What is the name of your state? CT
I had a new home built in 2002 that had custom cabinets installed. I had a written contract with a local cabinetmaker to do the cabinets and bathroom countertops. I wanted a custom hood over the stove which he listed on the contract as "wood hood". I later provided him with a photo of how I wanted the hood to look and a short writeup along with it. I have a copy of the photo & writeup.
The hood was made, but is a very half-ass version of the one in the photo. Its obvious he took the easy way out. The hood was to have an arched bottom with corresponding arched raised panels, a "keystone" piece in the center of the arch, and the sides were to have fluted accents. These were visible in the photo and I specified those in my writeup. He installed a box with 2 rectangle cabinet doors attached to the front. No arched panels, no keystone, no fluted side panels. When confronted about it he said "Shut up, it's close enough". I wrote my attorney a letter and explained the situation to him as a matter of record.
Moving on to the upstairs vanity - the countertop is about 2" too short on both sides leaving a large gap between the countertop and adjacent walls. He supposedly ordered some "side-splashes" to fit into the gap. After months of excuses the items never came. Also, the vanity itself is about 3" too short in width and a small filler panel had to be added in on one end. He wedged the filler panel in so tight that it pushed on the wall and messed up the operation of the bathroom pocket door. The door scrapes along something inside the wall when opened & closed and has gouged the door.
Lastly, there are several areas of shoddy worksmanship. The face of the cabinet under the sink has come loose, and there are areas where the wood was never sanded and the finish applied over.
I'm in the process of getting estimates on having these things repaired and the hood built like it's supposed to be.
My question is - how well do you think I will do in Small Claims? What else, if anything should I get or bring with me. My wife will be a plaintiff as well as she is witness to everything.
Thanks in advance for any info or guidance you can provide.
- Dan
I had a new home built in 2002 that had custom cabinets installed. I had a written contract with a local cabinetmaker to do the cabinets and bathroom countertops. I wanted a custom hood over the stove which he listed on the contract as "wood hood". I later provided him with a photo of how I wanted the hood to look and a short writeup along with it. I have a copy of the photo & writeup.
The hood was made, but is a very half-ass version of the one in the photo. Its obvious he took the easy way out. The hood was to have an arched bottom with corresponding arched raised panels, a "keystone" piece in the center of the arch, and the sides were to have fluted accents. These were visible in the photo and I specified those in my writeup. He installed a box with 2 rectangle cabinet doors attached to the front. No arched panels, no keystone, no fluted side panels. When confronted about it he said "Shut up, it's close enough". I wrote my attorney a letter and explained the situation to him as a matter of record.
Moving on to the upstairs vanity - the countertop is about 2" too short on both sides leaving a large gap between the countertop and adjacent walls. He supposedly ordered some "side-splashes" to fit into the gap. After months of excuses the items never came. Also, the vanity itself is about 3" too short in width and a small filler panel had to be added in on one end. He wedged the filler panel in so tight that it pushed on the wall and messed up the operation of the bathroom pocket door. The door scrapes along something inside the wall when opened & closed and has gouged the door.
Lastly, there are several areas of shoddy worksmanship. The face of the cabinet under the sink has come loose, and there are areas where the wood was never sanded and the finish applied over.
I'm in the process of getting estimates on having these things repaired and the hood built like it's supposed to be.
My question is - how well do you think I will do in Small Claims? What else, if anything should I get or bring with me. My wife will be a plaintiff as well as she is witness to everything.
Thanks in advance for any info or guidance you can provide.
- Dan