I have never used a mitigation contractor but this certainly sounds fishy. It’s one thing if it’s a fixed price invoice- you agreed to pay xxx for mitigation and their invoice lists the type of tasks they normally do. But if you are paying a la carte it should only reference things that were done.

It sounds very dodgy to me. If it’s invoiced for, it should have actually been done/supplied, IMO. Otherwise it’s fraud.

I’ve already been issued a check from insurance. And have been talking to the adjuster. The items on the mitigation are what the insurance adjuster said was okay. But the contractor hasn’t actually done several things I see on the list. The contractor has pushed me to sign the mitigation, but I have stalled until I find out what to do about this. When I asked the contractor about this he said if I got the adjuster to remove the false charges. That basically they would create the money another way & nickel & dime me to death. Another time I tried to discuss this with the contractor. He asked me what I thought I would get at the end of this? It took me a minute to realize his line of thought... It certainly wasn’t on my mind!! Long story short... If he made sure I got $500 bucks at the end...would I let the charges stay as they are. Unf*cking believable ...!! Now I’ve never worked with a contractor before...so I’m not very confident about what’s normal protocol. But Every red flag & alarm in my body is going off. That this is not right. I just don’t know how to extricate away from him & still have the money to finish the house. He claims I already owe him 30K & we haven’t ordered ANY materials (tile, carpet, cabinets... ) yet. Sorry to dump like this... I am stressed out! Thanks for letting me vent 🙏 And a big thank you to all that have replied!!

@blueskysunnyday I am still not certain I understand the whole process clearly. I’ve already been issued a check from Insurance. I just became aware there is still another portion “the depreciation “ that will follow if certain criteria have been met by following their budget. Please forgive my rudimentary explanation. I am scrambling to figure out everything as I go along. I’ve no experience at ANY of this. It’s humiliating to say all this.. I feel like an idiot. In NO WAY is it my intention to commit fraud!! That’s the type of thing I am here attempting to figure out. Everyone on the project is trying to convince me that I’m crazy to not trust “it’s all okay” & hand over the money. I’ve no one else here to back me up. It’s just me. I’ve already lost the live in caregiver that helps me take care of mother who is in the late stages of dementia. She is related to the contractor. We had a horrible fight over all of this.... she quit/ or lost her job. I’m not sure which... but now I have no help with mom. How do I handle this contractor correctly ...? He swears he isn’t doing anything that’s wrong. 🤥

So he basically wrote down every possible thing he could bill for and got the insurance to pay for it. It’s a ‘victimless crime’ except we all pay for it through higher insurance rates. My mother has noticed a similar thing on her insurance- they have billed Medicare regularly for COVID tests she’s never had. $100 to the provider for doing nothing and Medicare doesn’t question it.

This is very confusing. I’m sure it is stressful! I hope someone who has been through this process can chime in. I’m with you, though. I don’t want to sign anything that I know to be false. Could your insurance rep help to guide you?

Terrible, some people simply have no moral standards. The average joe doesn't expect being a victim of fraud, but it is happening all the time. I had to google "mitigation" and found this article:

https://www.controlrisks.com/our-thinking/insights/construction-risks-and-mitigation-strategies-an-overview?utm_referrer=https://www.google.com

Pay attention to paragraph #3.

Sounds like good riddance to bad rubbish. Think about it. If your caregiver supports the insurance fraud that your description suggests, then how was she really treating your mother with dementia when you were not around?

You understand exactly what is going on. He sounds horrible. If it were me, I would find someone else. You have you hands already busy with your mom. Talk to your adjuster and insurance company. Let them know your concerns. Do not sign off on things that he didn't do.

Contractors billing for things they didn't actually do to get the insurance to pay more....this is common in the industry. The thing is....the insurance company doesn't ask YOU to review the claim before they pay it. Your being asked to sign off for mitigation the contractor didn't do....I'd call the claims adjuster and speak with him/her....they can advise you. They can also decide NOT to pay...and you might still get a bill. The insurance adjuster generally pays based on what the contractor submitted to them. The invoice for payment actually comes to YOU. Your the one getting the insurance check. If the insurance company doesn't pay YOU more....then YOU will pay it out of your pocket. If you don't pay what the contractor is asking...they put a lien on your home. The insurance company is looking out for YOUR best interest....they will pay it.

Edited to say: Your insurance agent sells policies...they do not get involved with repairs. This is NOT their area of expertise.

Oh...and yes...the insurance company issued YOU a check before work is started, then another for depreciation when work has been completed...minus your deductible.

In this sense...your kind of stuck. Your contractor knows the ropes...and you just want your house repaired.

Terminate if needed. Pay only for the line items completed. This guy is openly dishonest.

