Hi all,

Hoping to get some guidance on dealing with a contractor that completely a kitchen remodel for me last year. I found this contractor online, and we agreed upon a full remodel price via email – we never signed any contract – the work was completed, but he came back almost two months after the work was done with a new invoice showing a 30% increase in cost. I’ve been emailing him back and forth since August (he’s slow to respond) and isn’t budging on any of the items. He’s demanding I pay and now threatening legal action.

I am hoping that because a) we never had a signed agreement and b) he never discussed these ‘new charges’ with me in person until after the work was done, and its now a c) he said-she said type situation, if this went to court they would rule in my favor.

For those of you that want the full story, here it is:

In January of 2019, I received my initial estimate from this contractor. After discussing some items via email, we agreed upon a price in March, and the work began in April. As part of this kitchen remodel, there are three items that an issue:

1. An electrical outlet that was behind the sink in a raised box was supposed to be split into two outlets, one on each side of the sink, recessed behind the backsplash.
2. A window that had a large sill was to be trimmed out (to match another window).
3. Toe-kicks would be installed on all cabinets (more on this later).

While the work was being done, I would regularly inspect the work at the end of the day. I found two items that needed to be fixed:

1. The electrical outlet that was moved to the left of the sink was installed horizontally, where as the other outlet to the right was vertical, as was another outlet they moved farther along the countertops. Wanting everything to be uniform, I requested that the outlet be aligned with the others so it was vertical as well.
2. The newly installed window trim did not line up with the newly installed jamb on the bottom of the window. I requested that they fix it so that the jamb, window trim, and countertops were all even with each other (perfectly horizontal).

Both items I brought to the attention of the worker completing the work, as he was there every day, whereas the contractor himself came infrequently. I was told that both wouldn’t be a problem, and both items were fixed the following days.

During the course of the work, I had additional potential work I had this contractor scope out, for which he sent me a separate email with those estimates and I ultimately decided not to proceed with that work.

I paid my contractor throughout the period the work was completed (always within a day of him requesting payment), and the work finally was completed in May. I figured everything was good to go, until 2 months later I get a new invoice from him that is 30% higher than the original invoice. It includes three new items:

• An electrical charge that includes ‘rotating outlet to match additional outlets’ as well as other items.
• A windows charge for installing casing around the windows, and framing the inside of the window. Part of this cost is because they had to ‘level out the jamb’
• A charge to install a ‘custom toe kick’ along with painting it – basically my floors are crooked and there was a larger gap in one area that needed a larger toe kick.

I responded back, and he takes a while to respond – on average its 3-4 weeks before I get a response from him. He refuses to budge on any of the items, and instead of responding to most of my concerns just reiterates the same points. In my most recent email, I provided him a photo showing that the a window sill was present prior to their work – proof that the jamb was their installation – and therefore I don’t see why I should have to pay for that work. I also showed him photos of the toe kick area where he supposedly went out and got new materials but the ‘custom’ toe kick is only in one area – this is because they used materials I provided (we had a damaged cabinet) where they just cut it to size and put in place. After he saw this photo, he’s suddenly changed his tune to ‘oh well we started with our materials and then you had us replace it’ which is wrong.

Despite our back and forth, everything has been civil until his most recent email, where he’s stated that his worker who did the work will testify that they used their own materials on the toe kick (a lie), that he is tracking time it takes him to respond to these emails and will charge me for said time. He ended with that he will not respond to any points further and that he will take me to court, and then try to charge me for his time and his administrative person’s time (who I know does not exist, given it takes him 3+ weeks to respond to emails and there has never been anyone but him).

TL;DR: I had an agree up price to remodel my kitchen with a contractor but never signed any contract, during the work I noticed a few items that did not meet standards that I requested they fix, and then nearly a month after the work was completed, I received a new estimate with a 30% increase in cost. I’ve been emailing back and forth with said contractor since August (he’s very slow to respond), and most recently threatened legal action if I did not pay.

As previously stated, I am hoping that because a) we never had a signed agreement and b) he never discussed these ‘new charges’ with me in person until long after the work was done, and its now a c) he said-she said type situation, if this went to court they would rule in my favor. What is the general consensus of the experts here – I’m sure many of you have dealt with shady contractors like this.