Browse Forums Building A New House 1 May 22, 2013 5:59 pm I desperately need some advice!
It is specified in our contract that our paint was to be Dulux Wash and Wear in a 3 coat system. It cost us $1900 to get this change. Having visited the site each day this week, we could see that the painter was not using Dulux wash and wear, but Dulux Professional. So we emailed our builder yesterday to point this out to them so it could hopefully be corrected. Then I receive a voicemail from my SS today saying that he has been to the site today and he has seen the paint containers and we have got what is specified in our contract. But here's the clincher... my husband spoke to the painter at the site this morning and the painter said that he was told 3 coats was in our contract, not a specific paint and confirmed that Dulux professional is not the same. My husband got a photo of the paint being used. A family member who is a painter has told us that Dulux professional is not as good (for our purposes) as Dulux Wash and Wear. I get that it would be a lot of hassle and delay other trades to repaint, and this is probably why the SS said everything was per contract, however I am not prepared to pay $1900 for a product that wasn't even used. So, how do I approach the company and basically call the SS a liar? Re: Ethics about paint - what to do?! 2May 22, 2013 6:06 pm You need to write an official letter to the manager stating the paint is not the specified type. Emails and phone calls won't do for legal matters like contracts. The Harder You Try - the Luckier You Get ! Web site http://www.anewhouse.com.au Informative, Amusing, and Opinionated Blog - Over 600 posts on all aspects of building a new house. Re: Ethics about paint - what to do?! 3May 22, 2013 8:13 pm I agree, you need to put in writing that you have specifically paid for an item which hasn't been provided. They need to repaint or refund. Our contract states 3 coats of taubmans endure and I made sure that I spoke to the SS and the painter to make sure they were using that paint. Modified Fernside 38 Rawson Homes Blog: http://www.thehousethatmatandjenbuilt.blogspot.com Build Thread: https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=60501 Re: Ethics about paint - what to do?! 4May 22, 2013 8:23 pm Why aren't emails any good? they are as good as written letters these days in court as far as I'm aware. Unless someone is going to say their email account was hacked, which is the same as saying someone forged the letter. But on topic, ALL correspondence about these sorts of things should be written not over the phone. Definatley hold payment until it's rectified to your satisfaction. After every phone call I've had with my builder I email him my account of the call or confirmation of the call etc. He doesn't mind, we have very good communiction. 2 weeks in to the build and I've got over 450 emails from them (they did the architecture and design too) including around a dozen over the past fortnight. We often refer back to emails together when on the phone. Re: Ethics about paint - what to do?! 5May 24, 2013 6:25 pm Thanks all, it has now been sorted! I emailed again with some other questions and asked who we should talk to because we had confirmed with the painter that the paint was not wash and wear and that we were happy to get a credit if they could not repaint. Then the SS called my DH and he was excellent about it - he has arranged the painter to come back and repaint. I think he appreciated that we offered to take the credit, however he pointed out that we specified the wash and wear because we wanted walls that would be more child-resistant, so that is what we should get! I think it has also raised a good communication point for the company too - the area of the contract where the paint change was mentioned was not near the colours section, so it was easily overlooked. All in all, a happy ending! Re: Ethics about paint - what to do?! FIXED 6May 24, 2013 6:50 pm That's great news kelbelle Well done. Re: Ethics about paint - what to do?! FIXED 7May 25, 2013 9:58 am Good on you for choosing premium paint. I see not paying extra for the premium as paint false economy (even though at $1,900 the builder would have made an absolute killing). To repaint it, the majority of the cost is in labour, not material. Thank you so much everyone. This all makes a lot of sense. I guess when you talk to a builder who butters up everything to look very polished, you get to start believing… 7 17598 So AFAIk the outcomes of the BAL ratings form part of a clause that allows them to pass these costs on to you. However the more relevant detail is how did it go from 19… 1 9164 My door tends to rub against the frame during winter and I'm looking to fix it so it closes smoothly. Looking online on Youtube I'm seeing methods to fix the alignment and… 0 692 |