Document everything that is going on and take photos of bills, work performed etc. Maintain a trail. If this guy is being a scum bucket now, think what he might do later. If you have an camara on your phone, now is the time to use.

I want to say an especially heartfelt thank you to all those who have replied here. It’s been a little while since my last post. A lot has transpired since. I stopped using that contractor. But I am far from being done dealing with him. I went line by line through his invoice/mitigation. And according to HIS numbers I may owe him money still. Which I will pay that’s never been my issue. And as Hu-227031627 cautioned.. I am definitely concerned about what this contractor might try to pull still. Tonight I just noticed that one area they “fixed” is definitely not repaired correctly. So I am going to have to spend more to get it properly finished .. grrr.

I had my suspicions further validated when I hired a local materials store for all the flooring. They came to house took one look and told me I didn’t need to replace everything I was told I did. He took my expenditure down on material & none of the bogus line item charges were anywhere to be seen. And it took him one 15 minute consultation to do all of it. I hired him on the spot… he is my unsung hero! I hope I can say this here… but if anyone in AZ needs carpet and tile call Tanner Materials ask for Harold— they are great! I Can’t say enough how much I appreciate them! My flooring is beautiful & all finished!

So I still have to figure out how to deal with finalizing everything re the other contractor. And our live in caregiver is still living here, but not working here 🤦‍♀️ Life is a complex web of crappy situations. And what I get for not being a hard ass.. but damn it gets hard when people take kindness for weakness and try to abuse it. It wears upon a soul…sigh.

Now for the last step in the restoration. I just need to figure out the best way to assemble the master closet fixtures ie: clothing racks etc. Mom had custom built cabinets before. But I’m not sure I want to put that much back into it… if we will have to sell the house to fund her memory care long term. It’s not really worth it. Any suggestions from this community how I could best outfit a cheaper but still usable master closet … it would be very helpful 🙏

I will be sure to post an end of my ordeal whenever that will be…. Until then…wish me luck! And my thanks to all of you for a space to talk about this. It’s tough when you are alone. Thanks for the help & support ❤️

Hello again, well the saga continues. I have seen a new depth to human greed. I received a message from the contractor saying they had sent an invoice for what I still owed them. I tried to prepare myself before I opened it… but nothing would have worked. They are claiming I still owe them over 10,000 dollars! That means they believe they did 23,000 dollars worth of work. That is beyond INSANE! Tell me.. if you were being charged that amount? Would you think they had earned it.. when you found MOLD under a baseboard they had replaced? Because I DID!! When installing the closet system in the master closet. We had to pull the baseboard for some of it. And there was mold already growing there! Unbelievable… is that what $23,000 dollars gets you these days?!! When I had to remove the toilet to install the tile. You could see the outline of old paint on the wall. I took pictures and notified my insurance adjuster. I am beside myself with frustration & disgust. What are my options here? I always intended to be fair. We went through the line items & they dropped the bogus ones. But clearly adjusted the others to compensate! How do they SLEEP at night?! It would shame me to my toes to comport myself that way. And still look people in the eye…. Unfathomable! 🫨🤬 If I have to pay them that amount… I think it may break something in me. 😖 I am so tired of shady people getting what ever they want & not held accountable for their lack of decency. Having learned a lot since this first started.. & having a perspective of how much they tried to swindle. They used the cheapest quality materials & couldn’t even take a paint chip to Home Depot to match the walls. I guess it was too much for the budget to allow.. huh 🙄

Thank you I had to vent a bit…. But seriously how would you handle this, if it were you? I hadn’t planned on asking for the remainder of the depreciation money. I hadn’t spent all of the first portion. And it will cover the few things I’ve left to do. It didn’t seem right to get the rest. It sure doesn’t FEEL right to get it, just to give it to a rotten contractor. Yes, for all the downright shameful attempts made to manipulate your customer… the only part you EARNED is what you get credit for = ROTTEN.

On a little side note: I’m not 100% certain but I noticed I had a new follower. With just a first name. That happens to be the contractors also. 🤔

" On a little side note: I’m not 100% certain but I noticed I had a new follower. With just a first name. That happens to be the contractors also "

Where?

tmountainhigh:

I would ignore this contractor. Let him know that this will be the most difficult 10K he's ever collected in his life. It is unlikely that he will sue, but if he does, your ignoring him already puts you in a position of strength. This may be one of those deals that are struck on the first day of trial for a couple thousand dollars.

Grow a backbone and quit being a doormat. Kick the live-in caregiver who is related to the contractor and is living there but not working there out. She is probably spying on you and telling the contractor everything that is going on. Why would you let her freeload off of you?

Did you take pictures of everything--like the mold? Life is tough for you because you are letting people take advantage of you and make it tough for you.