# No Payment......



## Standstrong (Apr 18, 2006)

Sided a guys house, now he says he doesn't have the money.

?

Insurance job but he blew the cash.


----------



## Cole (Aug 27, 2004)

Contact a lawyer.

Did he sign a contract?


----------



## Glasshousebltr (Feb 9, 2004)

If you didn't have contract, you should have just said:
_
"Look... I was in an alley behind a gay bar the other day.....and I bent over to tie my shoe."......."What do I do?"

:w00t:

_Good Luck.

Bob


----------



## Kristina (Apr 21, 2006)

Yup. 

Get thee to a lawyer, STAT. Write up a good contract and use it.

Unfortunately, if you didn't otherwise cover your butt, well, what Bob said.


----------



## camaroman2125 (Apr 13, 2006)

Glasshousebltr said:


> If you didn't have contract, you should have just said:
> _
> "Look... I was in an alley behind a gay bar the other day.....and I bent over to tie my shoe."......."What do I do?"
> 
> ...



That is why I have everyone sign a contract. I even have family sign them if I do work. I got burned by family once and that was enough for me to learn that everyone no matter who they are need to sign a contract if they want me to do work for them.

Cory


----------



## theworx (Dec 20, 2005)

"Look... I was in an alley behind a gay bar the other day.....and I bent over to tie my shoe."......."What do I do?"

:laughing: :laughing: :laughing: Oh wait, :laughing: :laughing: !!


----------



## stacker (Jan 31, 2006)

*Up The Creek*

even with a contract,you are probably up s%$t creek.you can sue him,but all you will get is a judgment.and if you garinshe his wages you might get back 50 bucks per payday.a labor lean does nothing until he tries to sel his property or refinance.
i once had a man do this to me and wouldnt pay.i threatened to reposses his brick job.he laughed until i showed up with hammers and started taking his brick off the wall.he paid up.:thumbup:


----------



## Melissa (Feb 23, 2006)

Umm take the siding off? :laughing: 

No seriously this kind of thing always amazes me. Does he plan on making payments or at least working with you on this? I mean it's like you know where he lives..... need I say more? :blink: I just don't get people like this. They've got some balls!


----------



## kklick (Mar 10, 2006)

I'm with Melissa and Stacker here. I'd show up and set up some pump jacks and wait on him to show up. Politely inform him he has about one hour to find your money or the siding will be coming down. Then I'd almost be pleased to get to rip it off if he didn't get the money.


----------



## realpurty2 (Aug 18, 2005)

kklick said:


> I'm with Melissa and Stacker here. I'd show up and set up some pump jacks and wait on him to show up. Politely inform him he has about one hour to find your money or the siding will be coming down. Then I'd almost be pleased to get to rip it off if he didn't get the money.



You do realize that's massively illegal? Once it's installed, paid or otherwise, it becomes part of the property.


----------



## Gordo (Feb 21, 2006)

realpurty2 said:


> You do realize that's massively illegal? Once it's installed, paid or otherwise, it becomes part of the property.


Unless you realize the siding was not installed properly or to your liking. The siding will be taken down and re-installed properly, at your convience depending on the new payment plan.


----------



## kklick (Mar 10, 2006)

Yes legality and ownership are always issues but the thought of having all of their siding ripped off could be pretty convincing. 

I've been fairly fortunate so far and never had a non payment go that far. I've always been lucky enough to settle up after a few letters and phone calls. Been a few I thought I'd never see but eventually turned out ok.


----------



## Pearce Services (Nov 21, 2005)

I got stuck in the middle of a clients divorce, never got paid for a tile backsplash.

I saw him at the house to pick up his kids, and stopped with my hammer in hand to "reposses" my tile as is was not paid for. As it turns out, he was ordered by the courts to not enter his own house (but I could). His options were to let me remove the tile, pay me, or get physical with me and my hammer. 

We talked for a while, he explained that he though I was already hammering something else in the house (his wife, and...no I wasn't). He tearfully paid me, but still thinks I was paid twice.

I guess we can never know why a customer is not willing to pay, unless we really listen to their side of the story.


