What to do? Pavement guy took the money and split.

[john70t]

I had a driveway paved last week which really needed repaving.
There were some complex planes to deal with.

The owner and I talked, then he was gone. Clipboard contractor.
The crew was pretty lax as an understatement, despite me buying pizza and drinks, busting some concrete, and having the whole place prepared. I don't think there was much more I could have done for them. In some ways they botched some of the job, as the surface is rough in spots, or sand on the surface because one of their mixer heaters was down. Getting them to grade some areas (in front of a doorway) was like pulling teeth.
It could have gone much worse had I not been on site.

On Friday evening, the resurfacing was done.
All that needed to be done was a curb installed along an edge (as was written in the contract). The crew announced no curb was needed and took off for the weekend. There had been a little tiff between a couple of the workers and I didn't blame them after a day of hot asphalt work. I gave them another sixty bucks for the next lunch and thanked them.

On Saturday, I paid the owner in full at the house plus a couple hundred.
He was a Christian family man looking to get more business in the area.
I gave him some local demographic data that his company could use to great advantage.
He looked me in the eye, and twice swore they'd be back Monday morning to put in the curb.
They were on another job nearby and it'd be a short swing over with the equipment.
"Ten minute job".

Monday: no-show. I gave him a call and he said he'd forgotten. "Tomorrow morning".

Today: no-show. This time he didn't answer his phone.

The curb is in the contract but the guy has disappeared.
So is full payment a release of the contract?

[Jim Bremner]

Never pay in full.

Did you get his contractors license? did you check to see if it was legit? google grifter scams

[911_Dude]

Typical small time contractor. Ive been burned like this before as well. The lesson learned is NEVER pay all of the contract price until its done. They will beg to get all the money "to pay their guys" or what ever. Ill pay maybe 75% if its mostly done, leaving his profit margin with me until its is all done. It keeps them coming back. Otherwise, they are constantly chasing the next contract.

[mreid]

How did you find out he was "a christian family man"? Sounds like he volunteered that gem. Never pay in full until the job is done. Never believe the BS. Never show weakness (don't buy lunch, but water bottles are fine). It is unfortunate, but any perceived weakness on your side will be exploited. The many scammers in the asphalt business give the few good ones a bad name.

[MBAtarga]

Wow - that stinks!

A neighbor of ours had a crew come in and demo a 150' driveway that had cracked - this driveway went up the (steep) front yard and curved to the left. The contractor leveled and filled the area which had sunk and likely caused the heaving/cracking and roughly placed the form boards to come back the next day and further prep for the pour which was scheduled for the following day. My neighbor paid the guy the full balance owed - most of which was for the concrete itself.

Guess who never showed up again nor answered his phone?

[cashflyer]

Small contractor or large, I have found the above advice to be sage.
Never pay in full until the job is done. NEVER.

Your options now are to file documents with the following:
A) Small claims court. Claim breach of contract and demand specific performance.
B) State Consumer Protection Board. Same as with the court.
C) State licensing board. Give them the guy's full contact info and file a grievance with them.


Another observation, though some of you may disagree with me. It has been my experience that EVERY contractor, salesman, etc, who comes out claiming his profoundly christian values is just covering up their slimy, cheating, swindling, non-christian ethics. Every time.

Kind of like the used car salesman that goes by the name Honest _________. You can bet he is anything BUT honest.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

This is why Retainage is typically used.

You'll never see that crew again. Live and learn. I'd recommend calling to get another contractor to finish the work.

As a point of note requiring a Performance Bond would have protected you also. Setting a requirement like that (i.e. proof of Performance Bond required prior to execution of contract) means you'll get slightly higher bid prices but it filters out most of the fly-by-night types. Since they need to put a little effort into securing the job most sleazebag outfits won't bother.

If they give you attitude ("nobody does that for residential work") you don't need 'em. You'll find someone legit who wants the job and who will play ball.

[Rot 911]

Originally Posted by cashflyer

Another observation, though some of you may disagree with me. It has been my experience that EVERY contractor, salesman, etc, who comes out claiming his profoundly christian values is just covering up their slimy, cheating, swindling, non-christian ethics. Every time.

Same in the legal field. Potential client tells me that they are a Christian, I can translate that to mean that they don't want to pay a retainer up front and have no intention of paying any outstanding bill. They tell me they are a Christian and I show them the door.

In this case, you will never see that contractor again. Consider it a lesson learned.

To everyone else, when contracting for services, have a detailed written contract as to what is to be done, a payment schedule (typically, 1/3 up front, 1/3 when 50% completed, and 1/3 when contracted is completed in full). And stick to the terms of the contract!

[cashflyer]

Some states have limits on the amount of Retainage you can demand.
http://www.keglerbrown.com/File%20Library/Unassigned/2008-asa-retainage-summary-publication.pdf

[Tobra]

Originally Posted by cashflyer

Another observation, though some of you may disagree with me. It has been my experience that EVERY contractor, salesman, etc, who comes out claiming his profoundly Christian values is just covering up their slimy, cheating, swindling, non-Christian ethics. Every time.

this, if they advertise it, it is not true

[stomachmonkey]

Have someone else call him from a different number with caller ID enabled so the name comes up.

They should ask him to come out for an estimate on a REALLY BIG job.

Be there when he shows.

