Whether building from scratch or renovating, you cannot do without tradespeople. But not everyone does their job reliably. Many have already had experience with tradespeople who fail to meet deadlines, demand additional payments or refuse to rectify defects in their work or address complaints. Such difficulties can, however, often be easily avoided: it is sufficient to draw up a good, detailed contract that helps to clarify issues in advance.
A young couple has bought a flat in an old building that needs renovating before they move in. A new kitchen and bathroom, painting work, and the complete replacement of light switches and lighting – within a few weeks, a carpenter, a bricklayer, a plumber, a painter and an electrician will be working in the flat one after the other. It is easy for the work of one of them not to be completed on time or without errors.
The first step in finding a tradesperson is to choose carefully. Sometimes there isn’t enough time, for example if a pipe bursts and the flat is flooded. For larger construction or renovation projects, however, it’s worth contacting several firms at once – ideally those for which we have good recommendations from friends or which at least have positive customer reviews online.
What is written down is binding
“A proper contract for work and services should be drawn up with a tradesperson. Among other things, this should specify exactly what work is to be carried out, what constitutes a defect and how to proceed in such a case,“ explains lawyer Vojtěch Steininger.
“For minor repairs, a verbal agreement is sufficient. However, the client should always request at least a confirmation of the nature of the work, its execution and the agreed price, particularly with regard to potential complaints,” explains Filip Melzer, an expert in civil law at the Faculty of Law in Olomouc. “The more expensive or complex the work is, and the more realistic the possibility of subsequent complaints, the more sensible it is to insist on a written agreement,“ he adds.
The advantages of a written contract are obvious. If, for example, you agree verbally with a heating engineer to replace the radiators in your flat, pay him a deposit of several tens of thousands of crowns and are subsequently dissatisfied with his work, it becomes very difficult to seek redress. If a legal dispute arises, with a verbal contract it is not possible to prove the scope of the work commissioned, the materials used or the completion date.