Leaky roof dispute ends with $3,700 judgment

More than three years after patching up a leaky roof, a Coquitlam company is set to get paid for their work plus interest, following a recent Civil Resolution Tribunal decision.

In May 2022, Phoenix Restorations Ltd. did emergency roof repairs on a strata property owned by Alison Buchanan.

Following that initial job, a company representative told Buchanan that a proper fix would cost $3,119 and would need to be authorized by whoever was going to pay.

Buchanan sent an email outlining the situation to Boston Construction Corp.

In June, Boston’s project manager emailed Buchanan and copied Phoenix.

“In the email, Boston authorized Phoenix to proceed with the repairs and advised it to send the invoice directly to Boston’s project manager,” according to the tribunal decision.

Phoenix finished the job and sent out an invoice in July.

While there were no complaints about the work, there was a dispute about who should pay.

Buchanan contended that Boston owed Phoenix. However, Boston held that the strata property’s developer owed the money.

The developer was not a party to the dispute.

Boston “did not provide any evidence to support this argument,” concluded tribunal vice-chair Andrea Ritchie.

After accepting Phoenix’s offer, Boston breached a binding contract.

“Phoenix provided the repair work and Boston promised to pay,” Ritchie wrote.

Besides the initial costs, Boston was ordered to pay $421 in interest and to reimburse Phoenix for $175 in tribunal fees. The company was ordered to pay Phoenix a total of $3,715.

As this was a civil matter, Phoenix had to prove its claims on a balance of probabilities.