Warranty void until balance is paid in full.

[Averagesupernova]

As some of you may know I have several times linked to the website www.mikeholt.com. This site is for engineers, electricians, inspectors, etc. Usually my links to this site relate to a more technical in nature subject but in this case it is more about consumer issues.
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Here is the precise issue: http://forums.mikeholt.com/showthread.php?t=182917
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Post #7 on this link brings up the issue in question. Basically it appears to me that what we have are a bunch of electricians that seem to think they should have no responsibility to do quality work from the get-go just as the title of this thread states. Now that perception may be a bit extreme, but why should a consumer pay a bill on something that doesn't work? Granted, if someone has an outstanding bill a year and a half old it may be a bit hard to swallow going back and fixing something that has just quit working in the last week. It also depends on how big the original job was to start with. Was it a new home? Simple light switch replacement?
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Doesn't this eventually equate to: Shoddy work = leverage to get paid. Heck I will just leave a wire off of this 3-way switch on this addition to this house since I suspect I may not be first in line to get paid. You want the switch to work? Cough it up. Unless there is legislation in your city/state to prevent this which of course is brought up elsewhere in the thread I linked to.
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It seems more and more the average consumer has no idea what makes the light turn on or what makes the water run, etc. So there is room for this type of thing to happen in the contractor world.
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My background in electrical construction work includes helping out an electrician from time to time as he needs the help. In my locality I require no license as long as I am working as a helper and the permit for the job is with a licensed electrician. By law I do not require an apprentice license. However if I ever intend to work on my own that would be the place to start. I have taken out a couple of owners permits for my own work. I have worked enough with this electrician to know that foremost on his mind is always the satisfaction of his customers and he would never take the approach of screw the customer until they pay, nor would I.
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Anyone here have experience in this area?

 

[256bits]

Doesn't this eventually equate to: Shoddy work = leverage to get paid. Heck I will just leave a wire off of this 3-way switch on this addition to this house since I suspect I may not be first in line to get paid. You want the switch to work? Cough it up. Unless there is legislation in your city/state to prevent this which of course is brought up elsewhere in the thread I linked to.

Isn't that the duty of the court to decide whether the obligation from either the contractor or the consumer has been fulfilled.
Who wants to pay for shoddy work, and who doesn't want to get paid for a job well done.
Depending on the value of the contract, installments as the work progresses would be industry practice AFAIK so that no on really gets totally screwed if a disagreement flairs up, with the last installment payable upon receivership of a completed functional product.

 

[Averagesupernova]

There is plenty of work done in the industry where there is no written contract. I do see both sides from their own respective limited perspective. Without a contract I can't see why either side should be held to anything. A no contract job is often billed out at the end of the month. From the electricians first work until completion time can stretch out to multiple months.
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No one wants shoddy work and no one wants to forfeit pay. But the fact remains that there IS shoddy work and there ARE deadbeats who don't like to pay.