I think the contractor trying to rip me off. What should I do?
- Thread starter Rohaniks
- Start date
First of all please note that you should be working with a BOQ wherein the total work to be carried out is briefly mentioned, then for details you can refer to specifications wherein the total work is mentioned in detail.
The contractor cannot dictate his terms but has to work as per the parameters laid down by the client or clients consultants.
Now if the contractor is trying to play mischief then bring it to notice of your senior and show him the malpractice followed by the contractor, if senior doesn't co-operate then you need to bring it to the notice of his senior or anyone in your organization who is a responsible person, but do it tactfully.
The contractor cannot dictate his terms but has to work as per the parameters laid down by the client or clients consultants.
Now if the contractor is trying to play mischief then bring it to notice of your senior and show him the malpractice followed by the contractor, if senior doesn't co-operate then you need to bring it to the notice of his senior or anyone in your organization who is a responsible person, but do it tactfully.
Dnyan Deshmukh
Staff member
It is a normal human tendency and observed at very high intensity in construction project.
It is the responsibility of management to deal with such issues and our responsibility is to report such issues as soon as it start to pop out in the system.
This generally happens due to a long set mentality of "chalta hai" attitude, unless management is ready to take action on such issues, no one can change it.
To do this documentation of work is more important part and it start right in the beginning of project by documenting each process of it to the finest level where no escape roots are given as rightly said by @amd007
It is the responsibility of management to deal with such issues and our responsibility is to report such issues as soon as it start to pop out in the system.
This generally happens due to a long set mentality of "chalta hai" attitude, unless management is ready to take action on such issues, no one can change it.
To do this documentation of work is more important part and it start right in the beginning of project by documenting each process of it to the finest level where no escape roots are given as rightly said by @amd007
HockeyPuck
Active Member
Simple Question: What does the subcontract with the excavator say? What is the method of measurement & payment for the work? Is it based on a price per cubic meter? Or is he being paid for the labor, equipment & materials ("Time and Materials") used for the work?
I assume, by the fact that you are posting the question as you have, that the subcontractor is paid Time and Materials: If that's the case, I would argue that the owner is only responsible for paying for the time the actual work is being performed, known as Productive Time. He would be eligible to be paid for his time to get his machine to and from the jobsite. He would not be responsible for paying for Non-Productive Time, assuming he was on-site with his equipment and labor forces not performing any work.
As Dnyan Deshmukh points out, documentation in cases like this are important. A simple form, like the one I'm attaching a link to, can provide a real-time summary account of what occurred and can be used to generate the costs basis for payment. We use these forms all the time to log and track extra work when it occurs requiring us to pay a Contractor for work that does not have a clear method of measurement or basis of payment. Hope this helps.
Cheers!!
I assume, by the fact that you are posting the question as you have, that the subcontractor is paid Time and Materials: If that's the case, I would argue that the owner is only responsible for paying for the time the actual work is being performed, known as Productive Time. He would be eligible to be paid for his time to get his machine to and from the jobsite. He would not be responsible for paying for Non-Productive Time, assuming he was on-site with his equipment and labor forces not performing any work.
As Dnyan Deshmukh points out, documentation in cases like this are important. A simple form, like the one I'm attaching a link to, can provide a real-time summary account of what occurred and can be used to generate the costs basis for payment. We use these forms all the time to log and track extra work when it occurs requiring us to pay a Contractor for work that does not have a clear method of measurement or basis of payment. Hope this helps.
Cheers!!
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