Contractor problems

6/19/2012 at 11:14:01 AM

Stacey:

The most postitive way to let a Contractor know you are discontented with the both the workmanship and the length of time it is taking is to be upfront and tell him. Take the time to make notes of arrivals and departures of his staff including dates and what was accomplished on those dates and then take it further and if time has been a problem be upfront with the Contractor and ask him why it is taking so long.

I've been in the residentail business for over 30 years. Specifications for a customers requirements are really very important as you move through a project. If these issues are not conveyed to the Contractor in very positive and understanding ways it can be a direct result of the end product.

E-mails or hand written notes are the most effective and keeping a job log for yourself as to whats been done are most important.

Good Luck

John Holgate

General Manager

Aline General Contractors Ltd.

Barrie, Ontario

6/19/2012 at 11:19:58 AM

Give him 7 days in wrighting to straighten out, in he doesn't then hire someone else and back charge him.

6/19/2012 at 11:27:00 AM

How long is long? Is the work good?

Often just a little patience and good communication will get a job back in focus and completed.

6/19/2012 at 1:07:35 PM

Hi Stacey;

Your complaint is probably the most common concern I hear about from our clients regarding the contractors they have or are using. Unfortunately sometimes it starts with the contract or lack of a contract between the client and the contractor. The contract should contain fairly detailed description of the work being done along with agreed upon time frames for the various parts of the renovation. This ideally also includes a schedule of progress payments tied into stages of the project.

However onsite problems causing delays can occur on any project. But a good contractor should communicate these issues to the client asap and discuss how to overcome them and their effect on the project.

In your present situation I would recommend writing down all your concerns in an item by item fashion with a copy for the contractor. Then set up a meeting to go over all your items 1 by 1 and write down what actions will be taken on each and when. If problems continue to occur you will have to stop making any payments, report the problems in writing to the local BBB and commence with a small claims action.

Hopefully open communications and written agreed upon actions will get your project back on track.

Bon Chance

John

6/19/2012 at 1:28:09 PM

Stacey,

Most contractors strive to complete a task in a timely manor especially since time is money. If they are taking an extremely long time then perhaps there is a legitimate reason, perhaps they ran into some unexpected snags in the scope of work. However, this is not always the case and there are those problem contractors out there as well.

If I were you I would try to make a note of the hours that are being put in each day and the amount of work that is being completed in those hours as well as how many workers are there doing the work. Then talk to the contractor face to face. Be forward and inquisitive, simply ask if there have been any setbacks and what they were to make the job take so much longer that expected. If you feel that he/she has no real proper explanation then you may have to make other choices. If however, there was a reasonable explanation then be sure to let him/her know that you would appreciate being informed when there is something unexpected just so that you are not left in the dark and wondering as it is your home and if there is problems then you should know about them and what has been done to take care of the problem. Also, be sure to mention your concerns to the quality that is being provided. Sometimes it is hard to see the quality while the work is in progress but if the work is very sloppy and it is blatant to see, chances are it is not going to look good when they are done. If it's lack of filling/sanding or such things this is usually done last before painting so if it is these types of things you are seeing then chances are you will not see them when the work is done.

If you find that there was no real reason and the work is very sloppy so you are still uncomfortable with them continuing the work, you may have to let them go and take legal action to get your money back and hire a new contractor. Maybe bring in another contractor when they are not working and have them look at it. They would be able to tell you if your concerns to the work and time are necessary or not.

Good Luck with your renovation.

Thank you,

Sherri & Dustin Depatie

Seamless Finishing Inc.

Office : 780-760-3852

Sherri : 780-297-0986

Dustin : 780-885-2231

6/19/2012 at 7:22:26 PM

I would agree with all the comments stated previously. That is why it is worth checking references and having an open dialogue before starting work. There is nothing wrong with asking questions and if you're not satisfied with the answers, suggest you will get a second opinion. It is your place and you should expect a reasonable degree of workmanship.

6/20/2012 at 2:15:45 AM

I wood kick him out but tell him u dont like the workmen ship or u whant something els then what he gona install try talking to him dont give him anymore mony and the last take him to small clams court.

7/5/2012 at 1:22:13 AM

It takes two to tango... Home owner has to be fully prepared for the renovation project.

Sometimes the timing does not depend on the contractor -for example if the customer did not provide on time all materials or the project did not have access all the time for the contractor, or the drywall mud did not dry quick, ect. a lot of reasons... Once contractor is out of schedule, he is out of schedule... sometimes he has to manage several jobs just because one customer was not ready... Very difficult to judge when you have one side of the story... It takes two to tango...

"People forget how fast you did a job-but they will remember how well you did it"...

Howard Newton