Home>Levelset Community>Legal Help>Contractor will not show us receipts for fill dirt and delivery of it. Wants us to pay him without proof of expense.

Contractor will not show us receipts for fill dirt and delivery of it. Wants us to pay him without proof of expense.

Verbal contract which included several things: grade yard after removal of pool and soil compaction, removal of trees and hardscape. Price quoted included a large tree he then refused to remove. We paid another contractor. He will not adjust our price, likened us, and will not show receipts for the fill dirt and its delivery.

1 reply

Jun 19, 2020

If the contractor eliminated some of their scope of work, they should proportionally reduce the price for their work. Plus, them unilaterally deciding not to do the work may be a breach of the contract and entitle the owner to some relief. Typically, something like reducing the first contract by the amount that a separate contractor had to be paid for the tree work might make sense. Regarding liens - mechanics lien claims are only available to the extent that work has been performed but not paid for. And, if the contractor has overstated their lien claim, that could render the lien invalid and unenforceable. Sending the contractor a letter demanding that they release their lien claim, or else they'll face legal consequences, might be good step. And, sending that demand via attorney letter could ensure that the contractor takes the claim seriously. Additionally, bonding off the lien claim or even officially challenging the claim in court could be options. Finally, I think this page will be useful: A Mechanics Lien Was Filed on My Property – What Do I Do Now? Further, this question sounds familiar, and I think the discussion here may be related or at least valuable: Can the contractor lien a residence with a verbal contract?

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