[kach22i]

Originally Posted by Rot 911

They tell me they are a Christian and I show them the door.

Yep, sad to say this has been my experience as well.

Christian is code word for; undependable, and you will have to forgive me as I'm a total screw up.

Also suspect are:

He comes from a "good family"

And: I'm at a good point in my life now, having gone though some bad stuff (divorce).

Lots of broken people out there, you cannot fix them all.

[LakeCleElum]

Christians are over-rated.

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by Porsche-O-Phile

This is why Retainage is typically used.

You'll never see that crew again. Live and learn. I'd recommend calling to get another contractor to finish the work.

As a point of note requiring a Performance Bond would have protected you also. Setting a requirement like that (i.e. proof of Performance Bond required prior to execution of contract) means you'll get slightly higher bid prices but it filters out most of the fly-by-night types. Since they need to put a little effort into securing the job most sleazebag outfits won't bother.

If they give you attitude ("nobody does that for residential work") you don't need 'em. You'll find someone legit who wants the job and who will play ball.

All true, but as a conscientious and honest contractor I've walked away from owners who demand a bunch of paperwork and procedure. It just signals trouble down the drive. It's a 2-way street...er, driveway.

The best way to find a contractor is by referral. Start with friends and neighbors. Ask at the material supply for names and check the BBB. Now the BBB is in itself useless, but at least they have listings of established businesses in most cases. I don't like Angie's List, but it's reinforcement. I just wouldn't pay for that information.

And, if someone professes religion, call the church. I've never done that, but why not?

Here's the kicker: since I put a license in my wallet in 1981, I have never been asked to show it or my ID. You do need to see these things and then check them for validity.

I live in a city of 500K and there's no shortage of new victims should I be a cad. Doing some due diligence will sort cads out quickly. They will move on way before you need to establish things like performance bonds.

We just had 2 contractors go bust, one building a police station and the other building a fire station, The bonding company saw that the jobs were resumed by other contractors using the money yet due from the city. All is moving forward well.

On another front, I know of a contractor that just went bust with a fresh $100,000 deposit from a homeowner. The bonding company is on the hook for just $12,500 which is the minimum for a CA contractor. Yes, a performance bond for the whole 275K contract may have been in order there. And the deposit was excessive. Normally in CA a deposit is limited to 10% or 1000 dollars, which ever is LESS. In this case, products to be manufactured off site (doors and windows) warranted a bigger deposit which is legal to some extent. But I wouldn't have gone more than the 10% initially and probably placed the balance in fund control.

[Groesbeck Hurricane]

Originally Posted by LakeCleElum

Christians who wear their religion on their shirt and people who loudly profess their Christianity are over-rated.

Sorry, had to fix it for ya!!!

Please do not be upset, it was my Christain Duty!!!!!




Sorry, but the money was spent on a lesson we have all had to pay for at one point in time or another. Trust but verify, hold retainers, do not pay until work completed, do not trust the person who continually claims to be a good Christian.

[look 171]

Originally Posted by Porsche-O-Phile

This is why Retainage is typically used.

You'll never see that crew again. Live and learn. I'd recommend calling to get another contractor to finish the work.

As a point of note requiring a Performance Bond would have protected you also. Setting a requirement like that (i.e. proof of Performance Bond required prior to execution of contract) means you'll get slightly higher bid prices but it filters out most of the fly-by-night types. Since they need to put a little effort into securing the job most sleazebag outfits won't bother.

If they give you attitude ("nobody does that for residential work") you don't need 'em. You'll find someone legit who wants the job and who will play ball.

Not too many people want to pay those pricing because the fly by night guys have busted up the market charging little with poor performance often not finishing with the smaller details. Many people (around here) aren't willing to pay for good work or don't even know what good work is if it hit them in the face.

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by look 171

Not too many people want to pay those pricing because the fly by night guys have busted up the market charging little with poor performance often not finishing with the smaller details. Many people (around here) aren't willing to pay for good work or don't even know what good work is if it hit them in the face.

Gospel truth. It's why I don't even try anymore. I just do sh!it handyman jobs but I do them well. Keeps me going.

[ben parrish]

roofers and pavers are the worst for being untrustworthy. Don't even get me started on the "sealcoat" guys for asphalt.

[Drdogface]

Originally Posted by ben parrish

roofers and pavers are the worst for being untrustworthy. Don't even get me started on the "sealcoat" guys for asphalt.

Amen to that. Roofers in SF were all Korean..they'd work under one name for a while then go BK and open under another name...same crew all the time but BK saved them from law suits... All total slime Call me racist if you want but if it's true it's not racist...and this is true

[look 171]

Originally Posted by Zeke

Gospel truth. It's why I don't even try anymore. I just do sh!it handyman jobs but I do them well. Keeps me going.

sometimes handyman jobs are easy money. I met a guy on a that started out doing the min. on those HUD homes. Now, his 15 man crew are going like crazy. A little paint, a little carpet and a little patch, done. I sometimes wonder if all this custom work is worth my sanity.

There are good people in this, they want quality work and aren't afraid to pay for it. They're are out there. I don't advertise, hell I am not even on the net anywhere if someone goggle it. I only work referral jobs, 95% of the time. I hate to say this, people need to get screwed first then they realize they need to pay competitive, regular workmen's wage. Just look at Biosufer's tile thread. How can those guys do it for that little?