What Do Contractors Do Wrong?

Many contractors fail to notify the Contractors’ State License Board of a change of address or telephone number. This leaves you in a bad position if someone from the CSLB or otherwise, tries to contact you.

Some of the things that contractors do wrong is that they don’t get a written contract. This leaves them at the mercy of the owners.

Sometimes, the contract is not well written, again, leaving the contractors at the mercy of the owners.

Contractors should try to know the person that they are doing work for. If there is a problem and it goes to the Contractors Board, chances are you will lose at the Contractors Board.

Contractors should also make sure that all their changes are in writing.

There are three different types of contracts that are required by the Contractors Board. They are Home Improvement (this is the toughest for contractors), New Residential (usually between contractors and home builders), and Service & Repair (which is for contracts up to $750.00).

Don’t become an unlicensed contractor.

Contractors State License Board Sting Operations

The Contractors' State License Board continually sends out people to handle sting operations. Quite often, an unlicensed contractor, or one who has violated the law, may actually be put in hand cuffs and taken to a local jail. In 2008, the CSLB had a record year for conducting over 150 sting operations.

One such example of the CSLB’s sting operations occurred in the early part of this year in Santa Barbara where the Tea Fire area was and all those homes had burned. Members of the CSLB Statewide Investigative Fraud Team (SWIFT) posed as fire victims. They arrested seven suspects on felony charges that they singled out for leaving business cards, flyers and newspaper ads in the fire zone. The CSLB also tries to reduce the fire victims from getting victimized by posting hundreds of warning signs and continually working with police and district attorneys.