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Roofer

Hello, We hired a sub to handle a residential rehab for us on an investor client of ours property in Hillsborough County, FL. The sub we used did not pay his roofer $4660 for a roof that was installed on 11/6/19. The roofer sent an invoice in the regular mail to our client directly. No other documentation was provided. Does the roofer have any ground to stand on as it's been over 60 days since he completed the work and was last on site? Also, to go with this question, what grounds do we have with the sub we hired that did not pay his roofer? Thank you Joe

1 reply

Jan 10, 2020

A sub-subcontractor will generally have a tough time recovering payment from the GC or property owner unless that sub-subcontractor has properly and timely sent a Notice to Owner ("NTO") on the job. If that NTO is sent, then mechanics lien rights will be preserved and the owner and/or GC could be held liable for making payment to the sub-sub. But, if an NTO wasn't sent, then a sub-subcontractor will generally struggle to bring claims against an owner or GC, and they may be stuck trying to recover payment directly from their customer, the first-tier subcontractor (likely through legal claims such as breach of contract, a claim under Florida's prompt payment laws, etc). However, if that sub-subcontractor did provide the requisite Notice to Owner - they will be able to make life harder for the project owner and GC if they decide to pursue a mechanics lien on the debt. And, their deadline for making such a claim would be 90 days after they last furnished labor or materials to the job.

Forcing a subcontractor to pay their sub-subcontractor

Generally, a GC will have a lot of influence over their subs. And, if a subcontractor gets a reputation for failing to pay their sub-subs, then they could run into a situation where their business begins to suffer. What's more, the contract between a GC and their sub will typically require the sub to pay their own subs - so, a GC could lean into their contract and demand their sub pay what's owed. Further, if there's any progress payment or retainage left on the job, a GC might be able to leverage those funds into forcing their subcontractor to do the right thing and pay their subs and vendors. Or, a GC might also push for the use of joint checks for the remainder of project funds. Finally, if a GC or property owner suffers any damage from a sub-subcontractor as a result of the subcontractor's failure to make payments - then the GC and owner will very likely be able to hold the subcontractor accountable for the failure to pay their debts.

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