I own a rental property in a different state that was damaged by flooding in the Spring. A construction company was hired and they started doing the repairs before providing us with a contract (they said they work from the insurance adjuster's worksheet). When we got their version of a contract it was basically a letter telling us when they would start work (which they already had by the time we got the letter), when the job would be completed by and the amount of the payments and when they were due.

I told them that I wanted an itemized contract similar to the worksheet provided by the insurance adjuster that showed everything they would be doing, costs, etc because there were some things on the insurance adjuster's worksheet that we weren't having done (like needing wood floors throughout the house or demolition because we replaced most of the floors with vinyl and the demolition was done by a volunteer agency) and other things we were having done instead (like replacing the upper kitchen cabinets and adding a closet). Had a conference call a few weeks later with the owner of the company (who prepares the contracts) and the project manner expressing the need for an itemized contract and the owner assured me she would get it to me. Two weeks after the conversation, the owner emails me requesting the second payment on the project and I responded back and also asked what the ETA was on getting our itemized contract and she didn't respond. Spoke to the project manager last week and he keeps saying that she's supposed to be getting it done.

We're supposed to have our final walkthrough this week on the house and still no contract. While the work they've done so far has been great, I'm concerned because they've been hemming and hawing about giving us the itemized written contract, and they did extra things that we didn't even ask for, like adding chair-rails and an extra ceiling fan. Before they started working on the house they said that no matter what they do we would not be charged for anything other than what the adjuster's report has but of course we don't have that in writing. All we have are copies of the two letters they sent us that were supposed to represent contracts that we never signed because we wanted an itemized one.

How should I handle this? I know they won't receive that final payment from us until we receive an itemized contract like we've asked for. They've been in business for 12 years and have no complaints on record with the BBB, but ours may be the first one because I smell a rat. If they try to squeeze more money out of us should I use my copy of the psuedo-contract they sent us that I didn't sign? I want to make sure they're not screwing us out of any money because for all we know, they might owe us money back!

While

Hi, irismagnolia!

I'm not sure about the specific laws concerning this, but if it were me in your "shoes" then the first thing that I would do would be to consult with an attorney for a legally binding opinion. My suggestion also would be for you to be putting together a Contract under the guidance of the attorney, specifying all of the particulars that you've mentioned with also a time limit for signing the Contract.

Please do no more emailing about this. The body of an email isn't any sort of official, binding document. If there are scanned documents in an email with a signature or signatures on it or them, then those can be considered to be binding.

Also, please be sure to have a witness present when speaking with anyone who is concerned with doing the work on the property and sign nothing without it being reviewed by an attorney.

Since this is concerning something that's being paid for by insurance, it's very easy for a contractor to want to reap what they can out of the situation. I hate to say that, but it's true.

Hopefully, others will also come along to address your concerns.

Thanks!