Accident with a Sole trader working for cash at my house

wowzers

Hi guys

I'm new and i need an opinion from a professional painter.

Basically we had an incident today where we hired a painter who claims to have experience in painting roofs.

however this is a CASH agreement..with no contracts.


The long and the short of it is... he put one leg through the asbestos roof sheet (not the part of the house but the laundry area.)
when he slipped, he dropped a hand held tub of roof paint (possibly acrylic based) it went EVERYWHERE!

on my car also.. took me 1 hour to clean/wash it.. got most of it off...
but the walls on the house need to be recoated.



we had a huge argument when after the job he demanded his payment and DID NOT admit to any faults to rectifying the problem caused and said it was "your roof" .."your roof was already faulty"

is it in our right ..for him to rectify this?

thanks in advance guys

Tom Struble

he probably has no insurance and no way to rectify your problem

be happy he hasn't sued you...yet

oh'mike

You may want to eat this---your roof failed and sent this guy into a spin---ask yourself how this will sound in front of a jury.

If your roof failure was not the fault of the worker---pay him.

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DangerMouse

My thoughts exactly!

Why would he admit to something that was in no way his fault???

DM

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DangerMouse

...and.... asbestos = ???? roofing felt? what was under it? rotted OSB?
...and.... PAINTING a ROOF? with latex????? huh?????

DM

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Willie T

Anyone EVER going to finally get smart enough to check on licensing and insurance before clambering to hire the cheapest guy they can find on Craig's List?

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Willie T

wowzers

care to explain why?

ddawg16

Oh boy......if you don't know why, your in trouble.

Basically....if someone gets hurt on your property....your on the hook. That is why "licensed contractors" have insurance....to protect themselves from accidents.

An example....your hire a day worker to do remove a concrete driveway. He hurts his back......guess what....your on the hook for his medical bills.

I would be willing to bet that by now your 'painter' has already hired a lawyer. I hope your home owners insurance is in order.

This is a perfect example as to why we have the contractor license laws we do.....

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Ron6519

Which issue?
Insurance?
Suing?
Cleanup?

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oh'mike

When you hire a contractor with proper insurance you are a customer.

When you hire someone or even invite a friend over to give you a hand---You are now the 'employer'

Making you responsible for---ruined product---property damage---and injury.

You are the boss----You would have made a profit on the employee if all went well and must cover all losses if the job goes in the dumper.

This one went into the dumper----Pay him---give him a tip---thank him and wish him the best.

With that he might not want to get even and suddenly develop a bad back.

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del schisler

You didn't tell him to watch out for that defective roof ?? Wonder who put that up ? I would pay him you are at fault all the way bad roof which caused all of that. The fellow didn't know so pay him . I would sue you in a min. for that bad roof you forgot to tell me about. Even if he was a pro with insurance i bet he would have some word's in court also. I would pay and forget all about it untell the sheffif come knocking at the door with the summon's. Maybe not ??

CoconutPete

Thanks. I was saying the same thing out loud.

rusty baker

In some states, such as Missouri, a self-employed person can be made to carry workman's comp but it won't cover them. The way the law is set up, you can cover employees but not yourself. In that case, you are still liable if the worker gets hurt and he works for and by himself.

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Tom Struble

actually you always have a ''right'' to sue,whether you are covered by wc or not

Maintenance 6

Did the guy you hired present himself as a business man? The payment arrangements are irrelevant. If he presented himself as a business man/painter and took on the job, shame on him for not knowing the pitfalls of the job he was taking on. He has a professional responsibilty to evaluate his working conditions before he starts. You don't say that he was injured on the property so that's irrelevant. The fact is he caused damage during the course of the work he agreed to perform. I assume that he has no liability insurance to protect you or him. Shame on you for not checking and verifying that before he started work. On the other hand, if you hired some schmuck off the street to paint knowing full well that he was not in business, then you assumed the risk as soon as he walked on the property. In that case, minimize your losses and move on. This is just the kind of BS that clogs up our legal system everyday and makes lawyers rich.