Q: Is a homeowner responsible for extra material cost if the contractor under estimated the materials required to finish?
I received quotes for a new roof and to have the attic insulated. The contractor first did a detailed survey of the roof and how the house was constructed. When it was time for the contractor to look at the insulation job, I showed the contractor the attic location for largest section of attic. (I have three attic sections). I left the contractor to do his survey of the attic thinking he knew there were three attic sections. Turns out he did not look at the two other sections that ammounted to about 1/3 of total attic. When I signed the contract, I did not notice the square footage on the contract was low. After all the contractor was the expert doing the estimate. BTW, the contract price was not the cheapest of my quotes received. when they come to do the work, I noticed they did not work on two of the attic sections. They said I would be responsible for the additional cost. Am I responsible for the cost to finish the work?
A:
First, it depends on whether your contract was a cost-plus or a fixed-price contract. If it was a cost-plus contract, then you are clearly responsible for the additional materials cost.
If it was a fixed-price contract, it depends on the scope of work contained in the contract. If the scope of work clearly includes all three attic spaces, then you are likely not responsible for the additional materials cost. If the scope of work clearly includes only the one attic space, then you are likely responsible for the additional cost if you want the contractor to insulate the other two attic spaces. If the contract isn't particularly clear as to whether it includes only one of three or all three attic spaces, it seems there is a reasonable argument that could be made by both parties.
The contractor could validly argue that you only showed him a single attic space and that he did not know or have reason to believe that the other two attic spaces were to be included in the scope of work, and that the square footage on the estimate only includes the square footage of the single attic space you showed him. You could validly argue that the contractor has superior knowledge and expertise in the field of estimating attic insulation, undoubtedly knows that some attics contain multiple separate spaces, you told him you wanted all of your attic insulated, you relied upon him to give an accurate estimate, and if he needed you to point out how to access the other attic spaces, he could and should have asked.
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