Contractor Quiz

Contractor: A person or company that undertakes a contract to provide materials or labor to perform a service or do a job.

If you are surprised by the statement above, please stop immediately and report your surprise to the party who prompted you to take this quiz. There is no need to procede or to do anything else.

Scenario: Because you're a contractor, normally, you do many jobs for yourself, but you have recently broken your hand, wrist or leg (substitute any body part sufficiently damaged to entice you to enlist assistance) and decide to engage the services of someone to preform the following jobs for you... another contractor.

1. Light fixture and bulbs.
You hire a contractor to install a light fixture. (The fixture and the lightbulbs that are supposed to be the correct ones are already in your home/place of business when the contractor arrives.) After the contractor installs the light fixture, you hand one of the bulbs to him. He rejects it, hands it back to you without trying it, and informs you that it's the wrong size. He tells you he must make a trip to a store to acquire the correct bulbs and leaves to go and buy them. A couple of days later, when he returns, he tries one and discovers that the bulbs he just bought won't fit. You offer to call the manufacturer, but he tells you not to and that he "now knows which size is correct", then he leaves to find the size he believes is correct. He returns again but, again, he says the ones he just purchased are not the correct size. (Add as many other trips as you like.) Eventually, you manage to (one-handedly) install the bulbs you had all along, yourself. They fit perfectly and the light now works.

Q 1: The contractor you hired thinks you are responsible for his multiple trips to the store to obtain lightbulbs. Do you agree? Yes No I dunno.

Q 2: Why or why not? (800 character limit)

2. You hire a contractor to stain your deck.
You both agree that powerwashing the deck prior to staining is standard practice and a good idea. He gives you a price and, a few days later, powerwashes the deck. Complications arise and the deck staining is postponed. Two months later the contractor is still telling you that he is still intending to perform the deck staining.

Q 1: Do you think powerwashing a deck prior to staining is a "time-sensitive" job?
Yes No I dunno.

Q 2: If, yes, what, in your opinion, is the maximum acceptable time lapse between a deck cleaning (powerwashing) and the application of the deck stain?

Q 3: If the contractor who performed the powerwashing never returned to perform the deck staining, what percentage of the contractor's powerwashing labor charges do you think you owe the contractor? %.

Q 4: What is your opinion of this contractor? (800 character limit)

3. Floor Tiling Job.
Q 1: Do you think applying mortar (or any other appropriate adhesive) in advance of laying floor (or other) tile is a "time-sensitive" job? Yes No I dunno.

Q 2: If yes, what percentage of the contractor's labor charges for laying the adhesive would you owe the contractor, if he applied the adhesive and never returned to install the flooring? %.

Q 3: Would the contractor owe you any money if you had paid any money in advance for the tiling job? If so, what percentage of what you already paid, would he owe you? %.

4. Book Expenses.
A contractor you've hired tells you he's interested in learning about (imagine any subject here) and since you have experience in that subject, he asks your advice. He shows you some books he has purchased and you advise him to return the books because most or all the information the books contain is available at no cost (free) on the Internet. Later, the contractor informs you that you are responsible for the costly books he purchased.

Q 1: Do you agree? Yes No I dunno.

Q 2: Why or why not? (800 character limit)

5. Contractor's Website.
The website of the contractor you've hired states that the contractor "is a licensed contractor" and "holds a license from the State of California". However, the California Contractors State License Board, denies that claim and states that any contractor's license the contractor ever had expired more than 20 years ago.

Q 1: What is your opinion? (800 character limit)

6. Deck Stain Supplies.
You have agreed to purchase the deck stain and other supplies for the deck staining project (as in example 1 above). Because your hand is broken, the contractor offers to pick up the stain and other supplies for you. You give him a check for several hundred dollars and write "deck stain supplies" on the check. The contractor cashes the check, performs the deck cleaning but never returns to do any deck staining. He informs you that "it's over", that he's not coming back, that he will not return the deck stain to you, that he's returning the deck stain to the store, keeping the money and that he has, in fact, already "spent the money".

Q 1: What is your opinion? (800 character limit)

I only want to view and/or print out
a copy of the questions and answers.
Do not send me anything.

Please send me a copy in an email message.
Fill out the two blanks below:
Name:
Email:

More Contractor Info