Lousy contractors

[buster]

Be aware, they are out there. i hired a contractor to lay tile in my upstairs bathroom. Big mistake. I have done much better at tiling myself. I wanted to get some things finished faster so I hired them done. It is the worst carpentry and tiling work I've ever seen. The grout lines are crooked as well as the tile and they are not level. The trim he put up is 1x4's that he ripped. The trim around my closet is only about one and a half inches wide. Looks like s***. He's a local and says he even builds houses. I pity anyone he's ever built a house for. He cuts so many corners, it's unreal. I'm so p*****of, I could scream. Connie

[DigginIt]

Be aware, they are out there. i hired a contractor to lay tile in my upstairs bathroom. Big mistake. I have done much better at tiling myself. I wanted to get some things finished faster so I hired them done. It is the worst carpentry and tiling work I've ever seen. The grout lines are crooked as well as the tile and they are not level. The trim he put up is 1x4's that he ripped. The trim around my closet is only about one and a half inches wide. Looks like s***. He's a local and says he even builds houses. I pity anyone he's ever built a house for. He cuts so many corners, it's unreal. I'm so p*****of, I could scream. Connie


I feel sorry for you. I've had tangles with contractors myself. I'd withhold payment until he fixes it. Go to the better business bureau/attorney general's office and have them arbitate a partial payment settlement if he won't fix it (It doesn't cost you anything to do that). File a civil judgement if you have to (hopefully he owns something you can take). You probably won't be made completely whole, but at least he will have to take time off from work and will get less that he is demanding from you.

digginit

[Audwoman]

Yes if you own a house most people have had their run in with contractors.

To get my driveway completed I had to threaten legal action and a drop dead date of completion. He was outside one night using his headlights from his truck at 10 o'clock to finish the job on time. I really think they are sure women can be taken. Because we will complain and not take action. I told him I would hurt me to get him if he thought this was a gaime I was going to play.

[buster]

After 2 unreturned phone calls, I reported him to the better business bureau. I don't mess around. Connie

[donybee]

Unfortunately there are alot of fly by night contractors out there. I am fortunate enough to know enough to do my own work, but have hired people to help as you did Connie. I checked other work that they had completed and in one case went by the manes reputation as a Carpenter in the neighborhood. I have been well satisfied over the years. I hope you get the situation squared away. One way I guess is to use companies like Lowe's or Home Depot or go to your local Building supply for recommendations.

[Gregory]

A good rule for hiring a contractor, is the biggier and more flashy their work truck is, the more your going to pay and less your going to like the end results. My general contractor drove a little Chevy S-10 2wd and he was our hero by the end of the project and always went the extra little bit for us. Am I wrong;).

Gregory

[Sneezie]

Good for you Connie. I was gonna suggest that you do, then I read all the replies.

[MrSeedy]

I must say nearly all the contractors , who've worked on various repairs etc. around my house over the years have left much to be desired. but most , since I wasn't doing the hiring nor paying the bills were picked for the cheapest price, that could be found generally speaking. The one guy , who seemed to have the best recommendations from another professional , who happened to go to my mom's church, still did the worst job, and I later found out he'd recently been released from prison, though I have no idea what he was there for! I tend to think even when checking referrences beforehand, some of the referrences may tend to be overly positive, or those folks or companies hesitant to state concerns or complaints they're aware of for some reason? I only wish sometimes I was always home when work was being done so I could keep an eye on them to spot any mistakes, though I hardly qualify as an authority on the proper ways to do all tasks.

[Wingdesigner]

My horror story was over a wind-damaged porch cover (glorified awning). It took over a week for a two-day job, and when I complained, they sent some old geezer (sorry, but just because one has wrinkles and a WWII cap doesn't mean you get my respect, especially when it's my front door we're talking about!) to pacify me and tell me I have nothing to complain about. Oh, you mean besides the missing caulking, daylight gaps and murdered baby birds, the workmen admitting they blew off a day just because it was nice, etc? :mad: I suppose because I worked in insurance claims and had to deal with construction and contractors for 25 years meant nothing?!! (no icon for steam coming out ears, but you get the idea) Lo and behold, we in the USA have something called Angie's list--sort of a complaint-only BBB for Internet users. No recourse or action, but you can easily look up to see if any posts about a business or service company, or individual contractor. Boy did they get an eyeful about mine! Moral of the story, you probably have to hire yourself as an employee of the company to get a correct job done. I need some weed-pulling therapy now.

Happy Gardening.

[buster]

I had to take him to court. I got a judgement against him, which he hasn't paid. Tomorrow, I'm going to file for judgement collection. I'm not stopping until I get my money. Connie

[gizmo]

i had a bad experience years ago. i had no luck w/the BBB(apparently there was nothing they could do for certain reasons) but the woman i talked with there told me i had a mouth so "shoot it off!" tell everyone that will listen about this contractor. it won't fix my problem but she said it'll make me feel a whole lot better and maybe save his future customers (victims) a lot of trouble.

[buster]

Everyone I've talked too has said he's a lousy business person.So, it's back to court we go. Connie

[Wingdesigner]

What a pain in the *&$@$#!! (donkey). I sigh for you, because until he gets his comeuppance, the victim has to do all the work. Patently unfair. Keep up the chin, faith, and perseverence. May you keep up your strength, too. Keep us posted--we'll throw a party when you finally succeed! :hug:

Wingdesigner