Missed Deadline Sinks Homeowner Claim

The following article was written by Miami Construction Lawyer Alex Barthet and appeared first on TheLienZone. It was re-posted with permission. For more information about Alex and his firm, please visit www.TheLienZone.com and www.Barthet.com.

See below for some great information we found on homeowner claims. Do not hesitate to call us here at Licenses, Etc.! If we don’t have the information, we can find it for you!

When Florida homeowners sued their window installation contractor, there was some question as to whether the claims were covered by the 4 or 5 year statute of limitations. Unseen defects in the installation of the windows had caused water intrusion damage. The court determined these claims would be governed by the 4-year statute.  Not good news for the homeowners who had missed that deadline. So they presented a novel argument to the court.  They argued that the 4-year statute did not apply to their circumstance since the language in the statute refers to the date of completion of construction by a “licensed contractor” and their contractor happened to not be licensed.

The court disagreed.  It found the language highlighted by the homeowners would make the applicability of a statute turn on the nature of the event that triggers its commencement rather than the subject matter itself.  The court went on to also rule that while an unlicensed contractor may not enforce a contract, he or she is not precluded from defending against an action seeking to enforce a contract.  Bad news for the homeowner.