Home>Levelset Community>Legal Help>Also are we supposed to go by the date the job is complete on our side and we billed retainage to our client or the date our client says the job is complete on their side and the owner funds it?
Also are we supposed to go by the date the job is complete on our side and we billed retainage to our client or the date our client says the job is complete on their side and the owner funds it?
Our project manager said the job is complete and we have billed retainage to our client on 10/16/18 making it at 121 days. When we follow up about retainage payment the client states the job is not complete and they have not billed retainage yet.
1 reply
Feb 22, 2019
I'm sorry to hear about that - obtaining retainage is often a frustrating dance at the end of a project. First and foremost, making sure everyone is on the same page might help to clear up confusion on the job. It sounds like one party is saying the job is complete, while another is saying it isn't. Aligning the entire payment chain and determining the project's true status - whether or not the job is complete and set for the release of retainage - is a crucial step in determining what should be done about outstanding payments. While a customer may get annoyed by their subcontractor going over their head to another party to ask questions about the project, including that customer on the communication might help to curb that annoyance. But, even if it doesn't, it's often worthwhile to do what it takes to stay informed anyway - annoying a customer may be worthwhile when retainage is on the line. In a situation where parties are being elusive or even confrontational about the release of retainage, it might eventually become worthwhile to consider taking action - such as contacting the owner and/or project manager regarding the missing retainage amounts, sending a Notice of Intent to Lien for unpaid amounts, potentially filing a mechanics lien over the nonpayment, or to take some other legal action (like making a claim against retainage). For a deep dive on retainage, this resource should be valuable: The Ultimate Guide to Retainage in the Construction Industry For more on recovering payment in Texas, the Texas Lien & Notice FAQs may be valuable.