As a follow up on Pennsylvania’s contractor registration process, The Pa Attorney General’s website now has the registration page up and running. You can visit http://attorneygeneral.gov/hic.aspx to complete your registration now. Home improvement contractors are required to register by July 1st, 2009. If your business is strictly new home construction, you need not register.
For those of you looking for information on the contractor registration legislation, to be known as the Home Improvement Consumer Protection Act, here are a few key points.
SB100 passed as law in October of 2008, and is currently set to take effect July 1st of 2009. The law sets in place many requirements for home improvement contractors and remodelers. If you do work on an existing home, you are probably affected.
The first requirement of the bill, and probably the most publicized, is the contractor registration process. This will be a publicly accessible database for consumers, and will include detailed business information, such as owner’s name, business address and phone, but will not include the detailed personal information contractors will be required to furnish to the Commonwealth. Contractors will then be issued a certificate by the Commonwealth. Some Key requirements of the bill include minimum liability insurance limits for registration, and a $50 fee.
This registration number will have to appear on all advertisements, contracts, estimates, and proposals. This is where the bill makes the biggest requirements for compliance. The law states, in no uncertain terms, that no home improvement contract will be valid or enforceable unless very specific requirements are met in the contract document. These include the regular stuff that you probably already have, plus limitations on what the down payment can be (in terms of a percentage of the job), all subcontractors names and addresses, the state contractor registration hotline toll free number, and a statement of a 3 day right to rescind.
Further, you will not be able to put in a clause to limit or avoid arbitration, unless it is in a very specific format. Also eliminated completely are hold harmless clauses, waivers of code compliance, waiver of right to a jury trial, an assignment of or order of payment, any clause relieving the contractor of liability, or any provision providing for automatic or recurring renewal of any provision of the contract unless it adheres to very strict outlines within HB 100.
Failure to adhere to the law or its requirements pertaining to contractual documents will give the contractor little strength in the event of a lawsuit. Consult your lawyer on contract requirements and your local HBA or NARI chapter for more information, as they are excellent resources for legislative actions pertaining to our industry.
Submitted by:
T.C. Feick
Sales and Estimating
Green and Sustainable Building Coordinator
Shelly Enterprises
T.C. Feick, Shelly’s Green and Sustainable Building Coordinator located at our Perkasie location has been involved locally in the Bucks/Montgomery Home Builders Association Keystone Green Building Initiative, and recently completed the NAHB Certified Green Professional training course.
If you are struggling with “Green” and what it means to your business or an upcoming project, Shelly’s can help you. If you are building to a green guideline or just looking to incorporate green principles into your existing products, Shelly’s stands ready to help. Many of our products and manufactured goods will help you towards your green goals. Contact your salesperson or T.C. directly for help with implementing green practices into your next project.