One of the most common calls that we get these days is from disgruntled homeowners who have a dispute with a contractor whom they hired to do work on their home. Unfortunately, there are many individuals and businesses out there who will lie and say they are a licensed contractor when, in fact, they are not.
An easy way to verify whether someone is a licensed contractor is to check them out on the State of Tennessee Contractors & Home Improvement website, which is maintained by the Tennessee Department of Commerce & Insurance. Click on “Verify a License.” You can narrow down the search by clicking on the various criteria on the left (be sure to specify “Contractor” under License Types). You can also check if a particular license is still active or has expired.
The State’s “Tips for Hiring a Contractor” webpage is also very helpful for consumers, with lots of information about the importance of checking out a contractor BEFORE hiring them. The webpage also goes through several potential remedies, has information about how to check for disciplinary actions or complaints about a particular contractor, and provides a helpful checklist for things to do before hiring a contractor.
If you find out too late that you have hired an unlicensed contractor, or maybe even a properly licensed but dishonest or incompetent contractor, there are several remedies that may be available to you, including filing a lawsuit in General Sessions Court or in Circuit Court for breach of contract and/or other relief. To set up an appointment to talk about your potential case with a White County business law attorney, call us at 931-837-2050.