Planning to hire a contractor this spring or summer for a home improvement project? Here are some tips to ensure you are protected: * Pay contractors in agreed-upon increments as work is being completed rather than paying upfront for work and materials. Many contractors will not require a payment until the job is completed; others may require a down payment for materials. In those cases, consumers should ask for a list of materials and acquire them separately. Bigger projects, especially those involving bank lending, should have a written contract with defined completion tasks and dates. * Regularly check on the progress of the work. Do not make a final payment until all of the work is complete, and it passes inspection. * Shop around before hiring a contractor. This includes asking for references to verify the caliber of the contractor’s work. * Do not hire a contractor who cold calls you offering to do work using “leftover supplies” from another job. * Avoid a contractor that pressures you into an immediate decision. * Never sign over an insurance check to contractor. *Call the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division at 800-368-8808 and/or the West Virginia Division of Labor’s Contractor Licensing Board at 304-558-7890 to ensure the contractor is in good standing. Consumers also can look online at wvlabor/newwebsite/pages/contractor_searchNEW.cfm. To read more tips, go to bit.ly/1elyLdN
Posted on: Wed, 09 Apr 2014 20:05:17 +0000
Trending Topics
© 2015