When you hire a contractor, the last thing you want is costly mistakes that delay your project. If they happen, you might want to take the legal route immediately and demand they pay you for all the damages done in the construction site.
While this traditional mediation could be an ideal solution, it should be your last resource. That’s why we are going to give you tips on how to deal with contractor mistakes.
However, before we give you a list of tips to follow, you need to learn how to prevent these mistakes before they even happen.
We all know human errors are unavoidable, but today, some tools will reduce these mistakes to a minimum keeping your project within the established budget.
How to Prevent Contractor Mistakes
Even though this is a shortlist of activities, following them will save you money. The good news is that none of them are expensive, and there is a high probability that you are already familiar with them.
This section is meant to help contractors to prevent mistakes. If you are dealing with contractor mistakes at the moment, you can skip this and go straight to our tips on how to deal with contractors’ errors.
Communication is the key
In a construction site, there are many people involved in the different tasks the project requires. That’s why you need to have fluent communication with your whole team, and that includes subcontractors.
Every day you will have many people going around the building site, and you don’t want your team to make a mistake all because of lack of communication.
Luckily, different software programs can help you manage your project while keeping your workers updated.
This software will help you establish clear goals from the beginning, which avoids confusion along the way and enables you to create a coherent plan from the start.
Through this program, you can also allocate manpower for your construction, so every worker will know what they have to do and where they belong.
Digitization of your workflow
If you keep paper-based records, you have more chances to make a mistake compared to having a digital program with all the data you need. You can stop dealing with data entry and start using automation tools. These tools will collect all the information in real-time and keep all your systems updated.
You can also have access to the pre-fabricated product. This will improve the efficiency of your project.
Now, prefabrication does not work with all construction projects; it will depend on the magnitude of the job and your client’s specifications. But if you have the option to do it, this will reduce any delays in your project.
Even when your contractor implements these tools on the construction site, mistakes can happen, and you need to be ready to fix them without disrupting your project. Below we will give you 4 tips for how to deal with contractor mistakes.
4 Tips on How to Deal with Contractor Mistakes
The first thing you need to think about is that you want to avoid more problems in the construction site. A legal mediation might seem like a logical solution, but it will only stop your construction. We want to prevent that, that’s why we will give you a list of tips to follow when your contractor makes a mistake.
What is the issue? Talk to your contractor
Many mistakes can happen in a construction site. It could be working with the wrong materials, quality of the products, fixtures in the wrong places, among others.
However, when your contractor makes a mistake, you don’t want to assume what the issue is. You need to know for sure. You cannot fix something unless you know what happened.
Before calling anyone out on the mistake, you need to have evidence that something happened. Sometimes your contractor might already be repairing the mistake, but if you don’t find out, you will never know.
In this case, the best way to approach this situation is by asking your contractor. We recommend having a private conversation. Yes, it might be an awkward interaction, but it is the only chance you have to fix the issue and keep going. Try to keep the conversation flowing. You don’t want rage to take over you because then your contractor won’t cooperate.
Listen and avoid blame
When you confront your contractor with the mistake, let them tell their side of the story. It would be best if you didn’t start blaming people around the construction site, because they will feel hurt, and your project’s workflow will change.
It might be difficult to avoid blaming when these errors could increase your budget, but it is essential to keep in mind that the main objective is finalizing the project.
Instead of blaming, listen to your contractor and encourage them to find a solution together. This will make your contractor feel comfortable and push them to hurry up and fix the mistake knowing they have your support.
Find the solution together
As we mentioned before, you must work together with your contractors, trying to find a solution. Readjust the budget and the project timeline.
Once you have a final plan, you should keep a copy and send one to your contractor, ensuring you are both in the same place and understand how to move forward.
Legal Advice
This one should be your last resort, in the unfortunate case that the contractor doesn’t cooperate with you. You can seek legal advice, or mediation and lawyers will help you solve this issue based on the contract you signed.
Conclusion
With these four tips, you will be able to deal with contractor mistakes in no time.
When these situations happen, most people wonder: does homeowners insurance cover contractor mistakes? The answer is yes, usually, insurance will cover the contractor damages, but errors such as quality, are not included in this insurance.
Then does homeowners’ insurance cover contractor mistakes? Most of the time, yes, but it is better to check with your insurance company.
Before signing your contract, make sure your contractor is licensed because in case there is a mistake, it will be easier to contact the company and solve the problem.