Home contractor damages HVAC - how to resolve easily?
June 18, 2021 1:19 PM Subscribe
We're having some repairs done on the exterior of the house - our HVAC was damaged by a worker, and the cost to fix could be $expensive$....need input.
We are on good terms with the contractors - they've done work for us in the past. This time around they damaged our HVAC, and based on what we know (1 - an HVAC tech/pro estimate and 2 - a neighbor who used to work in refrigeration and generously came over with equipment several times to troubleshoot), it could be an expensive repair.
The contractor did repair the damage well enough (a line was punctured, some refrigerant leaked), but what we all think happened (including the pro HVAC tech) is that something is now clogged, and it might have been caused by the contractor's repair (debris in the line), or the repair itself might have been the catalyst to affect something else in the system, thus causing the problem. It'll take us a few days/1 week to come to a solution (we and the good neighbor are coincidentally both about to go out of town). We've taken readings and after a few days/week we can at least recheck after returning to see if any more refigerant was lost.
That being said, I know the contractor feels bad. I won't let him continue the work in the area where the damage occured (so we stll have physical access) until we figure out our next step - either getting the pro to come back to repair it $$$ -- or between myself, the contractor and our good neighbor see if we can come up with some solution. All this is happening smack in the middle of a heat wave and not having the AC has been irritating. Hindsight and all that, I can see that some more caution on the contractor's part could have spared everyone a headache, but it is what it is. Trying not to be resentful.
I need to figure out how or what to adjust when the exterior work is complete and the contractor is ready to settle up. I want to give him the opportunity to make amends first (hoping that he does), but if that doesn't happen, I'm trying to think of a good way to say 'you broke it, you bought it'.
I don't care to burn bridges, because the contractor also does work for the good neighbor too (how he was referred to us for the previous work).
Any thoughts?
We are on good terms with the contractors - they've done work for us in the past. This time around they damaged our HVAC, and based on what we know (1 - an HVAC tech/pro estimate and 2 - a neighbor who used to work in refrigeration and generously came over with equipment several times to troubleshoot), it could be an expensive repair.
The contractor did repair the damage well enough (a line was punctured, some refrigerant leaked), but what we all think happened (including the pro HVAC tech) is that something is now clogged, and it might have been caused by the contractor's repair (debris in the line), or the repair itself might have been the catalyst to affect something else in the system, thus causing the problem. It'll take us a few days/1 week to come to a solution (we and the good neighbor are coincidentally both about to go out of town). We've taken readings and after a few days/week we can at least recheck after returning to see if any more refigerant was lost.
That being said, I know the contractor feels bad. I won't let him continue the work in the area where the damage occured (so we stll have physical access) until we figure out our next step - either getting the pro to come back to repair it $$$ -- or between myself, the contractor and our good neighbor see if we can come up with some solution. All this is happening smack in the middle of a heat wave and not having the AC has been irritating. Hindsight and all that, I can see that some more caution on the contractor's part could have spared everyone a headache, but it is what it is. Trying not to be resentful.
I need to figure out how or what to adjust when the exterior work is complete and the contractor is ready to settle up. I want to give him the opportunity to make amends first (hoping that he does), but if that doesn't happen, I'm trying to think of a good way to say 'you broke it, you bought it'.
I don't care to burn bridges, because the contractor also does work for the good neighbor too (how he was referred to us for the previous work).
Any thoughts?
You can be polite as you explain you've gotten three quotes for professional repair and here they are - no need to be nasty about it unless they do first. They have insurance. You can see if you can get your own homeowner's insurance involved so their lawyer can work it out with the contractor's insurance's lawyer, if they don't get their insurance involved proactively.
You're way too up into feelings when this is business, and it's going to end up costing you a $12k HVAC replacement out of pocket if you spend all your energy on not making anybody mad.
posted by Lyn Never at 1:30 PM on June 18, 2021 [6 favorites]
You're way too up into feelings when this is business, and it's going to end up costing you a $12k HVAC replacement out of pocket if you spend all your energy on not making anybody mad.
posted by Lyn Never at 1:30 PM on June 18, 2021 [6 favorites]
Doesn't your contractor have insurance to handle situations like these?
This. A professional contractor would be bonded/insured to cover exactly things like this. Now, if your contractor is more akin to a handyman with a crew, you might have a problem. In either case, I’d be really wary if your contractor tells you “I have a buddy who can fix this...”
posted by Thorzdad at 1:40 PM on June 18, 2021 [3 favorites]
This. A professional contractor would be bonded/insured to cover exactly things like this. Now, if your contractor is more akin to a handyman with a crew, you might have a problem. In either case, I’d be really wary if your contractor tells you “I have a buddy who can fix this...”
posted by Thorzdad at 1:40 PM on June 18, 2021 [3 favorites]
Response by poster: OP here - forgot to add, that the contractor is definitely a 'handyman' i.e. probably not insured/bonded in the conventional sense.
posted by kilohertz at 2:05 PM on June 18, 2021
posted by kilohertz at 2:05 PM on June 18, 2021
He might still have insurance; that should still be the first step to check. If not, well, you and he both just learned a lesson.
posted by kevinbelt at 2:35 PM on June 18, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by kevinbelt at 2:35 PM on June 18, 2021 [3 favorites]
If you try to find professionals, supervise the repair, and negotiate with this handyman yourself, then you're being your own contractor. It appears you're not qualified to do that and that won't get you the best result.
This is why you have insurance. Leave it to them. They will arrange for the repair and pay for it, minus your deductible. They will negotiate with the handyman and recover from them to the extent possible. Obviously the handyman should leave the site or at least the damaged area and you'll need to watch them to make sure they don't mess with it further.
When it's all over, you could also consider turning the handyman in to the relevant authorities for doing home repairs without a license.
Finally, what does "insured/bonded in the conventional sense" mean. Do the words "in the conventional sense" have any function in your sentence? What does the slash mean?
posted by JimN2TAW at 2:41 PM on June 18, 2021 [3 favorites]
This is why you have insurance. Leave it to them. They will arrange for the repair and pay for it, minus your deductible. They will negotiate with the handyman and recover from them to the extent possible. Obviously the handyman should leave the site or at least the damaged area and you'll need to watch them to make sure they don't mess with it further.
When it's all over, you could also consider turning the handyman in to the relevant authorities for doing home repairs without a license.
Finally, what does "insured/bonded in the conventional sense" mean. Do the words "in the conventional sense" have any function in your sentence? What does the slash mean?
posted by JimN2TAW at 2:41 PM on June 18, 2021 [3 favorites]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by kevinbelt at 1:26 PM on June 18, 2021 [13 favorites]