"He showed up, he tore the roof down, the steps off and made a muddy mess and he was gone," Georgia Spriggs said about contractor's work.
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Spriggs hired Joel Strickland to build a sunroom behind her home. She said Strickland did a great job on the first part of the job when it came to painting the deck.
"He did a beautiful deck. We were very happy."
That happiness didn't last long when it came to the sunroom construction. Spriggs said she only saw Strickland a few times on the job, and very little work was done despite paying him $6,600.
"Each time we tried to reach him, we got a lot of excuses, a lot of no-shows."
She sent a certified letter to Strickland but it was returned as undeliverable. Six months later, Spriggs said the project was still just a muddy mess and that's when she decided to call ABC11 Troubleshooter, Diane Wilson.
After contacting Strickland, he told ABC11 there was a misunderstanding with the brick for the job, and it would not be in until spring. He said if Spriggs couldn't wait, he would refund her money.
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"If he would have just communicated it and said something, anything, but not any communication at all, not answering the phone, not even sending a note?" Spriggs said didn't want to wait any longer and opted for a refund and got her $6,600 back.
"I'm just happy. I got my money and I thank you so much."
Now is the time many people are doing home improvements. Here are some tips to protect your money:
- Get everything in writing, including a start and estimated finish date.
- Negotiate making payments as work progresses as opposed to a lump sum upfront
- For any work over $30,000, you need to make sure they are licensed to do that work
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