A Southington woman says she was forced to live in a trailer and blames a contractor who she said failed to finish an addition on her home. She is taking that contractor to court.
Vivian Dobosz said the home was supposed to be a place where she can rest and relax while battling ovarian cancer. Instead, Dobosz is living in a trailer.
"There was nothing. No sheetrock on the ceiling. No sheetrock on the walls. Nothing on the floor," Dobosz said. "They put the siding right over the bathroom window," she added.
Dobosz said her certificate of occupancy was delayed for months because of unfinished work on her home.
"He said he would try to get it all done by Christmas ’07," Dobosz said.
In October, Dobosz said, she hired David Klash of Dave's Siding and Remodeling in Bristol to build an addition and do other renovations.
The Town of Southington inspection report from April points out problems with deck supports, windows, the garage and other issues.
"It's been just such a mess from somebody that said that he was a man of his word, he was going to take care of me. He was going to do everything he could possibly do to make it stress-free so I can get back into my home," Dobosz said.
In a lawsuit, Dobosz claims Klash failed to install two full bathrooms, failed to properly hook up the sewer line and also failed to finish electrical and plumbing work. She's is also suing him for inflicting emotional distress.
"He just was an overpowering, over-demanding man who would just call up and say I want more money," Dobosz said.
Klash's attorney, Konstantinos Diamantis, responded.
"I'm sure, at some point in time, when anyone does any construction work of any kind it is stressful. Intentional infliction, I couldn't even fathom to begin to understand that," Diamantis said.
In the lawsuit, Dobosz claims she paid $73,000 of their $80,000 contracts.
Diamantis said Dobosz bounced two checks. She said it was only one and that she paid the contractor well ahead of schedule and asked him to wait to cash the check so she could transfer money.
Diamantis also said she failed to supply the bathroom fixtures specified in the contract, even though she says the materials were sitting in her shed.
"If you're going to install piping, all that and tubs, you need to install those before you can do your sheet rocking," Diamantis said. He also disputes Dobosz's claim that some work, including buckled siding, was defective.
"It's not unusual to complete work, have an inspection by town inspectors and there's always a punch list. I've never seen too many inspections without a punch list," Diamantis said.
"I would never think that someone would do that to anybody else, not just someone sick, but just to anybody else -- just to leave them flat with a disaster in their house that you can't even live in," Dobosz said.
Jerry Farrell, Connecticut’s consumer protection commissioner, said there is disagreement between the two of them. To avoid such disputes, Farrell said, even small details should be spelled out in a contract.
For large jobs, consumers should consider breaking the work into smaller contracts, he suggested.
Ensure that contracts have benchmarks for when each step should be done and when each payment is due, he recommended.
"You really need to think about hiring an attorney, that somebody who knows the building trades and construction who can get that nitty-gritty level of detail so that if something goes wrong it can be pinpointed who's to blame," Farrell said.
Dobosz hired a new contractor to finish the work.
"Don't always believe in a handshake," she said.
In August, Dobosz received her certificate of occupancy, even though Town of Southington officials said some work inside her home and on her decks still must be finished and re-inspected. She's in the process of moving back in.
