Do I have a case? See More Information

[rsgmon]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California

I hired a contractor to clean a house. I labeled an item not to be dumped but one of the contractor’s employees took it. The contractor admitted via text he had the item and it was his fault. We made no agreement on how he was to return the item. Three weeks later the contractor left the item in the house's garage while no one was home. He had his family with him when he dropped off the item.

Three days later I returned to the house and the item was missing. I filed a burglary police report.

The contractor refuses to pay for the item.

Do I have a winnable case here?

 

[quincy]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California

I hired a contractor to clean a house. I labeled an item not to be dumped but one of the contractor’s employees took it. The contractor admitted via text he had the item and it was his fault. We made no agreement on how he was to return the item. Three weeks later the contractor left the item in the house's garage while no one was home. He had his family with him when he dropped off the item.

Three days later I returned to the house and the item was missing. I filed a burglary police report.

The contractor refuses to pay for the item.

Do I have a winnable case here?

If you clearly labeled the item originally and communicated to the contractor that not all items in the house were to be cleared out, you could have a case. If you can prove the contractor or one of his employees still have the item and never left the item in the house's garage, you could have a case. If you or the police can find the thief who stole the item from the garage, you could have a case.

There is no way to predict whether you will win any case, though, even if you have one available to pursue.