Home>Levelset Community>Legal Help>If a pre-lim notice in Washington wasn't filed and a 60 day notice gets filed late, will our retention for the whole project still be protected?

If a pre-lim notice in Washington wasn't filed and a 60 day notice gets filed late, will our retention for the whole project still be protected?

A preliminary notice wasn't done for a project in Washington. We are near the end of the job and there's some issues arising. I understand we can send a 60 day notice late and that will still keep our rights for costs 60 days prior to the notice but, my main concern is protecting our lien rights on the retention for the whole project and not just retention held for 60 days prior to the notice.

1 reply

Aug 31, 2017

This is a good question, but I'm afraid the answer is that you're recovery is going to be limited to the value of the materials and labor you furnish within the 60 days preceding sending the notice, and this will include retainage. Any retainage related to the work / materials provided in the immediate 60 days will be protected, but retainage related to work/materials before the 60 days will be unsecured.

This is an unfortunate situation, but it does underscore how important it is to get those notices sent out at the beginning of every job. You may find this article helpful: 3 Reasons Why It May Be A Good Idea To Use The Mechanics Lien Process on Every Job..

Also, of course, zlien makes this easy for its users and can help companies avoid this situation exactly. Take this stuff off your plate and make payments fast, easy, and predictable every time :) -- Request more info.

Good luck with this issue.

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