----------



## Joasis (Mar 28, 2006)

Come on guys!....real time advice. Consult a lawyer, take pictures, copy reciepts for the siding, gather all the proof you can, file a lien on his property, talk to his insurance agent to obtain verification that he had a claim and you fixed it. Believe it or not, oral contracts with proof of being completed are binding in court. If you can get the lien filed, you WILL WIN, PERIOD. You may end up gathering some expert witnesses that will state your bill is reasonable, ect...but the bottom line is the guy was paid for damage to his siding, you replaced same for a fair price, and he refuses to pay...it may take you awhile, but you will get it. And one other thing, if you enter his property with intent to remove or damage what you installed, then he will WIN, not you. Play by the rules and prevail. Twenty years ago, I wouldn't have dreamed of filing a lien, or taking a guy to court. I would do my best to whip their ass or come back every day til I win, and get my money. Today, it is a different ballgame.


----------



## Mike Finley (Apr 28, 2004)

kklick said:


> I'm with Melissa and Stacker here. I'd show up and set up some pump jacks and wait on him to show up. Politely inform him he has about one hour to find your money or the siding will be coming down. Then I'd almost be pleased to get to rip it off if he didn't get the money.


Unfortunately the non-payment issue is a civil matter, but doing what you are talking about will become criminal in seconds, when he calls the cops and you explain why, the cops will tell you the money issue is a civil matter and you will have to settle it in the courts, but once the homeowner tells you to leave his property and you don't the cops could arrest you for trespassing.

In Colorado if you show up on somebodies door step with a hammer in your hand the "Make my day" laws will give the homeowner the right to protect himself using deadly force if he feels his life is threatened.

I'd stick to the legal means available, or better yet put some better business policies in place to reduce your vulnerability to this type of exposure.

I still like Bob's advice best, he has all the makings of a common sense, grass roots lawyer.


----------



## Bone Saw (Feb 13, 2006)

I have in my payment section of my contract that balance is due upon final twp inspection all in caps, I also insist on using their garage (in a very innocuous manner) to store small incedental items(my payment insurance policy) like screws, boxes of lags, bolts, nuts, washers, flashing, sona tubes nails ect to keep them out of the rain and prevent theft, never had anyone have an issue about it. I get the garage door opener, and I don't give it back until paid in full, never got stiffed, had 1 job that took about 1.5 week to collect and it was the turdfaced lawyer from the insurance disaster thread...


----------



## nadonailer (Nov 15, 2005)

Like Joasis said - small claims court and/or mechanics lien. I've used them both more than once and never lost. If you have a contract (and pictures help) the judge will always side with you. The mechanics lien is a real wake-up call, send a copy to the lender, too......


----------



## Kristina (Apr 21, 2006)

I only wish we could rip down the cabinets and countertops he installed in the wanker who stiffed us out of 6k. I knew it was coming and told him not to install them but to take them out of the garage and cease work until he got payment. He didn't and now we're screwed.



> Believe it or not, oral contracts with proof of being completed are binding in court.


Yup. We screwed up by not writing a contract for extra work we did, but we have proof of materials and the work WAS done. She tried to deny she authorized it, umm in my experience, you don't allow demo to be done, you don't allow materials to be purchased, you don't call and nag the builder on his home line on a Sunday morning before 8a about when he is going to COMPLETE the work on a project you don't authorize to be done.

I dunno, I think I'd be running out in my bathrobe and curlers wielding a broom at anybody who started tearing down my breezeway to do work I didn't want done.

No, we don't have a contract for that work, we have an invoice, reciepts and proof the work was done. In most cases, that's enough.


----------



## dsnAK (Feb 26, 2005)

Progress payments....

I keep them small and many. I live in a handshake type of place but have a very detailed contract for everything I do. I keep the progress payments many and very well defined. Keeps them on budget and keeps me from financing anything; thus avoiding risk. My final payment is 5% and is due upon completion. If someone skips out I can absorb that as my markups and profit easily cover that.


----------



## asbestos (Mar 22, 2006)

stacker said:


> even with a contract,you are probably up s%$t creek.you can sue him,but all you will get is a judgment.and if you garinshe his wages you might get back 50 bucks per payday.:


You should go after him anyway, full on, or hire someone to do it for a cut. I would let someone have most or all of it just to become a huge headache for this guy. It's the principal letting scumbags get away with it only encourages them. I was in a non-construction hassle with someone and it reached a point that they had crossed the line, we got a lawyer and I said straight away "look, if it costs me $4000 to keep from having to pay him $1500 I have no problem with that"


----------

