Do I have to pay for work done on my home and permission was not given?

Question

I called a company to come out and check my furnace in a home that I am renting to a young man. Once there, they told the renter that it may possibly be leaking carbon monoxide so they told the renter that they would be willing to finance a new furnace because the old one had to go. He said yes and explained that he was not the homeowner but they went ahead and financed him with the gas company and went ahead and put in a new furnace. The next day, they told him the gas company could not approve it because he was not the owner of the home and that the owner would have to finance the furnace, but I am not willing to do that when they should have gotten my permission in the first place. They are wanting him to now pay cash(or credit cards) for the unit but he does not have that kind of money and is willing to pay installments of $50/month which he was apprvd for. Maybe they should come get theirs and bring the old back, but I know it is damaged. What are can i/he do?

I will have to get a new unit but it will be up to me to spend $2,000-$3,000 instead of $4,000 basically for labor. I didn't have a choice in the situation. I have contacted a lawyer and I do have an appointment.

Answer 1

Call your lawyer. You have a vary winnable case.

Answer 2

Why would you even think the tenant should pay the $50 a month that he is agreeing to? It is your house, your furnace, your problem. As a landlord YOU should have set up the service appointment yourself and made sure they knew to contact YOU directly. I wonder if your tenant is telling you the complete truth. Maybe he represented himself as the home owner? What company would remove and replace a furnace without a SIGNED work order? You need to get a working furnace in there or you will be in violation of the landlord tenanat laws of your state. Since the old furnace was removed leaving your tenant without one you will have to do something quickly which is why you need legal advise right away.

Answer 3

First thing is to get copies of anything in regards to any bill or letter that you received either from your renter or the installation company or the gas company, take them to a lawyer,
The ones who checked your furnace did not have authorization to install the furnace seeing that your renter even though he said yes, told them that he was not the owner of the property(get a signed statement from your renter if it is possible). They cannot replace a new furnace with the old one... If they do tell them that they installed it wrong and that it is not working properly.

But first get the papers and information together, and contact a lawyer

Answer 4

Like others said, you definately have a winnable case... but is it worth it taking them to court and having to pay lawyer fees? If you win, the judge may just order them to put the original unit back in and in the end, you would be out $$$ for the lawyer fees.

Try to work it out with them and explain them the situation. If they don't cooperate, let them know you will need to get an attorney involved. They will not want this.

But the question is... if the old one is broken, what are you going to do about it? Fix it or replace it?

Answer 5

Have a simple contract drawn up that will let you include the payment for the new furnace in the rent (if he's will to do it, that is). The obvious problem is, the furnace won't ever be his, so why would he pay you for it? Maybe a solution is for him to pay for part of it, since he screwed up in the first place, and he is reaping some reward for his own mistake...but I don't see him paying the whole thing unless you are going to give it to him when he leaves.

Answer 6

I would definitely take them to a small claims court cause it was done without your consent or permission.

Answer 7

no you don't..but you do have to have a good working furnace for your tenant that is safe.

Answer 8

call a lawyer