Tile shop stuffed up and now won't fix it, $12000 to fix!

[slothful1]

Hi, This is my brothers property but it's a major problem so I am posting here in case anybody has any experience with something like this.

The end result is that all the tiles in the bathroom and laundry room are completed and there are obvious differences in the shade of the tiles.

The colour difference was not visible until work was completed and the tiles where cleaned off.

Photo of it is attached..

Doesn't look bad as such, but it would definitely be a problem when it comes time to selling.

It will need to be redone and the tiler has quoted $12000 using the same tiles and all work completed. All of the tiles will need to be taken off and it needs to be started again.


It's been 3 long months of waiting and the tile shop wants to pay only $5000 of the $12000

I realize that legal advice should be sought, but with all of the experience on somersoft I'm hoping someone can point us in the right direction..

I won't name the tile shop at this point.

 

[GreenMedallion]

Ouch!

Does the tile shop only want to pay $5000 as that was the price of the tiles?

 

[pinkboy]

I have come across this situation before. Getting $5000 out of the tile shop is what I would consider generous. All tile shops have a disclaimer along the lines of 'no responsibility taken for different shades of tiles - up to the purchaser to check tile batch are correct'.

I would be asking the tiler to pony up the rest, as they are also partly responsible to check all tile boxes have the correct batch numbers before commencing. The tiler should have insurance to cover this, however he won't be a happy chappy!

Did your brother pay cash or does he have Tax Invoice from the tiler? I think you would have a case against the tiler moreso than the tile shop, and should graciously accept the $5k and get the rest out of the tiler.

pinkboy

 

[mattnz]

I can't say I have experienced this.

If the tiler is trying to sell you their time at full price, i.e. $12k for the tiler's time, thats just tough luck for them. They screwed up in a professional capacity and owe you their time to fix it.

Did you purchase and provide the tiles to the tiler, or did the tiler arrange this themselves?

Alternatively, does the tiler work for / was recommended by the tile shop?

 

[Ace in the Hole]

Was the tiler working in a really, really dark room?

Easy to say in hindsight, but still, a good tradesman paying attention to detail should have picked up the discrepancy well before the job was complete.

 

[vaughan]

Did you purchase and provide the tiles to the tiler, or did the tiler arrange this themselves?

That's the big question.

 

[Doovalacky]

Why were not the batch/color codes on the boxes checked first by the tiler?
Why was the tiles not laid out and mixed up between packs before use? Your supposed to do that to hide minor variations. Any major variations as pictured should have been seen then.

If its only some tiles you do not have to replace them all assuming you can match the existing ones. You can remove the ones that are different and just replace them plus a few extra that may be damaged during the removal.

I would consider it lucky to get 5k from the tile shop.

 

[slothful1]

Thanks everyone for the input, this will help alot in moving forward.

Did you purchase and provide the tiles to the tiler, or did the tiler arrange this themselves?

Tiles where personally purchased from the tile shop, and given to the tiler who was chosen separately. Tiler does not work for the tile shop.

Was the tiler working in a really, really dark room?

Easy to say in hindsight, but still, a good tradesman paying attention to detail should have picked up the discrepancy well before the job was complete.

The tilers checked the batch numbers, laid out it was impossible to tell the colour variation and even the representatives from the tile shop agreed that the same mistake would have been made by even the most experienced tiler.

If its only some tiles you do not have to replace them all assuming you can match the existing ones. You can remove the ones that are different and just replace them plus a few extra that may be damaged during the removal.

The tiler and the owner both agreed that everything would have to be started from scratch and they could not pull out the offending tiles without compromising the finished product.

I would be asking the tiler to pony up the rest, as they are also partly responsible to check all tile boxes have the correct batch numbers before commencing. The tiler should have insurance to cover this, however he won't be a happy chappy!

Did your brother pay cash or does he have Tax Invoice from the tiler? I think you would have a case against the tiler moreso than the tile shop, and should graciously accept the $5k and get the rest out of the tiler.

Ta pinkboy, Still have tax invoice, It looks like we are stuck in bad position, everyone agrees it was impossible to see the difference before, and the tiler checked the batch numbers before putting them on the wall.
The owner of the tile shop agreed it would be impossible to see the difference yet changed his tune when put into an email.

I guess the question is, was it really impossible to see the difference in colour before they went on the wall? if it was impossible, then how do we seek compensation? or maybe the answer is to to take the $5000 and just bite it..

Million odd dollar property so leaving it as is isn't an option..

 

[fernfurn]

Had this problem with a townhouse and offwhite floor tiles. Boxes even had different batch numbers. I ordered them and picked them up, tiler never checked. You could notice the difference a bit when they were laid and the tiler certainly didnt try to mix them up. I assumed it was my fault for not following through the different batch numbers and what that would mean. I didnt worry about it and the house sold for a record price (a while ago now) and the people in it never complained to me so I assume they never noticed. They were an older couple so perhaps the eyesight was not as good, or just that they thought it was a variation not to be worried about

 

[The Y-man]

Doesn't look bad as such, but it would definitely be a problem when it comes time to selling.

Are renovating to sell, or is the selling bit a fair way into the misty future?

If it's in the future, maybe take the $5k and invest it somewhere.

Who knows, by the time it comes to sell, these tiles might be considered totally butt ugly anyway, and you may need to replace them with mission brown tiles with burnt orange highlights....

The Y-man

 

[slothful1]

Are renovating to sell, or is the selling bit a fair way into the misty future?

The option to sell should be left open, also everything else in the place is perfect and this really sticks out and has to be fixed.. Leaving it as is won't be an option.

 

[Terry_w]

I think you are very lucky the tile shop is offering to pay the $5k. Most wouldn't.

 

[Perp]

The difference looks pretty obvious now; it seems to defy credulity that it wasn't noticeable before the tiles were laid.

Under consumer law, it would appear that you lose your right to remedy when you installed the tiles (see NSW Office of Fair Trading website: "You cannot reject goods when the goods have been attached to other property and cannot be removed without damage").

In such a case, I'd think the onus was jointly on the purchaser and the tiler to detect the difference, but you're probably going to have difficulty obtaining any better remedy via legal channels than you've already been offered.

I'd take the $5K and use it to get all the tiles treated to make the colour uniform, e.g. http://www.refinishing.com.au/TileResurfacing.htm (I haven't used this company and don't necessarily recommend them, but linked to them only because they have images showing resurfaced tiles.)

 

[slothful1]

Yeah, I know what you mean, it looks obvious in the photo. The thing is, even when the photos where taken, the difference wasn't seen. This got past two tilers, and the owner without being seen, until the lighting changed..

My brother has decided to just take the cash as a new set of tiles from the tile shop. Anything else would require wasting to much time, it's taken too long anyway.

I've gotta say that the comments here have made the decision easier for him to move forward. I appreciate all the knowledge, hopefully one day I have the knowledge to help someone else here! Thanks again y'all..