Legal Question in Business Law in California
Unauthorized charges
Several months ago I called a heating/ac/plumber to repair my air conditioner, sprinkler head, and spa filter. After he arrived and started work, I kept asking how much it was going to cost and he kept saying "not too much, don't worry about it", etc. I should have been suspicious but he was very nice, although extremely talkative. Even after the work was finished, he would not tell me how much I owed, only that he would send a bill. The bill was around $360 ($88 parts and the remainder was labor) and after I received it, I noticed he had installed the sprinkler head wrong (I had to have it redone) but far worse was the fact that he left a bottle of charcoal lighter fluid inside my furnace, directly on top of the gas jets. This seems like extreme negligence to me, as my house would probably have been destroyed had I turned on the furnace. He is pressing me for payment, I have already paid $250 and am reluctant to pay more for such shoddy work. Expecially since I did not authorize that expenditure anyway. Please advise.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Unauthorized charges
If you did not agree on a price and allowed him to do the work then you owe him the reasonable value of the service which may or may not be less than his bill. it is a subjective standard. in small claims court you would explain why the work was not worth what he wants and keep your fingers crossed.
Re: Unauthorized charges
Mr. Koury is correct -- the court will only reduce the amount due if it finds that the amount is unreasonable. You will have to explain why you needed part of the work re-done, and you should have the bill for this work available.
You mention negligence, and I think most of us would agree that -- in layman's terms, at least -- leaving a bottle of flamable liquid in a furnace is negligent. The law, however, will only compensate you for negligence if you were damaged by it. Since you found the bottle before anything happened, you successfully avoided any damage and can't sue.
For a $110.00 dispute, you both might want to consider whether it's worth the bother to fight over. If he takes you to court and wins, you may have to pay court costs in addition to the $110.00. Of course, he might have to pay your costs if you win.
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