Contractor told me he would asphalt my driveway to the property line in front of my garage. He came in six foot and now I am unable to get my truck in the garage. Should he have to add asphalt to have safe driveway?
1 reply
May 20, 2020
If your contractor failed to perform the work as laid out in the contract, then they may well be in breach of that contract. Further, there's generally an implied warranty of workmanship on all construction projects - and, if the contractor's provided a faulty and unusable finished product, they might be held accountable via breach of warranty.
So, yes - generally, a contractor must perform the work as contracted. And, when a contractor has done defective work, the owner should be able to force them back to the job site to fix their work. It's extremely common for a contractor to resist returning to the job site. But, as I'll mention below, there are some tools that can be useful in forcing the contractor to do the right thing.
To push a contractor to return to the job, it'd be wise to review the contract for work and to identify specific contract provisions which weren't followed. And, threatening to make legal claims via a demand letter (potentially sent via attorney) might convince a contractor to return to the job. Threatening to file a complaint with the Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation might be useful, too. Further, leaving negative (but honest) reviews online - like with the Better Business Bureau, Google, Angie's List, or even Facebook - could be enough to prod the contractor to come and fix their work. That's especially true when photos showing the defective work are included.