Legal Question in Construction Law in New York

poor roofing work

i had my roof redone late sept 06 ...the roofer i hired was a man i knew from my work for many years... i paid him with a check($6600) and did not get a receipt... 3 weeks after completing my roof began to leak... he came out and tried to fix it ... i paid him and aditional $50...but roof continued to leak... ive asked him many times and his most frequent responce is ''i dont know what to do''... i now have to roof tarped and it has helped....do i have a legal case against him and how long do i have to give him to get the work done?... is small claims court an option? ive offered to pay for supplies... was that a mistake?

thank u


Asked on 4/15/07, 12:06 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Anthony Colleluori The Law Offices of Anthony J. Colleluori & Associates PLLC

Re: poor roofing work

Many counties have licensing laws for home improvements. Does yours? If so you can report him and hope they get your money back for you. You can also tell him to give you back at least half so you can hire someone who can fix your problem, preferably someone with a license and insurance.

If you take him to court, it will have to be a civil court not small claims as your claim is over the SC limit.

Additionally if you request all your money or have him arrested or even summoned, things are gonna be kinda chilly at work if you catch my drift.

Rules for all home improvements.

1. Only hire a licensed and insured contractor. Get license numbers and check with the county consumer affairs dept. to see if it is in order. Call the insurance company to be sure that the company is in fact insured and for what.

2. Do not pay the whole thing on or before comletion. Try to hold the last payment (at least 10%)in an attorney's escrow account for at least 6 months.

3. When hiring get a guaruntee on the work or your money back for at least 1 year.

4. Do not forget to ask for references and check them.

Good Luck.

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Answered on 4/15/07, 6:29 pm


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