Alleged Damage to Floor by Painters

gomertose on 06/02/2016 - 19:23

Hi everyone,

My friend is having the interior of her house painted as she will be putting it on the market. When she got home on Friday, she noticed some marks in her hardwood floor directly under an area where they had been painting. The marks are more than just superficial scratches - I would even call them gouges as they indent the wood. The painters had to move around some of the furniture in areas that they were painting. There are a few light scratches in some of the other areas they were moving furniture from, but nothing to be concerned about there.

http://imgur.com/MCHKTRG
http://imgur.com/G2lNDEJ

My friend is adamant that the gouges were not there prior to painting. She rang the painters to find out what happened, but unsurprisingly they deny causing the damage and claim that the marks were already there prior to painting. My friend would have surely remembered such damage if it had occurred in the past.

My friend is naturally quite upset about events as she has been going through a challenging period after making the tough decision accept a lower paying job across the country and uproot. so she can be closer to family. Preparing her house for market within a very short amount of time has been quite stressful for her.

I am wondering what recourse she has, cos as it stands, it's her word against theirs? The painters have not quite finished the job and will need to return.

Thanks for reading.

Home & Garden

Comments

  • oscargamer on 06/02/2016 - 19:38

    her word against theirs

    on their return, take photos of the area that they will be working in - doesn't help now, but might help if they do it again

  • Randxyz123 on 06/02/2016 - 20:16

    Can you be at your friends house and speak to the painters (especially if you are a guy) and say something similar to

    "Can you please be really really careful about moving the furniture and where you place your ladders around as the house is getting ready to be sold". Sometimes tradies(or anyone salespeople etc) take advantage of people who they think don't know what they are talking about or might be oblivious to things that they probably did.

    The other thing you could do is confront them directly when they come back and they might crumble and admit to it.

    Taking a few photos of the non painted areas is a good idea…

    It's 100% her word against theirs.

    • gomertose on 07/02/2016 - 20:41

      Thanks for the suggestions.

      I don't think I will be meeting them as I will probably be at work the next time they show up. And I am not particularly confrontational. If it was my property, and I was sure I didn't it then I would certainly put more than a word in. But given that it's one word against another and even though I have absolute trust in my friend, it's difficult to get personally involved.

  • eatwell365 on 07/02/2016 - 02:09

    Is this a professional company? Speak to the management that they should do the repair. If you get no satisfaction, report them to the Department of Fair Trading who issues the licence.
    The picture shows they are floating board. Can try a fine art brush and vanish/paint for red wood to touch up.

    • gomertose on 07/02/2016 - 20:22

      I am not sure where she found the painters. I think it was through the real estate agent. I will ask her whether it was a company or a sole trader.

  • gevidian on 07/02/2016 - 10:47

    Were the marked/damaged areas under furniture before hence not visible to the owner?

    • gomertose on 07/02/2016 - 20:26

      Most definitely not. The furniture was put back in roughly their original places. The marks are just on the inside of sliding door, so no furniture as it would have blocked getting in and out. The area of damage is larger than what could be covered by her small entry rug. The painters had to remove a curtain to paint above the sliding door.

      • eatwell365 on 08/02/2016 - 01:34

        From my DYI experience and have seen this before, it is obvious that
        something grindy was left on the floor and moved around at the same spot for a little while.
        Eg. a sharp stone under carpet/rug or a bucket or under the leg of a ladder of tool box.
        Who knows what it is but it can be multif- factorial that one person walked in and out of garden with sand underneath the shoes and left some dirt. Another person placed a bucket on the top without cleaning the floor, a third person kept the buckets moving left and right.
        Not as id it is a direct result damaged from the paint, hard to proof. See if your painter to do it in good faith to touch it up otherwise DYI.

Login or Join to leave a comment
Login Join