Unhappy with contractor.

[scottbell]

What is the name of your state? MA

Hi.

I hired an insulation company to blow cellulose instillation inside of the walls and attic of the 2nd and 3rd floors of my house. There was not a written contact, just an e-mailed estimate that detailed the scope of work, materials, and price ($3100). I was told the job would take 2-3 days but unfortunately there was not mention of timeline in the estimate. They did not require a deposit to start the job so I have not paid them a dime.

After the first day of work I inspected the walls (by drilling through the wall) that crew supervisor said they had insulated and found that in fact there was no insulation. I marked several areas that needed to be insulated and spent the remainder of the day observing the work they were doing. After the second day, I inspected new areas they worked on and again found no insulation as they were only blowing it in the bottom part of the wall. At this point they had barely finished 1/3 of the job and I realized that they were expecting to work with someone who didn't understand the process of insulating a house. And after talking with the business owner I have no faith that they have the ability or the desire to do the job correctly.

So, I'm thinking about firing them and doing the work myself. Here are my questions:

1. Since there was only a verbal timeline can they say I didn't give them enough time to finish the job and send me a bill for the full amount?

2. I'm thinking about offering them a portion of the money for the work that they did. (Even though I had to take 2 days off of work to supervise and direct them) Do I even need to do this?

3. What legal ramifications do I face if I just tell them to go to hell and get off my property?

Any advice will be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[BL]

Look if they're not insulating the home walls properly , they won't insulate the addicts properly either .

Don't wait for them to do an incomplete job ( to put it nicely ) , then complain when they are out of there .

Call the boss/owner who ever runs the Co. and politely tell him that on a few occasions you have personally checked the work , and the job is not being done properly .

Tell him to stop work at once , and see if you can work out payment for the work that was preformed . If so , get it in writing .

If not , tell the owner you will follow up with a certified letter RRR , and you will consult legal Council .

The workers are incompetent .

 

[scottbell]

Thank you for the response.

I guess I wasn't clear that I did talk with the business owner and brought up these issues. At that time did I tell him to stop work until he could come up with a concrete plan to resolve these issues.

Well, for the first time in a week, he calls me back....but all he had was more excuses. (I was demanding too much from his workers...blah, blah, blah.) Then he says he doesn't think his company would be able to perform to my standards and asks for a 3rd of the money. ($1000) I told him I would give him two options:

1. Accept a payment of $600 for the work performed and a complaint against your company with the Better Business Bureau.

2. Accept a payment of $0 for the work performed and your company's incompetence can stay between you and me.

He chose #2.