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Contractor Question - WWCOJD
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 2009-10-07 1:28 PM |
Extreme Veteran  474   W. Michigan |  Subject: Contractor Question - WWCOJDThis might be a bit long. My question will be at the end of this rant. My wife & I are getting to the end of remodeling our house. The one room left is the back entryway that leads either up to the kitchen or down to the basement. It had the same old, faded linoleum that we tore out of the kitchen and we wanted to tile it with the same tile we used when re-doing the kitchen. I'd do it myself (I tiled the kitchen and two bathrooms in the house) but the stairs seemed like more of a challenge that I wanted right now with a 5 month old baby and a demanding job. We got a couple quotes and decided on a one-man operation who offered the middle of the road quote. He said he'd start Monday and be finished by Wednesday and asked that we pay him 1/2 up front. He started on Monday afternoon, two weeks ago, tearing up the linoleum. When we spoke he said that he'd be back 1st thing Tuesday to lay the tile. We never heard from him or saw him at all Tuesday. He showed up Wednesday afternoon with three sob stories where 1) his car broke down 2) he got upset at his car and threw & broke his cell phone and 3) was sick Tuesday. He got 1/2 the area tiled on Wed, and came Thursday afternoon (said he'd be there 1st thing) to tile the rest. We spoke that evening and he said he'd be there Friday to grout, and asked for the balance of his payment. I came home for lunch Friday, he hadn't been there. I got home from work Friday, he hadn't been there. I left a message for him, which he returned later that evening, giving me sob story #4 for the week. At that point, he said he'd be there Saturday at 2 to grout. Saturday afternoon came & went with no call and no show. We left him a message that if we didn't hear from him by the end of the day to consider himself fired from the job and that we wouldn't pay him anything further. Here's the issue, what should I do with the tools that he left behind at our house? They're mostly hand tiling tools & buckets, maybe $50 total, but also a heavy duty electric angle grinder. I left a message last Sunday for him to call me to arrange to pick up his tools and haven't heard a word from him. I look forward to receiving the infinite wisdom of COJ...... |
| 2009-10-07 1:44 PM in reply to: #2447934 |
Veteran 667 | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD Those tools are not your property. You must return his tools when/if he comes and asks for him. You need to give him a reasonable amount of time before you dispose of these tools. I would recommend something along the lines of "you have until after (probably a week) to retrieve your tools. If you do not retrieve your tools, we will consider them abandoned and will not be responsible for them." Keep a copy or log of whatever you say/or write to him. Don't give him the option to arrange a pick up because he can string you on forever. You give him a definitive deadline to respond and once that time has passed, I would probably donate or throw out the gear. |
| 2009-10-07 1:49 PM in reply to: #2447934 |
Extreme Veteran 357 Ft. Myers, Florida | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD If you have an address for him, I almost think it would be worth the drive across town to return them yourself. I understand that you should not have to do that but it may be worth it to just be done with him. Be thankful if he doesn't start hounding you for more money. |
| 2009-10-07 2:02 PM in reply to: #2447934 |
Master 2009 Charlotte, NC | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD I would send him a letter that requires a signature upon delivery stating you want the tools out of your house by a certain date or you will do XYZ with them. I would also hold onto the signatire confirmation. |
| 2009-10-07 3:08 PM in reply to: #2447934 |
| Mountain View, CA | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD Is this guy originally from California? I think he The signature-upon-delivery letter sounds like a good plan. Going to his house to deliver the tools might also work, and that would give you a chance to make him talk to you face to face. (Of course, he might not answer the door, or might have a family member answer.) Whatever you do about the tools, if this guy has a contractor's license (or if he says he does), file a complaint with the state board. |
| 2009-10-07 3:25 PM in reply to: #2448181 |
Member 1699 | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD My brother is a contractor and I resent the implication that all contractors are irresponsible and untrustworthy. When my brother says he will be somewhere, he will be there within an hour or so of when he said. Most of the time. If there it was league night the night before, then probably a little longer. I am kidding, partially. My brother really is a contractor and he is not particularly punctional. I have worked with him a few times, and compared to most of his peers, he is a stinking swiss watch. That whole industry is full of guys who would be fired, or have been fired, in corporate America. |
| 2009-10-07 3:52 PM in reply to: #2447934 |
Veteran 172 Seattle | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD I'm not an attorney, but it seems to me you have two options: 1. Keep the tools until he completes the job contracted for (you do have a written contract don't you?) and you have paid for. If you sell the tools, he will probably be able to sue you for replacement tools which will probably be more than you received; or 2. Hire another contractor to complete the work and then take the original tile layer to small claims court for the cost of the second contractor completing the job. In the event he is not bonded and you don't have a written contract, you are probably SOL. |
| 2009-10-07 5:24 PM in reply to: #2448291 |
Extreme Veteran 930 Fort Worth, TX | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD d2lock - 2009-10-07 3:52 PM I'm not an attorney, but it seems to me you have two options: 1. Keep the tools until he completes the job contracted for (you do have a written contract don't you?) and you have paid for. If you sell the tools, he will probably be able to sue you for replacement tools which will probably be more than you received; or 2. Hire another contractor to complete the work and then take the original tile layer to small claims court for the cost of the second contractor completing the job. In the event he is not bonded and you don't have a written contract, you are probably SOL. I don't think he ever received full payment. They can still apply the remaining half to the new contractor that finishes the work. |
