Where'd you find this guy? Does he work for a local flooring retailer?

Redoing incorrect work is all on him, material and labor. Taking care of the damage is all up to him to pay for if laminate isn't his area of expertise to repair. This is why a professional carries insurance. Let him file a claim for damage. If he's not insured, he should have never entered your home.

He was hired through a brick-n-mortar store...same place I bought the laminate flooring and was THRILLED with that installer's work. This guy is supposedly one of the best around (trained by a friend of ours who no longer does carpeting) but I have NOT been impressed. I even put down a rug to protect the flooring and he managed to damage it in the couple inches of exposed area between the rug and the bottom of the stairs. Sheesh.

Important to know...does the installer work for the brick and mortar store...i.e., is he an employee? Or, is the installer a subcontractor? Many brick and mortar stores STILL "employ" whomever they can find and they are considered by the store to be independent contractors, although I am sure that the IRS would disagree with that in most cases.

If he is an independent contractor, then he is solely responsibile to make things right with you. If the installer is an employee then the store is the responsible party. Regardless, the store should see to it that things are made right, as they recommended or scheduled the installer to be in your home and do the work.

Accidents and unforseen things can happen, no matter how careful you are. Seems to me that the installer is not having good days. Hope it works out OK for both of you.

I'm sure he's an independent contractor employed through the store but the buck stops with the store.

My main question which no one really has addressed is in your opinion, if I don't get the scratch fixed, what kind of compensation should I be entitled to? I don't want the hassle of it but I am still stuck with the scratch.

You can replace the board .

I would replace the offending plank. This can be done without taking the floor up.

Important to know...does the installer work for the brick and mortar store...i.e., is he an employee?

Glenn-- it really doesn't matter. If the store sent him over, they're responsible.

The way I see it is if you bought both floors from the same store, and had their people install them. it doesn't matter if they'd need to rip up the entire laminate floor and redo it. It's on them to make it right or offer some kind of compensation.

Thanks, everyone. Jerry_t, according to the laminate installer, the problem is that he started at a doorway and the transition used on that doorway (as said before) is glued to concrete. It is solid maple custom stained and lacquered by a third party woodworker and could be destroyed in the process. The area is a basement landing about 3 x 8. The board is in the opposite corner as where he would have to start taking them up.

It is those special transitions I don't want destroyed. True another one could be made, but I'd rather seek some sort of compensation for the scratch than have it replaced. I am asking for a case of laminate cleaner (about $100)instead of the repair. Does that sound fair?

There are actually two different custom transitions that most likely in material alone are worth more than that. I just don't want to hassle with the redo and hoping the custom transitions turn out as well as they do now.

I'm so sick of the hassle, I just want this guy to fix his crappy carpet work and get out of my house....disgusted.

Bill,

You're right...she does say that the installer was hired "through" the store, so I guess that means they scheduled the work and sent the guy over.

There still are those cases where a store will shirk responsibility claiming that the installer doesn't work for them and it's the customer's problem to deal with the installer.

I understand what you are saying about the transitions. It is possible to replace an indivudual plank without disturbing the rest of the floor or any transitions. That said, it can be very costly depending on what joinery system your flooring incorporated. Your offer is more than fair and the retailer will take you up on that.

As you can see, every installer is not the same as far as ability and work ethics go. You were fortunate to have a very good hard surface installer. Good luck.

This is a case of the retailer, looking for cheap labor, and he got it. His cheap labor cost him more in the long run, but he is blind to that fact, all he sees is cheap labor to boost his profits. Retailers are not willing to pay what it really cost for labor, with specialty products like a patterned Axminister. Everywhere a woven ax is cut, it will fray, unless the edges are bound or sealed and sewn.

I charge 6x's for anything woven, compared to a tufted carpet. Retailers want to pay the same, so they are limited on their talent pool, to hack & slash.

Keep hounding the retailer, and light a fire under his cheap arse.

floorguy, do you mean that he should have bound the edges (or sealed/sewn) on my stair install? I know for a fact he did nothing during the install other than cut and install. I havent read this before during my axminster web query, so I never brought it up to the store. Now, I worry that the edges will fray along the stair runners. Should I bring this up to him?

Bound or serged .
did he turn and staple the sides of the runner ?

This is not a runner. This is carpet that goes from side of stair to side of stair. There is no wood showing. It is stretched to cover the entire stair surface. Does that make a difference?

If it is not a runner, but full treads and risers, Tucking tight into the tackstrip gully on the sides, keeps the edges from fraying and loosing fibers. The cuts made at the tread riser intersection, can start to sprout, unless the edge is sealed.

Thanks, floorguy. If there are tackstrips in the tread riser intersections that he is using, is sealing necessary?