After reading all the comments here, I have a few thoughts to share from a 20+ year construction contractor, homebuilder and professional
carpenter.
As to recourse, this is a civil matter in my opinion. (This would certainly be the opinion of law enforcement and the Crown Prosecutor's office here; I defer to differences in jurisprudence in the US however.)
For the act to have been criminal, you'd have to prove that the contractor had no intention of completing the
work, or acted in bad faith at the beginning of the job/time of execution of the
contract. I don't believe you'd win that argument, as
work was performed. Shoddy work is unfortunately not criminal.
If I were in your position, I would pursue in small claims court, unless the sum exceeds the small claims limit in that jurisdiction (in Alberta the limit is $50K, beyond which you would need to proceed via a higher court). These types of cases are tried in small claims courts all over the world, every day.
As to the process of hiring and contracting an individual or company to do this kind of work: of course performing due diligence to the best of your ability is crucial. Asking the bidding contractor for
references and asking local suppliers etc. questions about the reputation of said contractor will often point clearly in the direction of a good choice.
In my business, which has covered everything from small jobs of a couple thousand dollars value, up to new custom home construction in the $800's+, there are certain steps taken to protect both client and contractor, and all steps are clearly outlined and agreed upon in advance.
The bid and subsequent
contract will define the
scope of work in specific terms, including type and style of materials used, methods of construction, etc.
There will also be a schedule of specific exclusions; things which are expressly NOT included in the bid
price and
scope.
The time-to-complete or
delivery schedule for work will also be defined. There will certainly be clauses included to allow for an adjustment to the schedule for any number of reasons; these may include
weather, availability of materials, acts of God, etc. For example, about 12 years ago here in Alberta, one of the major facilities that supplies cement to the concrete industry went down for a significant
overhaul; concrete was in short supply for months, affecting construction projects drastically. This was completely out of the control of builders/contractors, and
delivery dates for all kinds of projects had to be ammended.
The schedule for payment of work will define at which stages of completed work the client is required to make a payment. (This would not apply to short-scope jobs (I'm not going to start a job on Monday, expect a progress payment on Wednesday, and close out the job on Friday afternoon), but can be any schedule the client and contractor agree upon in advance.) This will outline milestones in the
project when the client will review the work-to-date with the contractor, and pay the progress payment due. The values of these are totally dependent on the scope of work and schedule.
Typically, a deposit WILL be required. It is usually 10% of the value of the bid, and due upon signing of the contract. A contract involving payments requires a financial interest by both parties in order to be binding. Some might argue that a deposit of $1 secures financial interest, and this argument is technically correct, however... a reasonable deposit of 10% assures the contractor that the client is acting in good faith, and likely has the means and intent to pay for the work. A deposit of this nature should not be seen as a red flag, and in fact is more likely if dealing with a reputable contractor than not.
In many jurisdictions, a company or individual who receives deposits prior to commencement of work must be registered with the province/state, or possibly even required to carry a bond specifically for this purpose. On jobs of very large scope (typically $1M+), the client may require the contractor to secure a performance bond specific to that
project only. (This is getting into rarified territory probably not relevant here.)
Some items may require an ADDITIONAL deposit. High value, custom made items (in my case, a full set of kitchen & bath cabinets for a house, which might range from $10K to $75K, for example) may require a deposit of 25-50% of the value of that component, payable on client approval of design/materials, and placement of order to the supplier. This again will be detailed in the bid and contract, in advance.
Any terms of warranty of materials and workmanship will also be clearly outlined; there may be local/state/provincial/federal legislation which covers this in some regard. There may be several levels of warranty coverage to protect you (for example, if I installed a door in your home, I would warrant my workmanship and basic materials for 1 year, however the door itself may carry a 5 year warranty from the manufacturer as well, and the latch & lockset perhaps 2 years from that manufacturer, etc.).
Holdbacks: the final piece of the puzzle is a standard (in my industry) holdback, usually 10%, kept by the client until ALL work is completed satisfactorily by the contractor. In practice, the holdback is applied at each progress draw; if you owe $10K at a progress draw, you actually pay $9K, reserving the last 10% to be released at the end.
There are avenues to protect the client in case of poor work, subsequent failure of the work, etc. This may be a provincial/state Consumer Protection branch, or in my case additionally the New Home Warranty program, etc., before finally resorting to civil court if needed.
There are avenues to protect the contractor as well, including a formal work stoppage pending payment of progress monies due, various Lien Acts allowing the contractor to place a Lien on the title of the house/car/object being worked on in case of non-payment, and again, via the courts.
I hope this helps shed some light on the process; I recognize that most people don't engage in this type of transaction regularly, and it can be overwhelming for some. While the above is relevant to residential and
commercial construction work, all the same principles can apply to any work you are contracting with an individual or company to perform for you, on a
boat or elsewhere. The basic process of fixing your boat is not really different than renovating your kitchen.
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