Having a Nightmare with a Contractor

[Tim Anderson]

OK. I hired a guy off of craigslist to do my HVAC work, since the other estimates from actual HVAC companies were absolutely ridiculous, lowest quote was $8,500. I had him sign a contract stating that he was licensed, insured and would acquire all proper building permits and that he would not receive the 2nd half of his payment until it passed inspection.

After a day on the job, he sends me an e-mail saying he needs me to file a permit, due to a building inspector stopping by. I asked him what the building inspector said, to which he replied " not much of anything, just wanted to see what was going on", I don't believe it. Anyway, I refer to the contract, in which it states you (he) "will acquire any necessary building permits and the job will not be seen as complete if for any reason an inspection of the work done does not pass code;". To which he responded with that he does not have a license for our county. He says he'll take $200 off the job if I get the permit. That small amount of money isn't my concern right now. My concern is that... how the heck can I get a permit myself to do HVAC work if neither he, nor I, is licensed to do it? Is there any way that I can? He's telling me that there's a 'loop hole', where I can get the permit and say I'm having a 'friend' help with the work. This is my first time dealing with something like this and I'm getting paranoid they're (inspectors) going to rip out all of the work, and I'll still be out half of my money. Does anyone have extensive experience with building permits? What can I do in this situation?