Acidents happen. It's not like he was careless and laid a heavy wrench above an open skylight and it fell and shattered the sink. This was ''an act of god'' that wouldn't even meet your homeowner's deductible. If you were the one that damaged this so almost invisibly, you'd have to decide to replace it or live with it. You still have that same decision.

What do you want to happen? Do you want a new sink? Then offer to split it with him.

@Hollysprings - I know accidents happen, and that's why I was trying to work with the roofer to resolve this. But he's completely ignoring me. Even from a professional level, that's just rude.

And no, I wouldn't categorize this as a "act of God". Someone was working on the skylight, and it shattered - I know it was not meant to shatter (and hence the description "accident"). If the skylight shattered by itself, then that's the hand of God. By the way, the roofer didn't even tell me he was coming that day. If I had know beforehand, I would have put some towels over the sink to protect it.

Perhaps I didn't make it clear in my original post: the problem here is that my two-month new sink now looks like it has years of wear-and-tear on it. If after 10 years of use, my sink looks like this, I'm ok with it because I know I caused those nicks over time (and I enjoyed every minute of using it). But right now, it's only 2 months since it was installed. Before the skylight incident, it was brand new - it has nothing on it.

I think replacing the whole sink is overboard, but at least the roofer could compensate $100 / $150 for the damage?

Act of God? More like careless contractor. He didn't care what fell into the room below. Of course accidents hapoen. That's why you take precautions and prep the job. I would think it would be SOP to address the interior below before doing the work. But that takes time and they are too often too rushed and lazy. At the very least, the customer should be forewarned to protect anything themselves from debris or other mishaps, with a timeframe for the work.

Let his insurance cover it so your rates don't go up. That's why he has it. When his rates escalate, maybe he will be more careful and protect the interests of other's property first, instead of taking the wreckless, oops, tough luck approach, all in a day's work.

If he had tried, my opinion would likely be different.

Consider small claims court.

Best case the damage is cosmetic.

Worst case the sanitary surface has been compromised, or damage has occurred that could propagate into a full-fledged structural crack sometime down the road.

I don't care if either statement is an over-reaction.

Send him a letter, certified, return receipt requested. Just the basics. No emotion. Summarize what happened. What you want. Give him five business days to reply.

If you don't hear from him, then move forward.

Workers need to foresee the unforeseen. You protect surfaces you can't afford to see damaged. Accidents happen. That's why we're proactive, that's why we have insurance.

It is obviously up to you how you want to pursue this. You can try court and get everything you want, or get nothing. You can try his insurance and get everything, nothing or something. Or you can settle with him.

I'd definitely send the letter. The certified letter starts the clock ticking and lets him know that you're serious.

Good luck with however you choose to pursue this.

So, if he offered to buy you a new sink, you'd say ''give me a check instead''?

@hollysprings - yes, I would be very happy to get a new sink. We spent several months researching and then deciding what to get. The Kohler sink that we decided on is an older model, so I was only able to find it at one store that's an hour away. And we don't have a car, so I needed to rent a car for a day just to get it - so yes, the sink is my "baby", and I'd love to have a brand new one just like it again.

To me, I'd much prefer a new sink than a $150 check.

30 some nicks and scratches like that, concentrated along one area to boot, I think he should restore your beat up sink to new by replacing it for the $500 you paid, with you providing proof of replacement with receipts. Those little areas can take on a different color later too. You should not have to allow him to damage your home unnecessarily like that. He was negligent in taking reasonable care. A judge would rule in your favor should he not be able to comprehend that and refuse.

Send a certified letter demanding compensation for the sink. Include the bill of sale as proof of what you recently paid. Include a reply-by deadline.

If the reply deadline comes and goes without response, file the small claims court lawsuit.

This roofer needs to understand that replacing your vanity is a cost of doing business, just like gas in his truck or replacing his compressor.

