“You Did It Wrong” — Irate Homeowner Criticized for Threatening to Not Pay Contractors

A bunch of social media users are accusing a homeowner of trying to weasel out of paying a contractor for completed work.

In a TikTok uploaded by a community account, a homeowner was recorded yelling at a contractor for not being happy with the way they poured a concrete slab in their backyard.

TikTokers who saw the video speculated that the homeowner was pulling a classic con: waiting until after a contractor's job was unfinished to complain about the craftsmanship in an attempt to try and either not pay them for their work or negotiate an altered price.

As a result of the angry customer's outburst, the contractors in question ultimately decided to take sledgehammers to the pad to destroy the work that they performed for the homeowner.

"You did it wrong. And if I have to call somebody to get him out of here to finish this job I will. You know what?? the angry homeowner then takes his smartphone out and begins recording.

The contractor can be seen taking a sledgehammer to the work they presumably completed in the backyard: a leveled, concrete walkway that the man in question was dissatisfied with.

"Here's how he deals with his clients," the man recording the interaction says as he records the man breaking the concrete up with the sledgehammer.

"Brings the whole crew. Whines all day about how he's losing money, and he's busting up a pad that they did wrong. They did it wrong, here they are, these are the guys you wanna watch out for. They did it wrong. They did it wrong," the man can be heard saying as he argues with some of the employees on site.

"They didn't work it out, they're busting it up and I'm calling the police right now," the man says as the employees continue to try and break up the concrete with their sledgehammers.

A number of commenters remarked that they took the side of the contractor, stating that the customer more than likely had multiple opportunities to tell the employees that they weren't performing the work to their liking, but instead allowed them to work, finish the job, and then complain about it after the fact in the hopes of getting the work done for free.

"I'm on the side of the contractor"

"Contractors are tired of not getting paid after they complete the work"

"Well, if he is not getting paid, he can take away his work"

"the contractor said he started complaining AFTER it was done, he watched them do all the work and wanted it for free."

There was one commenter who highlighted how the contractor could've sued the homeowner to put a lien on their home for the work that was completed but went unpaid: "The contractor should sue him to put a lean on his house."

According to Investopedia, construction liens are usually placed against homeowners who refuse to pay contractors. There are a lot of reasons why liens are inconvenient for homeowners, as delineated by the outlet: "A contractor or subcontractor can file a construction lien against a property if the owner has not paid for work done on it....A lien makes it difficult or impossible to sell or refinance a property."

However the outlet goes on to say that ultimately, any type of disputes about the quality of the work that the homeowner has with the contractor needs to be resolved: "If you are dissatisfied with the quality of work done, it's your responsibility to seek a resolution."

Have you ever had an issue with a contractor performing what you felt was shoddy workmanship? Do you feel like you were taken for a ride? Or were you on the other side of the job and ended up getting stiffed from a cheapskate customer?