Who REALLY needs protection?...

Consumers are not dumb.  That's right - consumers are not dumb.

Even more importantly - they do not need to be saved from themselves!

People ask me why I hate (yes, hate is a strong word, but I doubt I can use any lesser word) the construction industry so much and all I can say is that it's not a fair industry.

What other industry do you know of where external consultants, an engineer for example, is employed and instructed by the clients, designs his work and then the builder has to build it in accordance with those designs and then it's the builder who has to provide the warranty. 

We're not engineers.  How do we know if the design that the engineer has drawn is adequate?  Why should I have to provide warranty for that?  And....the warranty lasts 6 or 7 years!!

Where's the fairness in that?

What other industry do you know of where the clients fuck-arse around making decisions (selecting a tile, for example), doesn't make their decision in a timely manner thus severely affecting the critical path and blows out the construction program, then refuses to pay the delay costs associated with the delay THEY created?

Where's the fairness in that?

In this state we have Department of Fair Trading and the Consumer Tenancies and Traders Tribunal.  They are consumer protection devices because apparently consumers need protecting.

Well, I ask, WHERE IS MY PROTECTION???

I have a client who has delayed my progress on HIS house by 94 days.  That delay costs somewhere around $1,200 PER DAY, and that's not even counting the cost of missed opportunity because I'm stuck on his shitty house. 

That client now owes me $140k (in very loose round numbers).  Where is my protection against that? 

The client refuses to pay. 

I still have to hand him a completed house whilst he owes me all this money? 

I ask again, Where is my protection against that?

Now, I have to go and spend the equivalent in legal fees to recoup the delays costs I'm entitled to recoup.

How is that fair, I ask???

I have another client who's house was completed and handed to them over 12 months ago now.  Twelve months after they've been living in and enjoying their new home they decide to launch proceedings in a jurisdiction against us for....wait for it....our delay is delivering them a completed house.  They've also claimed for variations they agreed to (in writing might I add), and defects.  Their claim amounted to $150k or thereabouts.

Where is the fairness in them being able to do this 12 MONTHS AFTER THEY MOVED IN??

What's more, the variations they're trying to claw back WERE AUTHORISED IN WRITING BY THEM.

What's more even still, they never even notified us of any defects so how were we supposed to deal with them?

Where, again I ask, is the fairness in that.

So, what do I need to do?  What anyone who's the defendant in a $150k suit does.  Defend themselves!

So, I'm forced to go and spend almost the equivalent defending myself.

The clients forget all the work we did that we didn't get paid for.  The clients forget all the margins we forewent just so we can get the job done quicker and help their budgets.  The clients forget about all the information they never provided to us in the hope they could trick us and force us to provide things that we never knew about in the beginning.  The clients forget about all the changes they made during construction, and all the times they took forever and a day to make decisions, that all cause a knock on effect in the delivery program for the house.

Again, I ask....where is the fairness?

Where is MY protection against the consumer's stupidity??? 

The consumer does not need to be saved from me - rather, it is I who needs to be saved from the blasted consumer.


Till next time...