You take regular a$$ whuppin's as a contractor. They are painful, but as long as you keep them to a minimum you stay in business. This guy is denying the inevitable and you shouldn't let him get away with it.

We have roofers this week. The first thing they did is to walk around the house and tell us what to move or cover "just in case". Someone working above your sink should've covered (or told you to protect ) what was below it. That is why contractors have insurance!

Do whatever it takes to get him to REPLACE (in legal terms "make whole") your sink top. You had a new sink/counter with no marks on it until his actions caused a problem that damaged it. Accident or fluke, it is still HIS responsibility. God had nothing to do with this. When you work on a skylight, something can happen to that skylight.

Since he is un-responsive, I agree that you should go the small claims route to get your sink replaced. Check with your local court to get the particulars on what you need to do.

Also check with the state contractor's licensing board to see if you can register a complaint. They have a lot of clout here in CA, I don't know where you live.

Good luck. This guy isn't going to help you, so you will have to do all the work. Go get him!

-Babka

No one wants to take responsibility for their actions anymore. Sure it was an accident but that doesn't mean he shouldn't have to buy you a NEW sink/counter! He shouldn't leave you with anything less than what you had before the accident. It's unfortunate but it happens. And he's already demonstrated that he's not willing to do what's right so you owe him nothing more than what you have to do legally to protect your interest. It's a shame you have to deal with the stress and take the time to pursue this :( Good luck.
I don't understand the "act of God" statement :o

No doubt, you should have sink, vanity...etc. in the same condition as what was there before.

"Act of God"!

hollysprings, you have been very pro (dumb, incompetent, mindless, careless) contractors/businesses without much concerns about customers/consumers, yet you definitely reached new heights.

Good thing they did not hurt anyone. Otherwise, would be interesting to watch the contractor explains the "act of God" in the court.

What is particularly disturbing about this contractor is he apparently doesn't know the value of a reasonable customer which the OP appears to be.

If I got out of this for $150.00, I'd be dancing on my way to the truck.

A reputable contractor would have protected the surfaces underneath and around the area where the work was being performed.

You have every reason to expect that the roofer would perform the repair work to your satisfaction without causing any damage to your property.

Chanj, I agree with Babka, you should definitely contact your local state licensing board and report the roofer. NC has a homeowner's recovery fund to help pay for the damage caused by careless contractors.

Thank you everyone for the good advice. I now have a few routes to either try to get a new sink (small claims court), or at the least, report his bad practice (BBB, local licensing board).

I'll give him one last call / chance this week, and after that, my patience will have run out, and I'll start the processes above.

Fingers crossed!

Chasing down the contractor aside, a friend told me that I could potentially reglaze the vanity top and sink. I'm not familiar with "reglazing", so I have a few questions:
1. is this a permanent solution, or will this need to be done on a periodic basis?
2. Is this even a good resolution (certainly sounds like it's less work than replacing the whole sink).
3. Is there any downside on doing this to the sink?

Would appreciate your opinion on this. Thanks much!

PS this is the sink that I have: http://www.us.kohler.com/us/Ceramic-Impressions%22-31-rectangular-vanity-top-bathroom-sink-with-8-centerset-faucet-holes/productDetail/Vanity-Tops-with-Integrated-Sinks/1001298.htm

Here is a link that might be useful: Kohler sink

$425 + tax, freight, etc. + plumber bill - for a new sink.

If you choose to reglaze, you can only claim for the cost of the repair.

Get the money first, unless you would have shelled out anyway, because there is a good chance he will not pay even under a court's order either.

If given the two choices of keeping the sink as it is or re-glazing, I would keep it as it is. You are already unhappy with those small imperfections, and there is no guarantee that you will get a perfect result from reglazing.

If you requested insurance information from your contractor when he started the job, you can notify them directly.

In Florida counties if you look up a contractors license on line, there will be insurance information included. Perhaps your county has the same information and that might be a way to find out who his carrier is.