Contractor did work that was not authorized be me - am I liable?

[Howie W.]

BLUF - a maintenance company my property manager uses approved the installation of an A/C unit to a third party vendor without our authorization. 

The installation was completed last September 2021 and I received the information from the PM last week (April 2022). When the request came last September, I declined the first vendor and wanted a second opinion/quote. The second vendor mentioned the A/C was working, but a part could fail and it was no longer in stock. I talked with the second vendor directly and told them directly that when the part fails, we'll begin to explore a new A/C system. 

Shortly after, the first vendor approved the work order and sent it to a third party. Fast forward to April of this year and my PM informs me of the invoice. I declined the full amount and asked for an itemized invoice to determine the cost of parts and to perhaps pay a portion of that. This is after discussing the matter with other owners, property managers, and A/C Companies. I have been getting several different numbers from my PM and the Maintenance company on the actual cost - from $7450 to $4750, but not an itemized list of parts - at least one I can feel comfortable with (cost of "parts", which was only one line and broken down specifically was approx. $4200 and not from the third party vendor who performed the installation. Note - the maintenance company is not a certified HVAC company. 

The PM came down to a $4750 cost total and would pay $1000 of the cost if I pay the remainder. My offer was $1500, which would be part of the parts, but I was never given a firm number that I am conformable with. This was sent via email, but during our phone conversation the PM mentioned a potential lawsuit/collection - apparently from the Maintenance Company. My reply was I never authorized a repair and would also inform the BBB and FTC. 

Thoughts? Advice? Am I liable for any maintenance cost that I did not authorize? My offer of $1500, IMO, was more than fair to help compensate the third party vendor. This is the short story, as there are other details I can fill in. 

[Drew Sygit]

Nothing in this business is perfect.

Maintenance issues like this occur often unfortunately, as diferent people have different, often conflicting agendas. Someone in the chain may have thought they were making a good decision, or someone was trying to make more money. Either reason doesn't change the fact that your directions should NOT have been ignored.

Now that the error has been made, you have a choice to be cut-throat or reasonable.

Cut-throat: you should end the relationship with the PMC because even if you get them to eat the costs, they'll resent you and it'll affect their service going forward.

Reasonable: acknowledge even the best people/companies make mistakes and negotiate a fair penalty with them. You did benefit from the mistake as you acknowledged the A/C unit would have eventually needed replacement.