If you own a business in the construction industry, it’s important to accept that you can’t please everyone, all of the time. It’s inevitable, that one day, you will have a client who is unhappy about something. That might be the end client, or it might be someone you are contracting for. Either way, there is a very real risk you could face litigation.
Asking yourself the following questions can help you decide how best to proceed:
1. Is there really an issue, and how difficult is it to solve it?
Clients don’t always understand how things work or are meant to work. Maybe someone rings up complaining something you installed is not working. Perhaps all you need to do is explain how to turn it on.
2. Whose responsibility is the issue?
With so many people involved in your average construction project, it can sometimes be hard to determine where the fault lies. While it’s useful to understand whether or not something is your responsibility, sometimes it is easiest to make solving the issue your responsibility, even when it was not your fault. This could help you to preserve or strengthen a relationship. This can apply even if you have to spend money on doing so. For example, spending $10,000 to remedy someone else’s mistake could be worth it if it helps you retain a million-dollar contract.
On the other hand, sometimes it is important to be clear that you fulfilled your part of the contract and the problem lies with someone else. And sometimes it is important to call someone else out on their errors and push them to comply with their responsibilities.
Learning more about your options, including bringing or fighting against litigation is wise when disputes arise over a construction project.