Damage Claims that You Must Allege Against a Bad Contractor

No one wants to feel trapped in a relationship with a bad contractor. If you are in this situation, however, what should you do? When you are facing litigation and you have to sue a bad contractor for work that they failed to do or did negligently, it is essential that you claim the following damages:

I. Breach of Contract

In a breach of contract claim you must prove the following elements:

1) the existence of a contract
2) the unexcused non-performance of an obligation under the contract amounting to a breach of contract
3) damages caused by the breach.

A contract is breached when one party fails or refuses to perform his or her agreement even though the other party has performed all of the requirements under the agreement. See Ohio jury Instructions Section 253.01 (6).

When claimants have proven their breach of contract claim, they are entitled to be placed in as good a position as they would have occupied had the contract been fulfilled. They are entitled to be awarded for damages that are fairly and reasonably considered as a result of the breach of those damages that were contemplated by the opposing parties when the contract was made.

II. Promissory Estoppel

In order to prove a claim for promissory estoppel, four elements must be proven:

1) there must be a clear and unambiguous promise
2) the parties who made the promise must rely on it
3) the reliance was reasonable and foreseeable
4) the parties relying on the promise must’ve been injured by the reliance.

III. Unjust Enrichment

In order to prove a claim for unjust enrichment our client must prove the following three elements:

1) the contractor conferred a benefit upon my client
2) the contractor knew of the benefit
3) under the circumstances it would be unjust to allow the contractor to retain a payment made by a client without providing any service for that payment. The legal basis behind this claim is to prevent an injustice from happening by allowing a contractor to retain a payment made by a client without providing the service for that payment.

IV. Negligence

In order to prove a claim for negligence, our clients must prove the following three elements:

1) the existence of a legal duty
2) the breach of that duty and
3) the damages are caused by that breach.

V. Violation of the Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act Including the Home Solicitations Sales Act

All building codes require that a contractor must perform his work in a workmanlike manner pursuant to the applicable building codes. A contractor must conform with all of the requirements imposed by the applicable building codes and ordinances.

A client can also assert claims for violations of the Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act (“CSPA”) including the Home Solicitations Sales Act. Ohio’s Consumer Sales Practices Act allows clients to recover damages for loss of money, property, or anything of value as a result of a contractor’s use of an unfair or deceptive practice.

To recover damages, a client must prove the following:

1) the contractor knowingly committed an act or practice that was unfair or deceptive
2) the client suffered a loss of money, property, or a thing of value as a result of the unfair or deceptive act or practice. The contractor knowingly breaches when he or she intentionally committed the act or practice that was deceptive to the client.

A contractor breaches the CSPA when he or she makes representations to a client that were not of the particular standard and quality that the contractor represented previously. This also applies in situations when the contractor breached the express warranty and has failed to repair the faulty or defective work. Our clients can assert that a contractor’s representation as to the warranty was false and violated the CSPA.

It is also important to assert claims for breach of expense warranty of repair and warranty of all supplies and a breach of expense and implied warranties.

Questions? Feel free to contact our firm to ask your questions.

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