| 2009-10-07 6:23 PM in reply to: #2447934 |
Extreme Veteran 3177 | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD My F-I-L is a licensed electrician who owns his own business. He is always there unless he is in the hospital, and sometimes even then. He also does a few general jobs as well but mostly electrical. Not quite the same I know but...there you go. As for your case I would say get his signiture on a letter, return letter, fed ex etc that shows he has recieved a letter which indicates when he needs to get the tools by and how to pick them up. Give him a reasonable amount of time (1-2 weeks) and if they are not taken I would donate them to a goodwill or such. It sounds like you paid him for half and he did about that much. Honestly if you did the rest of the tile in the house you could probably grout it yourself pretty easily as the hard part of entryway/stairs is generally getting the tiles cut and laid properly. In reality there is probably not much you can do other than what has previously been mentioned by other posters. |
| 2009-10-08 1:15 AM in reply to: #2448546 |
Regular 102 Auckland, New Zealand | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD You're all too politically correct. There were no tools. Nup, you didnt see any tools, right? |
| 2009-10-08 6:32 AM in reply to: #2447934 |
Master 2006 Portland, ME | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD The abandon property law in my state is after you notify the contractor, he has 14 days to claim his stuff. If the value of the property is under $500 you can toss it. If it is more than you must store it. On the contractor, I deal with them for a living and it is very important to check references. Also, on residential property, you must have a written contract if it is over a certain amount. Always being behind in the payment like you did is a good thing. However 50% down is a huge red flag for such a small project. It means that he has zero credit at the store and zero cash flow. I would never hire a contractor under that condition unless I had a leash around his neck and I put a performance clause in the contract. |
| 2009-10-08 8:24 AM in reply to: #2447934 |
| Expert 763 Behind you | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD He'll need that grinder sooner or later, so when he comes back, buts his as$ with it! Lazy as$ rednecks! |
| 2009-10-08 11:42 AM in reply to: #2448226 |
Master 1641 Seattle, California | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD eberulf - 2009-10-07 1:25 PM My brother is a contractor and I resent the implication that all contractors are irresponsible and untrustworthy. When my brother says he will be somewhere, he will be there within an hour or so of when he said. Most of the time. If there it was league night the night before, then probably a little longer. I am kidding, partially. My brother really is a contractor and he is not particularly punctional. I have worked with him a few times, and compared to most of his peers, he is a stinking swiss watch. That whole industry is full of guys who would be fired, or have been fired, in corporate America. I agree. I worked for a larger general contractor and the work we did was always top notch. As well we would always come back and address any issues within a week and fix any problems valid or not until the client was happy. There are contractors out there but it's not all bad like you see on TV. There are a lot of honest people who do very good work. |
| 2009-10-08 12:07 PM in reply to: #2447934 |
Extreme Veteran 474 W. Michigan | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD We were spoiled by the other contractors that we've worked with and didn't perform the due diligence that we should have on this guy. Well, the mystery's solved. He left me a VM over lunch. He's mad at me now since after his performance last week that I didn't assume something was wrong and that he wasn't blowing me off. Turns out he was in jail.....Awesome..... More to follow... |
| 2009-10-08 12:17 PM in reply to: #2449758 |
Alpharetta, Georgia Bronze member | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD madcap95 - 2009-10-08 12:07 PM We were spoiled by the other contractors that we've worked with and didn't perform the due diligence that we should have on this guy. Well, the mystery's solved. He left me a VM over lunch. He's mad at me now since after his performance last week that I didn't assume something was wrong and that he wasn't blowing me off. Turns out he was in jail.....Awesome..... More to follow... Why on earth would he be mad at YOU? Cause you're not a mind reader and didn't check the jail registrar? But this story is getting better and better! To read... not necessarily for you  |
| 2009-10-08 12:37 PM in reply to: #2447934 |
Elite 2552 Evans, GA | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD Ask him if there is a work release program  ba-dump-bump! |
| 2009-10-08 12:38 PM in reply to: #2447934 |
Champion 6786 Two seat rocket plane | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD Back in the day when I was a carpenter (yes, really) we had a standing joke about "waiting for the tile guy" We'd bet on the day he would show up, not the week or the month, but the day. Tuesday was the money.
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| 2009-10-08 12:52 PM in reply to: #2449758 |
Extreme Veteran 3177 | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD madcap95 - 2009-10-08 10:07 AM We were spoiled by the other contractors that we've worked with and didn't perform the due diligence that we should have on this guy. Well, the mystery's solved. He left me a VM over lunch. He's mad at me now since after his performance last week that I didn't assume something was wrong and that he wasn't blowing me off. Turns out he was in jail.....Awesome..... More to follow... Oh thats rich. Not your fault he got arrested. He did something to land himself there I would guess so it is his fault if he lost your business and the other half of the money for not finishing the job. |
| 2009-10-08 1:49 PM in reply to: #2447934 |
Extreme Veteran 474 W. Michigan | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD I wish there was a way to upload the VM message here, it's classic. To recap: 1) Car broke down 2) broke his phone 3) got sick 4) got sent to jail 5) got fired If a dog dies somewhere, I think we have a country song on our hands here.... |
| 2009-10-08 2:08 PM in reply to: #2447934 |
Elite 3091 Spokane, WA | Subject: RE: Contractor Question - WWCOJD Wow, what a great story. I'm going to assume he won't be giving your name as a reference. |
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