Q: I hired a contractor to add a new roof to my house. He “ Finished “ the roof doing a horrible job resulting in leaks
He told us he was licensed merchant Naics codes 56173, 23611, 23819. The valleys on the roof was done incorrectly. He didn’t put the windows in the roof nor the balcony in the house. Called him over 3 weeks with no response and has blocked our contact. We’ve already paid him the full 20,000. What do I do? I’m not too familiar with Puerto Rico’s laws etc. please help!
A:
Pursuant to the Contractor Registry Law of 1995, all contractors in Puerto Rico must inscribe in the Department of Consumer Affairs' (DACO) Contractor Registry, plus maintain a performance bond of at least $15,000 to respond for deficiencies in their work.
Your attorney can file a complaint with DACO, investigating the contractor's file to determine whether he/it is in compliance with the Registry and whether or not his/its performance bond is active. As with any legal proceeding, the contractor will need to be served notice of the complaint. DACO will send an inspector to check the work, then issue a report to DACO along with his recommendations regarding what damages, if any, the contractor owes you. Once the report is issued to the parties, each side will have 15 days to challenge the report; after which, the in-depth hearing will be scheduled.
To strengthen your case, you can retain the services of an engineer as an expert witness, and have him/her issue an expert report regarding any existing deficiencies in the contractor's work.
If the contractor is not in compliance with the 1995 Contractor Registry Law, he may be subject to additional administrative fines to be paid to DACO.
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
