CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — On tonight’s Troubleshooters report, a contractor poses an interesting question.
Should he go back and make repairs on a job he already did, then just walk away, even though the homeowner still owes him money ?
The homeowner is not happy with the work that was done.
Robert Rodriguez wanted us to see a few reasons why he says he called us.
In May he hired Johnny Acosta to build this 8-by-35 deck onto his house.
He paid him $3,500 cash as a down payment.
“When it rains, all the water stays there, and then goes inside the house," Rodriguez said.
Rodriguez called us, claiming Acosta keeps promising to go back and fix what Rodriguez wants fixed, but he still hasn’t shown up.
Both sides agree that, according to the contract, Rodriguez still owes Acosta approximately $4,000 for the job.
But Rodriguez wants the repairs done.
“I told him I’m gonna call the Troubleshooters. Why you gonna call the Troubleshooters ? Hey man we grew up together. Hey don’t be a snitch. Hey vato, what do you want me to do ?"
Which brings us to Acosta’s side of this story.
He asks, is it fair for a customer to make a complaint in order to get out of paying a contractor what is still owed?
“Do you think it’s just for me to invest more money and more time when I’m already gonna put away $4,500 that they owe me?” Acosta asked.
After speaking with the Troubleshooters, Rodriguez and Acosta came to an agreement.
They’ll both walk away, and Rodriguez can use the money he would have owed Acosta, to pay someone else to make the repairs.
