The NYS Home Improvement Contractors Law, which may be found in Article 36-A of the General Business Law, sets out certain requirements that apply to all contractors working in New York State. Certain Home Improvement Contact violations could indeed lead to criminal fraud problems, so it is important that you familiarize yourself with its terms.
To begin, a clear, written contract is essential. Many contractors like to work without having first hammered out a written agreement with their clients. This may be efficient and it could feel more natural if there is a close relationship between contractor and client, but it could lead to legal trouble.
In the absence of a valid contract document, the government may suspect you of trying to deceive your client. When your bill turns out to be higher than the client expected, that client may get angry and argue that you swindled him. In this scenario, you could be liable for charges related to unlawful business practices.
Contacts should include the contractors’ name and address; without this contact information, authorities may think that you intentionally made yourself difficult to locate after potentially overcharging for your services. Along these same lines, the work you are to perform should be clearly spelled out in the contract.
Failure to adhere to any of these requirements could give rise to the impression that you meant to misrepresent your intentions and your services in order to make an illegitimate profit.
At Joseph Potashnik & Associates, we understand that most contractors do their best to perform honest work, even when they do not include every possible detail in a written agreement.
If you may have a fraud or related problem concerning your contracting business, call us today at 212-577-6677 for a confidential consultation.