Has anyone been haveing any problems with the customers finishing the trim outs.
I have had my last 3 jobs finished by the customers. Im getting pissed off, I wire to much on the roughin, like pigtailing every thing out and tapeing up the hots. and making up the panels and the customers have the idea that its easy to trim out and save money sense the jobs are T&M.But you know they dont know were the GFI are to go and they use the cheap box store outlets,& they dont know how to put the wire one the screws & if they use the screws the wire is bent the wrong way around.And do they think im going to warranty a job I dint finish whats wrong with the world today. If it works it must be OK. I had the first lady call me and ask why the micro wave doesn't work and i said because i haven't trimed out the job, So she bitched and hung up. I went over to the house Iwas a block away and she was putting in the plugs and lights.and I explained that the breaker wasn't in. And I left not even getting my temp LTs & gfis back. Wthat i would of just taken when i trimed the house out .Do i send a bill for my Misc. items?

I've had this happen to me. I knew there was an issue when the customer called me and asked what size baseboard heaters I was planning to install. Fortunately I made sure I was paid 90% by the end of the rough. I had a funny feeling.
Another time I had a homeowner finish a few small things in a garage and then call for the finish inpection! What ticked me off was that HE GOT IT!! I was ripped at the inspector but decided to let it go because you don't want to get on the wrong side of these guys.

I have seen instances where the customer wants a breakdown on rough-in and then a finish, I make them sign for all of it up front,get paid up front for all materials and in Minnesota they have to pull a seperate permit for there own work (another 80.00) I will let no one work on my permitted job. Contact your local inspector, they should be able to help protect against that, I understand how it is,A guy does a nice rough in and gets his bid gutted by a homeowner and his buddy (a retired electrician, they spend weeks pumping you for the information needed to finish the job.

I agree with mlk. NO one is working under my permit, especially a homeowner.

I do my rough-ins the same way, but I DO NOT make up the panels with breakers.
A trained monkee could device out one of my roughs.

Why are you guys doing new construction T&M. I can see doing T&M for a friend or relative, but for new residential work contract is the only way to go.
If a homeowner tried to pull that on me the first call would be to my inspector explaining what is going on and that NO ONE but me is to file for a final. If the H-O wants to drop me let them get their own inspection from scratch.

I so agree with speedy, all of the new construction that I do, I always get a signed contract.. it is with the builder not the homeowner, and the inspector will only get the call for the final from me...

p.s. speedy where in ny are you located??

I am about 100 miles N of the city.
From your name can I assume you are from LI?

NO ONE is allowed to work on my job unless I authorize it ~ it is MY insurance on the line. These HO's would have the permits immeadiately yanked, some hate mail from my atty, and a final bill for the job. Language to this effect IS incorporated into the contract that is signed - so when they get taken into court I have my documentation.

I would NOT "fear" the inspector by teling him a thing or two. I pulled the permit, it is my insurance and my livlyhood. I would be "pleasant" to the inspector, but firm...like the old Irish definition of dimplomacy: The art of telling someone to goto hell and having them look forward to the trip.

The next roughin I have I will not finish the panel and I will use a # code on my wires instead of writing what the wire goes to. That will be fun for anyone else and I will not pigtail until the trim out.
But I will consider a contract Price the next time too.

The reason the inspector was not able to help you could be that you did not have a contract with the homeowner, there is very little he could do, In my state we are required to have a contract on all homeowner jobs, no T&M it is part of the consumer protection laws.

How do you get a permit without a contract.

speedy I am from watkins glen, finger lakes area..

Huh, I wouldn't have though the mako were biting out that way.

I love The Finger Lakes region. We used to vacation at a cousin's house on Conesus Lake years ago. Great fishing!
My six year old son is into nascar, and I am into pretty much anything but.
I do love road racing. We want to make it out there some time soon.

I'd send them a letter offering to come back and complete the job - for the agreed upon price (T&M). If they didn't want to do that, then I'd inform them that I was notifying the AHJ that from date "X" to the present, unauthorized work was being done by unqualified individuals under my tag and ask the AHJ to revoke the permit. I'd also ask for the reusable materials (temp lt's & GFCI's) to be returned within 10 business days (in good working condition) or else to be paid for.

Good luck. Don't you love folks that watch DIY shows and are now fully qualified?

even if i had a contract, and the HO did work during that time, I would not like it at all.

I would definately call or write the people and let them know that I was refusing to sign for the work, and notify the AHJ.

At least where I live, only the permit puller can call for inspection.

The customer observed how I did a jobsite receptacle and connected one black and one white to all devices--switches included. It took me more time to un-do and re-do than it would have taken to do the finish. Another customer paid for the rough and then said they would do the finish. I mailed them a letter telling them that my insurance does not cover work done by others and told them to torque the recep screws to the proper pound-inches as recommended by the manufacturer- and check for cross hot-back feed connections on each breaker.

I notified the inspector and he will have the owners file a new homeowners permit for the trim out.I just dont understand how someone would think they are saving money they take a good wiring job and put bad connections on the end of it, One of the jobs need to have the smoke dectors from the new addition tied into the exsistig smokes. that will never get done. & I will never go back to ther place.

I have had a few customers try this on me too. When I think a customer may do this to me, I get a few of the boxes with lots of wires in it and "accidentally" not connect a couple of wires....I just cap them off and hide them behind the other wires. I also mark these down on my note pad and when I come back to do the finished wiring, I correct these "mistakes". If they choose to do it themselves, they will have a fun time troubleshooting.

I've also used the # method that Bossman stated above, and have a cross-reference on my own note pad.

My contract states that any warranties for my work become void if anyone else other than me or my employees finish the work. This usually keeps the customer from considering doing their own work.