Do any of you verify property boundaries or ownership before starting a job?

[Gamma]

I've been wondering about the following:

1. Do any of you go to the trouble of verifying property lines/boundaries before you start a job such as mulching brush or constructing a driveway for example?

2. What about verifying who the legal owner of the property is prior to starting a job?

I'd hate to do a job and then afterwards find out that the person who hired you to do the job does not even own the property but is the renter and then refuses to pay for the work you did. Or you find out that what you thought was the property line wasn't, and you ended up installing a driveway on someone else's property or you did something like cut an acre of brush off the neighbors property and you won't get paid for it.

How do you guys handle these type of situations?

Rory

 

[tlbuser]

Not in the muching stuff yet, just excavating work. Yes, to both. We ask the owner for a copy of their survey and then walk the boundaries. Not too concerned about being a little over or under. And the names have to match. We are basically, in a trusting nature business and can easily get bitten. I doubt you could find a judge that would rule in your favor if you signed a contract with a non-owner. Collecting from a non-paying client is the worst part of any business and anything we can do to help our bottom-line is a good thing.

 

[HappyCPE]

My employer lost $20 million because we did a massive amount of sitework on land for a developer that, as it turned out, he didn't own. The project was in Russia, so the courtroom battles and the details are extreme and surreal, but the bottom line is, yes, you need to do some kind of verification to protect yourself and your client. The only contractor I ever had who didn't do some verification presented me with a waiver of liability to sign in case he did his work incorrectly.

 

[Builder]

I put a clause in all my contracts that says the owner must supply the builder with a plot plan showing all setbacks. If there's any ambiguity, I make them get it surveyed.

 

[Johnagain]

I always check the county tax records for ownership and deminsions. I was misled one time and ended up going back over the property to finish what the owner didn't even know he owned. I had to show him his property lines.