Timeline for How can I tell if a contractor is trying to scam me by charging more after starting a job?
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
10 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 31, 2017 at 23:14 | comment | added | NPM | Glad you guys were able to work it out. It really sucks sometimes, but it's hard to predict issues inside of a wall. | |
| Aug 31, 2017 at 14:34 | comment | added | Fan | Long story short, I paid $600 and he rerouted the wire. It was not a whole day's work, but it did take some time and he may have to come one more day than originally planned. I think there are faults on both sides. I should have asked him to write the potential extra cost into the contract. He should not have underbid the job and then asked for more. Most people would feel ripped off and be upset if asked for a 25% price increase one hour after the project started. But for now we are good with each other. | |
| Aug 30, 2017 at 3:25 | comment | added | noybman | ... continued: so in the sense of what I think is the ROOT of the question, it seems @Fan wants to ensure the contractor is not ripping him off. Clearly he feels he signed a contract for a good price, and is comfortable with paying more, (perhaps he knows he has received much higher quotes), so make it clear and in writing what the additional $600 covers, even if it is not detailed, and aim to keep your reasonably priced contractor happy, but be sure its clear you aren't going to bend over every time he wants $50 more. | |
| Aug 30, 2017 at 3:20 | comment | added | noybman | I'm not a contractor! But seriously, If I SWAG a $100/hour labor rate, is this reroute a 5 hour job? (I'm saving $100 for materials, even at a 200% markup its more than covered). Since he was tearing into a wall and anticipated a fee for wires, is it a 2 hour job? Seems like 2 hours is reasonable. Seems to align to a verbal $300 price. The hassle is there for the wall regardless of wire. Granted, he can always get a second opinion from another contractor and risk the ongoing relationship, but what we don't know is whether the contractor underbid the entire job, he probably did and @Fan agrees | |
| Aug 30, 2017 at 0:36 | comment | added | NPM | Looking closely in this pic, is that pipe a little green, or is that just my computer screen? You guys pretty sure it's not a waterline? | |
| Aug 29, 2017 at 23:19 | comment | added | NPM | Oh my goodness. Yes, that's a difficult job. Rigid conduit, and as you've been trying to tell us, a solid wall. $600 is a bargain, take it and don't look back. | |
| Aug 29, 2017 at 21:10 | comment | added | Fan | I have added a photo to my post. Please see if that helps. | |
| Aug 29, 2017 at 21:01 | comment | added | NPM | By solid, do you mean concrete? | |
| Aug 29, 2017 at 20:39 | comment | added | Fan | If he just asked for the $300 we had agreed on I would have no problems. If he charged $600 from the beginning I would also have no problems. But now he doubled the price just because the wall is solid. I do not think he did not know the wall is solid. Also, is it much more difficult to reroute the wire for a solid wall? | |
| Aug 29, 2017 at 20:10 | history | answered | NPM | CC BY-SA 3.0 |