An East Haven woman said a lien was placed on her home for not paying a contractor she said did not complete the work.
Karen Burch said there are gaps in her windows and baseboards and crown molding that never were installed, among other things.
Burch hired DTI General Construction out of Southington and work began in May 2005. By December of that year, the company demanded payment, claiming they'd reached substantial completion of the project.
At the time, Burch said the house wasn't connected to water or sewer lines and there were no front steps on the porch, among other problems.
Burch said she did not pay and the work stopped. About one month later, DTI placed a lien on the home for $28,000 and has since tried to foreclose.
By phone, DTI's attorney Robert Ziegler said, "the woman unfortunately is in over her head."
He also said none of the work was improper and called many of the complaints frivolous, saying DTI would have finished the work if she paid them.
Burch could not sue because her contract called for arbitration.
Commissioner Jerry Farrell, of the Department of Consumer Protection, said that consumers should be wary of arbitration clauses.
Farrell said if contractors don't pay rulings against them, consumers still have to go to court for an official judgment before getting help from the state's guaranty fund, which returns up to $30,000 to consumers.
"We would encourage consumers before they sign any type of contract with the builder, go to your attorney, talk to your attorney about whether this is something that's in your best interest. If you do not feel it's in your best interest, see if your attorney can negotiate that out of the contract," Farrell said.
Just this month DTI offered to settle the case by removing the lien without collecting that final payment.
Even though she feels the company owes her more, Burch accepted the offer to avoid the financial cost of arbitration.
While she's now hoping to keep her home, another contractor has told her it will cost more than $50,000 to fix the remaining issues.
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