How should I handle a Contractor Dispute?

Question

I have been through the worst experience with this drywaller.

• I am not using a general contractor, I have been organizing the labor myself. I am doing this completely remotely, which has been a massive pain/lesson learned (topic for another day).
• I signed a very high-level agreement (i.e. expectations simply say "drywall and paint") with him for drywall and paint work at my home for a total of $10K
• I have paid $5K as a down payment as well as ~$2K in materials over time, as needed
• There have been multiple break-in's in the home, and he has done me favors of working with the police, and boarding things up. He has had ~$1K worth of tools and material stolen, even after I warned him not to leave things there.
• The timeline has shifted over and over again. It was supposed to be done in mid-July and he keeps pushing it back week by week. He has quoted the break-in's as to why the timelines keep shifting.
• I have requested pictures over and over again (again, completely remote), and I have only received a handful the entire time. From what I've seen through pictures, the quality is sub-par (e.g. bad patching, no primer used, no corner bead used, etc.).
• I have recently started to get more strict on timelines (this is now 2mo delayed), and now he is halting the work. He just said "now I don't feel appreciated, let's settle those favors I did you before we proceed any further" and sent me an invoice for $2K for the lost materials + time with the break-ins.

Overall, the job seems to be ~80% complete but with poor quality, and I will absolutely need to hire someone else to fix his mistakes. I thought I was being flexible with the timelines because he had helped with the favors, but it's gotten out of hand at this point.

• What am I truly liable for? I'd assume the 'favors' don't constitute payment.
• What is the best way to cut ties with him? (I don't want him to put a lien on the home or break-in himself and mess things up)
• Any other recommendations you may have.

Rob Carmody · Answer

Thanks for the reply, the undue enrichment piece is an interesting one. I am hoping to negotiate a settlement here, but am planning for the worst.

Two follow-up questions:

1. I asked him to board things up and talk to the police, which was mutually beneficial to us (he also filed a separate police report), and I paid for the materials for the boarding. This was over a month ago at this point, and no discussion around payment was made. Understanding that you're saying this could constitute payment, how would that final number be decided? 2. You mentioned that I will potentially owe 'less than 80%' based on the work being subpar - Legally, how would this number be decided? I can foresee him arguing it's '99% done' or 'no you don't need to update this or that'

Moving forward, I am doing the following immediate actions:

1. Contacting other drywallers in the area to provide estimates to complete and remediate the existing job. These estimates should provide evidence for when we negotiate a settlement. The contractors will take photo evidence of what issues exist and where they need to update/complete.

2. Changing the locks and adding security to the home, to ensure he does not vandalize or damage the property.

Kevin Sobilo · Answer

@Rob Carmody, if they did work for you even if if there was no specific agreement about the cost you probably owe them money for that. There is a concept in the law I believe called "undue enrichment" meaning that you benefited by something they did.

A friend of mine had a landscaper randomly do work on their property while they were out of town without being hired. They got sued when they refused the pay and the magistrate told them they should settle and pay because he would rule in the landscaper's favor based on that concept.

So, here are my thoughts based on that.

1. You don't owe them for any of the contractor's tools that were stolen.

2. You do owe them for any work they did to repair the property, board it up, meeting the police on your behalf, etc as a result of the break-ins.

3. You do owe them for the work they did to this point.

4. If the work is 80% complete but subpar and in need of correction you need to probably owe less than 80% total.

5. Its difficult for you to access the quality of work in the pictures. So, you should go on site to evaluate and I would negotiate in person and try to settle everything. I would have them sign off on the contract being terminated and them being paid in full for what is owed.