Contractor Not Doing The Job Asked

[cassa333]

I have a property that I Rent out that needed some work doing to it. I don't live close enough to be present when they visit to quote or when they do the work.

I was in contact with a contractor to do some work and gave him a comprehensive list of what I wanted doing, he went round and priced up and gave me a quote which I accepted.

When he had finished he emailed some pictures and from the pictures it is clear that he has done more than was asked on one job by putting an extra floor cupboard in the kitchen and in the bathroom he was supposed to tile part of the bath walls. He has not fully done the areas I wanted but has done an area not on the list.

When I queried it he got a bit shirty and said he would have to charge me extra to finish the area I had asked for.

Can he do that?

[Buenchico]

A practical consideration might need to take precedence over a purely legal one here. The obvious answer to your question ("Can he do that") is clearly "No".

Your contract with him was for him to do 'x' amount of work, in return for 'y' amount of money. At the moment he's not completed 'x', so you don't yet owe him 'y', and you won't until he's finished the whole job with no additional charge. (The fact that he's erroneously done unwanted work elsewhere is irrelevant).

However if you simply say "I'm not paying any extra for you to finish the work" he's obviously going to say "Tough, I'm not going to do it". So you'd then have to pay someone else to finish it, meaning that you'd be out of pocket either way.

You could then take him to court, through the small claims procedure, to try to get back the excess money you'd had to fork out but that's doing it the hard way. It would be far simpler to let him finish the work (believing that he's going to get paid extra for it) and then to only pay him the amount which you'd originally agreed.

That would leave him needing to sue you, which he'd not be able to do successfully as you'd be able to rely upon your original contract for your defence of any such action.

[woofgang]

Have you got a record of what you asked him to do and what he quoted you for? because no he can’t do that. You say what you want done and he gives you a price for that. If you went into marks and put stuff in your basket and at the till they took some stuff out, out different stuff in and told you thats what you had to buy you wouldn’t put up with it....its the same.

[cassa333]

Everything was done on email and although I suppose everything is open to being misunderstood I did make it very clear where I wanted the tiles.

He is now saying if I don't pay the invoice he will finish where I wanted the tiling finished to but will send another invoice with the added cost of the extra cabinet he put in, extra tiles and cleaning a door lock (that I only asked him to look at to see if it needed replacing).

I am just a tad annoyed because if the kitchen needed another cabinet then he should have consulted me first and as for the tiling well he just didn't listen to the brief and decided that what he did was better than what I wanted. I'm not convinced I agree with his explanation on the tiling though.

I think I will just have to pay it and be done with him. Although when I pay it can I make it clear that if there is a problem with water damage to the area he hasn't tiled that he would have to remedy it?

This is only one reason I don't like the rental property being so far away from me :( if it were round the corner or something I could easily meet the contractors and keep on top of the tenants. But hay-Ho it is were it is and we moved further away so not a lot can be done.

Thank you for your help.

[Old_Geezer]

Unwise to tell someone to get stuffed when you still want them to do things.
In your shoes I'd opt to pay one of the two options, and ensure I don't use them again. And tell anyone who asks for a recommendation that they might want to avoid them.

[The Builder]

This dimwit could surely have rung you about anything he was unsure of, or if something unexpected cropped up. I can only agree with what the others have said.

Quite honestly, I would deduct whatever you think is justified from his invoice. Try an offer. When he starts off about court etc... let him. The arbitrator in the Small Claims Court would finally arrive at a compromise settlement anyway, when he knows the facts.