Seniors and people with physical
disabilities often have difficulties with general home maintenance
tasks such as cleaning, laundry, changing beds, and yard maintenance
amongst others.
Local professionals are generally
available and very often will allow special senior discounts if they
are asked.
Be sure to get references from
anyone that you employ to do services. Check those references,
make sure that any contractor is properly insured and if they are
going to do any sizeable job, make sure that they are bonded.
If the contractor is bonded and they fail to perform their duties,
the bonding company can be forced to pay for another contractor to
come in and finish the job.
When looking for a contractor, you
should always check to make sure that they are properly insured. Do
not assume that they are insured just because they are in
business. If the contractor is not properly insured, you can
potentially run the risk of liability if an accident occurs.
Kind of insurance you should check on include:
Workman's compensation - If
one of the contractor's employees is injured on your property,
workman's compensation will cover the medical costs and time off
from work. Without workman's compensation, an injured employee
is likely to sue you for those costs.
Most employers are required by law
to carry workman's compensation insurance and they can get into
trouble if they don't. But don't make the assumption that they
are in compliance.
Property damage - If you
hire a contractor that damages your property or that of a neighbor
while performing their tasks, their property damage insurance will
cover repair or replacement.
The contractor would still be
liable for property damage, even without insurance. But
collecting from the contractor could end up being a very big
problem.
There are other types of insurance
that may be specific to the tasks that you are considering. Be
sure to ask potential contractors about all the insurance that they
carry.
Checking Prices
Never,
ever sign a contract for services until you have at least
three estimates in hand.
Sure, the salesman may tell you
that this deal only happens if you sign at this moment. If he
wants your business that bad, he will be back. If he refuses
to make the deal at another time, he is applying too much pressure
and he probably knows his prices are too high. Walk away.
