Who's at fault?

[AndyA]

I'm having work done on my house, and was told I needed to remove small items like lamps, pictures, books, etc. from the rooms where the work was to be done. The installers would move all of the larger items, like furniture, chairs, beds, etc. that needed to be moved out of the way to do the work.

The company advised me their installers were insured and bonded against any damages, and would be very careful of the house and personal belongings.

The installers brought in their materials, tools, etc., through the front door and carried them back to the area of the house where they were working. In doing so, they left the front door open. We closed the front door several times, and at one point I closed it for them just after they entered, saying, "I'm going to close this to keep the leaves out" since it was windy and some leaves were blowing in.

Even after that, they continued to leave the front door open even though they were no longer bringing things into the house. A gust of wind blew through the open door and knocked a crystal vase off a table sitting in the entry foyer against the wall. I have double front doors and a wide entry foyer which opens into the living room, and since they weren't working in this area and weren't close to the table when entering or exiting, it never occurred to me that everything in the foyer needed to be moved.

The company is saying I should have anticipated that this could happen, and should have taken the precaution of moving the vase before it was broken. My response was that in that case, customers would have to basically move out completely, and that if the things in the foyer were in the way, the installers should have asked to have them cleared so they could move the furniture out of the way, which is what I was told they would do.

I feel the installers are responsible, as they were the ones who kept leaving the front door open, even after they saw me close it and comment that leaves were blowing in.

This company has been in business for many years, and their employees are supposedly very experienced. One other piece of furniture was damaged while being moved by the installers, and this was pointed out to them while they were still holding the furniture. The company has agreed to repair the damaged furniture, but said the vase isn't their responsibility since the installers didn't actually knock it off the table. Would like to know what others think.

[Callmecrazy]

1. You know, companies will always argue...

and say that it wasn't their fault, but just have them give you their insurance and work it out with them.
The insurance company will probably cover it and you don't have to get in a big fight with the contractor while they are working in your home. Plus, you post on a discussion board with over 200,000 registered users who will know that his company is not on the level and that could be very bad for business if it got out.

[nolabear]

2. +1. Of I had a nickel for every time that happened

Well, I'd have a few nickels anyway. Don't take no for an answer and remind them that their reputation is worth more than thT vase.

[Adsos Letter]

3. I was a painting contractor.

My company would have replaced that vase, had my guys shown the bad form of leaving the door open unnecessarily so that the wind could knock it over.

[AndyA]

4. Thanks for the responses.

I'll definitely ask them if this is worth the bad PR they're going to get. I've already told them that homeowners/customers should be able to expect that contractors take reasonable efforts to secure their homes and that leaving the front door wide open unattended isn't a reasonable step to secure the premises.

They already know I use online reviews, as I mentioned to them earlier that I chose them based on their mostly good reviews online. I kind of feel like most if not all customers would not want someone working in their house that would leave the front door wide open and unattended for long periods of time.