In September of my husband and I decided that we needed to either move to a larger home or build an addition, because of our growing family. We chose the latter, because the Real Estate Market was so over-inflated that we could not afford anything in an area where we would feel comfortable raising our children. We had decided to add a second floor addition to provide for the additional space that we would need, since that appeared to be the most cost-effective option at the time.
During our research phase, we came across a website referral service, servicemagic.com, which allegedly pre-screens contractors. They even offer the following service guarantee: "At ServiceMagic, we work hard to make sure you are completely satisfied with your home project. While we can't guarantee the workmanship of a Service Professional, we are here to help your project go smoothly. We'll even provide up to $500 USD of additional labor toward making the job right." http://servicemagic.com/rfs/aboutus/serviceGuarantee. Jsp (web link to service guarantee). We felt a certain level of trust in their service based on the guarantee that they offered.
After careful consideration and reference checks, we decided to sign a contract with one of the Service Magic referrals, Resurrection Home Improvements of Middletown, NJ. That was our downfall.
This contractor started the work but never completed the job. Furthermore, he has taken money for services not performed and refused to come back to the property to complete the work (not to mention all of the problems with the quality of the work, failed inspections etc.). I hired a mediator to try and work through the situation. We even offered to give the contractor more money at the end of the job, realizing that he was not going to return because he underbid the job.
All of our attempts at resolving the situation were in vain, as this supposedly pre-screened contractor had no intention of returning to our job, he was just stalling. We filed a claim with his insurance company; however, they have denied the claim because they do not cover his breach of contract, therfore, the contractor would be personally liable. Unfortunately, we had no choice but to hire an attorney. Our loses which will end up being in excess of $53,500.
This contarctor has the audacity to claim that we have breached the contract-which is entirely untrue. We have asked him multiple times to come back to our porperty.
In the meantime, my family is forced to live with my parents, pay a mortgage on a home that we cannot live in and hire new contractors to complete the work.
To make matters worse, the referral service will not allow us to post text comments on this contractor-probably because the contractor pays for their service but also because he lies.
0 comments