as far as figuring out how it is that a one-man company has workers. And the workers claim the boss is an asshole, and the boss says the workers are lazy *******s. |
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