Client refuses to pay

[BKeller]

What is the name of your state? Washington State
My husband and I have a small constuction company and have a client who is now refusing to pay the last invoice that we gave him yesterday. He says, "that we are screwing him like the last guy did" and he isn't going to pay us anymore. He has always paid us before this. This invoice is for $5,500.00. My husband was hired by this client to repair the remodel that another contractor mess up. This included drywall, window replacement, and kitchen cabinet installation. It was really bad. Anyway, it has taken a long time to fix this man's home and we realize that he has been through alot having his home in array for so long. My husband even gave him a discount in our labor prices to give him some relief because he prides himself in doing it right, not nasty like the last guy. We have signed contract and invoices that prove that we are charging him correctly and not "screwing" him. In tomorrow he will be in breach of contract and we will not wait and go ahead and file a lien against his property. My question is this...is there any other recourse we can do to make sure we receive payment from this customer? Also is there somewhere I can go to learn more about this kind of thing? We have only been in this business for 7 months now.
Thank you in advance!
B

 

[BKeller]

Update

My husband went over to the customer's home today to find out the reason for his refusal and he told him that is because he believes we "double billed him". We gave him copies of all the receipts and my husband offered to take a look at what he thought we billed him twice for and he just told him that "we will find out" and closed the door in his face. We have gone over all invoices and receipts and labor charges and we have not double billed him for anything. I believe that he is doing this because he has run out of money and instead of telling us to stop work, he has come up with this way. I called a lawyer today and found out that is is too late to attach a lien to his property. That is something that we should have done before we started the work. I guess Labor & Industries is supposed to provide us with those forms. We never got them in our insurance package from them. So because of this we are going to sue him in small claims court to avoid the lawyer fees attached to going to district court. We have learned the hard way how to protect ourselves from these kinds of customers. I know that we will win. We haven't done anything wrong.
Wish us luck!
B

 

[lwpat]

this because he has run out of money and instead of telling us to stop work, he has come up with this way. I called a lawyer today and found out that is is too late to attach a lien to his property.

You need to become familar with the laws of your particular state. It is not up to anyone to "provide you with the forms". It is your responsibility to know the law and to timely file, otherwise your rights expire.

I strongly suggest that you contact your local homebuilder's association. They are one of the best resources for new contractors. There is a lot more to being in the construction business than just getting the work done.

 

[BKeller]

Yes, we do need to learn the laws for our state. I don't need to be reminded of that.
We live is a very small community on the Long Beach Peninsula in Washington state. We don't have the luxury of a big city with alot of lawyers and associations. I have looked. I do most of my learning from reading what I can find in libraries and on the internet. We also have a internet business (not ebay!)
I know what I don't know. I was asking for help like most of the posters here. I think I will find somewhere else to get help.
This is a waste of my time.
Beverly