In biz. not even a year...

[rclacey]

... and got stiffed already.
wired a garage for a GC. Finished it Oct 2nd. Still no money.
different story every time I get ahold of him on the phone.

The sad part is I did a really nice job for him and out of my way
do make everything right.

I find out after the fact he's gone through electricians faster than socks
and has a history of this kind of stuff... I wish I could tell everyone in NH to stay the hell away from this guy.

At least I'm only out $1,800 and not $18,000, but its still a lot for a one man
shop to swallow, especially right now.

I saw nothing but great reviews about his company on servicemagic Obviosly from customers' perspectives, not
subcontractors.

 

[480sparky]

Welcome to the club!

Don't worry. This won't be the last time it happens!

 

[c2500]

Can you say LIEN?

File a complaint with the licensing board?

c2500

 

[westelectric]

Why not publish his company name on this site to warn others in your area. Anything wrong with that mods? Cant be as wrong as what he's doing.

 

[AV ELECTRIC]

Talk to the owner he is liable to pay you if you were not paid maybe the gc hasn't received final payment and owner can withhold payment or work something out so you get paid as the other person said you can file a lien but that might not get your money very quickly . just the threat of the lien may get you paid but like i said go talk to the owner asap . Now for the gc if hes licensed you can make problems for him by calling you license board and bring a complaint against him dont let him off the hook hell do it again to the next guy and other subs since he has done it in the past . You worked hard for your money dont give up so easily

 

[Cavie]

Next time get 2/3 total payment before final inspection and if you get stiffed for the remainder at least your not out of pocket. Only profit is gone. Go to the local courthous and file a small claims case. Cost about $35.00 You will win. It just might scare him into paying you. I did it once and we arbatrated for monthly payments and I got all my money.

 

[Dnkldorf]

I'm a true believer in street justice.

 

[chris1971]

It happens to everyone. I had a customer who didn't pay. I went to a collection attorney. Invoice was about 2500. Total collected in a year and a half $250. Cost $400 to file in small claims court. What does a person do?

 

[Len]

stiffed

stiffed

First thing you need to know is Service Magic is a SCAM....
They do not check for anything!!!!
Second thing, their is such a thing a mechanics lien...
The owner of the property will not want this...
Do a search for this for your state or call local court house. Also small claims court if less than 5k. You do not need attorney for this.
You could also call owner of place you wired and advise you are placing a lien because of payment. He may pay you direct and go after contractor.
Bottom line Do NOT just sit there and take it......

 

[mtfallsmikey]

I remember when I was very young...my Dad drug a deadbeat customer into small claims court for $25. His lessons on aggressively collecting overdue accounts stuck with me. As far as I remember, he never lost...neither did I.

 

[bikeindy]

The sad part is I did a really nice job for him and out of my way
do make everything right.

Why is this the sad part. It should be understood that you will do everything right. would you not feel bad if you did a lousy job and got paid.

New clients pay 30% up front another 50% at rough and 20% on final. You will be out less money if they fail to pay. If they argu about the 30% upfront I always say, "You don't know me, I don't know you. Give me the 30% when I show up to start and we can get to know each other better, otherwise, been nice talking."

 

[growler]

I did a really nice job for him and out of my way
do make everything right.

It should be understood that you will do everything right.

I'm with bikeindy on this point, every being right is not going out of your way it should be standard operating procedure.

Question: Did you do this as a legal job with all the required permits and a signed contract that stated payment terms and dates.

 

[rclacey]

Thanks for all of the encouragment.
I am not going to give up, it looks like I will be going with a lien...

GC sent me an email trying to hold me off untill mid jan, its pretty obvious what he's trying to do: buy time to put me beyond the 120 days I have to file a lien.


I did an identical job for the same guy in Sept. and he paid right away. actually had the whole thing done before I even met him in person.
No written contract. I thought I could trust him because he paid me once.
Lesson learned right there.

In NH we have licensing for plumbers and electricians, gotta have your typical 8000 hrs OTJ and 144 hours of school a year to get your journeyman
ticket, another year for masters. I got my masters right after I turned 25, like a year and a half ago. The problem is, we have no licensing for GC's. Anyone with a cell phone and a pickup can be a legal GC here. Many of the small towns, like the one I worked in, and didn't get paid for, do not require electrical permits, and do not have inspectors.

I agree that it is understood I will do a professional job. The code is a minimum standard, and often times I exceed it. There is such a thing as a mediocre job that is compliant, and safe. And there is such a thing as an
exceptional job that may include things like 20 amp receptacles everywhere,
more receptacles than required by code, and so on. I could go into more detail but you get the point. What I should have said instead of 'going out of my way to make everything right' is 'I feel as though I did an exceptional job for a mediocre price'


I don't know if I have to resort to street justice yet, you might call it dirt road justice up here, or woods justice.

 

[rclacey]

Why not publish his company name on this site to warn others in your area. Anything wrong with that mods? Cant be as wrong as what he's doing.

I'd love too, and thats kind of what I had in mind, but that might be headed in the direction of slander or libel, so unfortunatly some other poor electrician is going to be cheated.

 

[480sparky]

.............New clients pay 30% up front another 50% at rough and 20% on final. ..........."

That may be illegal in some places.

 

[GUNNING]

Just tell him mid January is no good and why. Make sure he and the property owner sign a contract notifying them of terms next time and move on. He will pay. He is probably waiting on his final payment from the customer to pay you. Just because you are in need of payment doesn't mean he has the money in hand. If he has work, figure out a way of coming to terms with him. Around here the saying "work is good" is common because there is very little. Cultivate and schmooze is the way to go here. Put on the salesman hat and take off the worker bee hat and cultivate his business. This will pay off down the road when you take off your tools and have someone else do the worker bee stuff.

 

[charlie b]

Why not publish his company name on this site to warn others in your area. Anything wrong with that mods? Cant be as wrong as what he's doing.

But it would expose the owner of this forum to a lawsuit for defamation of character. Sorry, no can do.

 

[bradleyelectric]

Around here the saying "work is good" is common because there is very little. Cultivate and schmooze is the way to go here. Put on the salesman hat and take off the worker bee hat and cultivate his business. This will pay off down the road when you take off your tools and have someone else do the worker bee stuff.

Around here I say money is good. If anyone wants work I've got a big pile of logs that need to be cut. I promise if you cut some logs there is more logs to be cut. I'm not paying, but you can work on cultivating a relationship with them logs if you'd like. If I need money I wouldn't be real worried about cultivating a relationship with someone that has a history of not paying. If your looking for work though, I can keep you busy. I'm not paying though.

 

[LarryFine]

I'd love too, and thats kind of what I had in mind, but that might be headed in the direction of slander or libel, so unfortunatly some other poor electrician is going to be cheated.

But it would expose the owner of this forum to a lawsuit for defamation of character. Sorry, no can do.

What ever happened to "the truth is the ultimate defense against libel, slander, or defamation?"

 

[charlie b]

What ever happened to "the truth is the ultimate defense against libel, slander, or defamation?"

There would still be a price to pay, before ultimately winning. An even better defense is to not put yourself into a position that would require a defense in the first place.