What would fair payment be in this situation? Can he take us to small claims court with no invoice?
6/21/2018 at 11:26:32 AM
We had a fence done by a friend of a friend. There are so many issues with the fence including: posts are smaller than what we were quoted for, cross boards are smaller than what we were quoted for, one of the sections (the one attached to the gate is over 11 feet). The post to the left of our gate is about half a foot into our walkway, he left a bunch of trees he took down on our neighbour's property, left the concrete he pulled out of the ground in our backyard etc. We want to pay him what is fair, and asked him to address our concerns. He has addressed some, but refuses to comment on the different size posts used, etc. the quote was done by text messaging as it was a friend of a friend. He has not provided us with a proper invoice with the GST# but is charging us tax. I asked him to reduce his price given all of the deficiencies and he will not. He said he expects payment in full or he will see us in Small Claims Court. So now I feel like I shouldn't pay him the other half, in case he does take us. I was planning on reducing his bill by $500 for the deficiencies and not paying the taxes unless he provides is with a proper invoice and with a GST number. Any advice. I want to be fair but will not pay full price when we didn't get what we were quoted for and a lot of mess was left behind and the larger section is wobbly.
6/21/2018 at 2:16:56 PM
Hi Linda,
Stick to your guns. As long as you have photos and text messages you have a paper trail. You have stated your concerns and he should correct them for full payment or be prepared to loose money on not fulfilling his contract and you having to spend money to fix his mistakes.
6/21/2018 at 3:23:26 PM
Hi Linda,
You're in a tricky situation for sure. If I'm understanding what you said you've paid him half? Based on what you've said, you have some serious problems with your fence and will in all likelihood need to replace some of not all of it in a few years.
Long and short of it is though, if he wants to pay the $75 filing fee with small claims and lose to you as you're clearly the wronged party here then were I you I'd tell him you're not paying him another cent and if he wishes to try small claims to go ahead. I'm actually surprised you haven't sued him to be honest. He clearly didn't know or care about what he was doing and if he quoted certain materials to be used and used another inferior one, that's fraud.
Keep your money, you'll need it to fix his mistakes and replace his shoddy workmanship. Whether you try to recoup your costs for work already done is of course up to you, but I would certainly suggest you consider it.
Out of curiosity, did he give you proof of insurance?
Totally forgot the HST part. No HST #, not HST paid.
- Tim
6/21/2018 at 3:35:01 PM
Hi Linda,
Don't pay him a dime. Let him take you to small claims court soc that it can be resolved by the courts.
Make sure you take pictures of the texts and get them on a second device to make sure you have back up's in case something happens to the the phone that the texts are on.
Take photos of the work
that was done wrong or not completed, and let him take you to court. You don't need a lawyer to go to small claims court, you can decide whether or not you want to seek their advice prior or not. If you do bring a lawyer, the guy who did the work can be held responsible to pay for the legal fees that the judge finds are fair. Most lawyers will represent you for free if they know you'll win and just collect payment from the other party.
I would personally communicate to him that he can take you to small claims as that will ensure the process is fair and isn't a big argument for you.
As for taxes, no gst/HST number on the invoice, no taxes paid.
As for what to offer to pay him, you need to consider the costs to correct the deficiencies he has left you with. Disposal of concrete, disassembly of the fence, pulling the incorrect posts, getting the correct posts, drilling the right size holes, new concrete, etc etc. Your bill to redo the fence could be just as much as the original bill because of the labour involved. Bigger posts means having to cut the fence sections shorter etc. Loads of work involved in fixing the problems you've listed.
I'd let him "take you to court" because you'll win that case if you have the texts and photos as evidence.
Feel free to call if you have questions: 705-481-1926
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