Denver Decorative Concrete & Custom MasonryConcrete Contractor installed 11' wide driveway rather than 12' per contract?
I paid $6,000 for 2,184 sf concrete driveway. I have a signed proposal stating same from contractor. After I paid, I noticed 110 sf were missing. Contractor admitted error and offered $2.75 (6000/2184) for each missing foot which is $302.50. The extra foot I’m missing off the width of my driveway is worth a lot more to me than that. He obviously can’t just come back and tack on another foot though. What is the remedy in this type of situation?
Court. The contractor didn’t uphold the contract……..that signed proposal. You owe him no money until the job is done correctly. I know I wouldn’t want that extra foot tacked on and hopefully the court will agree with you. Even if the contractor refunds the money, you’ll still have the expense of tearing out the old and replacing it, Unacceptable.
Well you already paid so it will be difficult.
Tell him you want the driveway that you paid for. Tell him he needs to tear it out and start over.
If you live in a state that licenses construction trades you will have some leverage there. In your search line type your state abbreviation and State Contractors Board to see. The other option would be to have him run a line of brick pavers down each side – that would make a nice finish line but will cost him more than $302.50. – but so would adding that 1 foot section in concrete. But this isn’t about his comfort – you wanted a certain area covered and he contracted to do it. You can also call a law office and get some free advice from the assistant who answers the phones (unless that is just a receptionist who has never typed any legal docs.) or from an attorney as a good will gesture. You can also take these types of issues to your Small Claims Court. You will need an estimate on getting the 1 foot section paved – then make the demand for that amount to be refunded or the concrete installed by the original contractor.
As you say, he can’t just tack on another foot. So your options are to either negotiate a rebate or try to get him to re-do the entire driveway. He is not likely to go for the latter, so what about the former? You say the extra foot is worth a lot more to you than $302.50–well, how much more? Make a counteroffer. Unfortunately, he already has been paid so that takes away some of your leverage.
I think this was an honest mistake on his part (if he were going to short you on concrete, he’d have done it on depth where it would have been much harder for you to spot).
If you can’t come to an agreement, then your recourse is to take him to court. I’d try to work something out before that, if possible.
concern with experts AB General Contractors New York provides numerous construction services to make it a one-stop shop for all your construction needs. Some of the construction services we provide include AB General Contractors NY, Restoration Contractors NY, Renovation New York and Concrete Contractors New York
AB General Contractors, NYC
Tel:718)-288-2248, (212)-380-1311
[email protected]
http://www.abcontractorsny.com/