Question about contractors

Seh29491773
by Seh29491773
WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU HAVE PAID YOUR CONTRACTOR A LARGE SUM OF MONEY AND HE HAS TRASHED YOUR HOME THE WORK IS NOT FINISHED AND WRONG MATERIALS

  11 answers
  • Tinyshoes Tinyshoes on Apr 15, 2018

    May need to hire a lawyer. Guess you paid for materials upfront....many contractors require that. If you can get in touch with him.. try to talk if you haven't already...otherwise...a lawyer is your next step. I'm really sorry but that are people like that everywhere.

  • Carol Thomas Carol Thomas on Apr 15, 2018

    According to the amount of money, you may be able to file a claim against him in Small Claims Court. That would save you any lawyer fees. Good luck, that is a horrible situation!

  • Sharon Sharon on Apr 15, 2018

    File a complaint with your local State Contractor's Licensing Board... document the condition well with photos and video to show the incomplete/incorrect work. Then you can take him to small claims court too for up to $5,000 in most states. But document everything, your calls, letters, photos before going.

  • Sharon Sharon on Apr 15, 2018

    The State Contractor's Licensing Board can try and force him to complete the work, refund you etc. in order for him to retain his license. But it will remain on his record, and it will show if he corrected the work or not. When hiring anyone, check their website first to see if his license is valid, he has insurance that's valid, and if there are any outstanding or previous complaints against him. Do not contact the vendors..... if you've paid for the materials keep all receipts, if he did not pay the vendors... they could come after you for the materials cost. I would also just for good measure contact the city planning department where he should have submitted his plan and gotten a permit..... so they are aware of his bad practices.

    • See 1 previous
    • Sharon Sharon on Apr 15, 2018

      https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/cpd/file-a-consumer-complaint to file a complaint with Attorney General. Call the Sheriff and see they can go after him as a con artist or for fraud.

      Heck if he lives in the rural area you live, I would post Wanted posters everywhere...... Wanted: Unethical Contractor/company name and phone number, put one in your car windows,,,, create some buzz

      Call the local TV station ombudsman to see if he will do a feature on con men fake contractors.

      I'd make him so uncomfortable, he would be begging to give me back my money.

      File your Small Claims Court case if you don't want to hire an attorney, and be sure to file for garnishment order also, then slap a lien on his house, truck.

  • Sharon Sharon on Apr 15, 2018

    If you are a senior citizen or disabled, one trick I used for my elderly neighbors against ServePro was to get them to file a complaint with Adult Protective Services. I am currently helping another client who was taken advantage of by ServePro who never completed the work after they scammed all the insurance checks out of an elderly couple for repairs.

    I would also take advantage of any local TV omsbudman, get online and file complaints with BBB, yelp, yellow page reviews, and anyone else you can find so he doesn't get more work.

  • Janice Janice on Apr 15, 2018

    As Sharon said, contact the licensing board. They can pull his license and if he's done this to you, he may be doing the same to other's so your complaint may be added to others. Also, contact your Better Business Bureau as they may be able to advise you on further action. You can also post a review online on Yelp. Sometimes contractors/businesses will work with you and do what they should have done in the first place and then ask you to remove the bad review. So sorry this happened to you. I have a neighbor going through the same thing with a local company. Another possibility is to contact your home insurance company....they may give you some ideas if he actually caused damage to your home. Do not compromise....often they think you'll get tired and go away......DON'T!

  • Seh29491773 Seh29491773 on Apr 15, 2018

    We don’t have a license board

  • Ellis Ellis on Apr 15, 2018

    Check with your town or county or state government. Most have some sort of licensing procedure for contractors, or a consumer affairs department, where you can report him. They can take some government action against him.


    Under no circumstances should you pay this guy another dime, even if he promises to finish the job if you do.

  • Carol Thomas Carol Thomas on Apr 15, 2018

    Oh my! I'm so sorry this has happened to you. I really hopefully can be reimbursed.

  • Laura Cooper Laura Cooper on Apr 15, 2018

    Contact Mike Holmes of HGTV. He specializes in helping homeowners that find themselves in this situation.

  • Debbie Kuhar Debbie Kuhar on Apr 16, 2018

    Even Consumer Protection should be in a phone book, look online also. These are senior citizens that donate their time to help others if you feel you do not have the strength to fight. Keep it a practice, when you are having work around the house done, take a picture if you feel something is not right. This saved me a few times. And another thing I did wrong was hiring an out of county contractor. Say I live in Butler County and the contractor is from another county. I had to take him to court in my county first, which he never showed up. Which mean that I had to file a complaint in his county also, and he never showed up for that, which considered him quilty and the company had to pay the money back. Just a bit of advice