taking a conrtactor to small claims court

[carolel]

Jurisdiction

Georgia

I hired a man to do some remodeling on a small cabin. I live in another state so I could not be there to oversee each day so my mom was there for a few days. Unfortunately she fell and could not be there each day. I went to the cabin after he said he was "finished". What I found was piles of building debris, unfinished work and shoddy work that will have to be repaired or replaced. He said that in order for him to "clean up" I would have to pay for another days work and the dump fees. He was not clear in the beginning that he would not be cleaning up the job. I paid all of the invoices and do not owe him anything. And he TOLD me that he would clean the job when it was completed but then after he got payment, he never showed up to clean. So, we have had to get in there and do lots of work...question: how much can I charge him for the work that we are having to correct. My husband is a pilot and had to take vacation time off...can I charge the builder what he makes an hour OR charge him the fees we had to pay and what I would have had to pay according to what I paid his crew...

 

[mightymoose]

You can charge anything you like, but he is only legally obligated to pay what a court orders.
A court will not award what you are asking. You apparently lack a contract that clearly indicates the work to be done Aan the amount to be paid.
You are probably best off to cut your losses where they are and be done with the guy.

 

[army judge]

can I charge the builder what he makes an hour OR charge him the fees we had to pay and what I would have had to pay according to what I paid his crew...

You can do most anything.

I doubt that this scammer would do much more than giggle as he tosses your invoice in the trash.

 

[carolel]

You can do most anything.

I doubt that this scammer would do much more than giggle as he tosses your invoice in the trash.

But, he does have to answer the court right? I am just appalled at the work that was done and the work that was left to do. Unfortunately, in this town there are a lot of people like this working and my hope is that the court system will try to make these guys accountable for their workmanship...????
If I do let it go then I will post pictures on Facebook in the "town post". It is nothing malicious, just the level of work that he is doing, all TRUE!!!

 

[carolel]

You can charge anything you like, but he is only legally obligated to pay what a court orders.
A court will not award what you are asking. You apparently lack a contract that clearly indicates the work to be done and the amount to be paid.
You are probably best off to cut your losses where they are and be done with the guy.

Thanks! It only costs $106 to file and I think that I would rather spend that and take my chances and see what the court says. There are many people remodeling homes in this little town since it has become a HUGE tourist area and my hope is that the court system is trying to stop contractors from scamming homeowners.
If I do not get anywhere, I will post actual pictures of his work on the town Facebook page and that is almost better that word of mouth!

 

[army judge]

But, he does have to answer the court right? I am just appalled at the work that was done and the work that was left to do. Unfortunately, in this town there are a lot of people like this working and my hope is that the court system will try to make these guys accountable for their workmanship...????
If I do let it go then I will post pictures on Facebook in the "town post". It is nothing malicious, just the level of work that he is doing, all TRUE!!!

The small claims court gets paid, even when you don't get paid.
The deputy, marshal, or process server you hire to serve the defendant gets paid, too.

You pay $100 to file, maybe another $50 to pay the deputy who serves your defendant, and your expenses from your home state to Georgia.

You might have to make two, sometimes three trips before the judge renders a verdict.

Let's keep this simple, you shell out $150 to cover your court and server costs.

You absorb another $500 to $1,000 in travel expenses from your home state to Georgia.

Hooray, you prevail in your lawsuit and get a judgment for $XXXX.

Wait for it, this is where it goes from bad to better to worse.

You must then perfect your judgment with the clerk (you file it properly), then you try to collect from the defendant.

If your defendant owned a reputable business, the business would either pay you, or file an appeal.

Your defendant seems to be just some handyman wandering through the neighborhood picking up odd jobs here and there.

If your defendant is a down on his luck grifter, your judgment is worth then, what it is already worth today, NOTHING.

It is your call, but very few successful small claims plaintiffs collect 10% of the amount they're awarded.

Good luck.

 

[zddoodah]

how much can I charge him for the work that we are having to correct.

You can "charge" anything you like, but you're not going to recover anything for your personal time. Whether you can recover at all for this depends on the terms of your contract with the contractor, which we obviously haven't read.

How much would it cost to hire a couple guys at the local home improvement store to clean up the mess?

 

[carolel]

You can "charge" anything you like, but you're not going to recover anything for your personal time. Whether you can recover at all for this depends on the terms of your contract with the contractor, which we obviously haven't read.

How much would it cost to hire a couple guys at the local home improvement store to clean up the mess?

UGH! I am definitely rethinking this...OK, so another thing is that he ripped the carpeting our of a living /dining room that was NOT to be done now, but a possible later project and NOT what I was paying him to do. That project is NOT in my current budget so now I have an entire room with no carpet, just plywood! He also broke one of our personal ladders (I know, this is getting petty)...and he took some moving straps that my sister realized were gone. She called him, YEP, he has them, he said "I thought they were mine"...yea, right!! Wonder what else is missing???