Contractor Must Return Deposit for Uncompleted Work
📌 In brief
The claimant hired a contractor to pour a concrete driveway and walkways. The contractor did not complete the work and only returned part of the deposit. The Civil Resolution Tribunal ruled the contractor must return the remaining deposit.
⚖️ Legal holding
A contractor must complete the agreed work or return the deposit if they fail to do so.
📖 Technical summary
The claimant is entitled to the return of the remaining deposit due to the respondent's failure to complete the agreed work.
📚 Full judgment
The summary, holding and questions above are VadeLab’s own material. The official decision itself is published by the court, and we do not reproduce it on this page.
⚖️ What tends to weigh in cases like this
✅ Tends to be accepted
- The applicants were entitled to a refund because the contractor fundamentally breached the contract by refusing to complete the work.
- There was a valid agreement between the parties despite the lack of a formal written contract.
- The applicants did not clearly refuse to pay the additional cost for widening the driveway.
- The contractor was properly named in the dispute as a registered general partnership.
- The applicants were entitled to reimbursement for the Civil Resolution Tribunal fees.
❌ Tends to be rejected
- The contractor's argument that the applicants refused to pay additional costs was not accepted.
- The applicants' claim for garnishment expenses was rejected because they were incurred unreasonably.
- The applicants' claim for a registered mail expense related to the garnishment order was dismissed.
Patterns observed in similar cases in this collection — every case is unique.
❓ Frequently asked questions
What did this decision decide?
The contractor must return the remaining deposit for uncompleted work.
What was the dispute about?
The claimant hired a contractor to pour a concrete driveway and walkways, but the work was incomplete and only part of the deposit was returned.
How did the court decide, and why?
The court decided the contractor must return the remaining deposit because they failed to complete the agreed work.
Which laws or rules were applied?
No specific laws or rules were cited in the decision.
What was the argument that mattered most?
The claimant argued that the contractor fundamentally breached the contract by failing to complete the agreed work.
Was the decision for or against the person who brought the case?
The decision was for the claimant.
What does this mean for someone in a similar situation?
If a contractor fails to complete the agreed work, they must either complete the work or return the deposit.