Good morning, I'm hoping to get some advice on the next steps to take in trying to get paid for a job after filing a Stop Payment Notice. Our customer (Moreno Valley Construction) was contracted to do a job for our mutual customer (City of Merced). Our contact at the City of Merced spoke with one of our owners and let him know that the City wouldn't be paying Moreno Valley for the job (that is currently uncompleted) until Moreno Valley Construction paid their subs for the job. I'm just trying to figure out if we should file a claim against Moreno Valley's payment bond or if there is another step to go about getting paid. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
In short, yes. As a direct contractor on a public job, MVC is required to supply a payment bond if the amount of its public works contract exceeds $25,000. A claimant on the bond for nonpayment should present a formal claim to the surety as soon as possible. The claim is necessary for the surety to conduct an investigation, and, if liable, pay the claim. By putting the surety on notice, the claimant may be paid on the bond without initiating litigation .