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Eye on the Industry: New Hampshire Legislators Try to Protect Consumer Rights
In This Section:
New Hampshire Legislatures Trying to Curb Consumer Abuses
In 2004, the Consumer Protection Bureau in New Hampshire received 313 complaints against contractors and remodelers, making fly-by-night contractors the number one complaint.
Calls for regulation are growing stronger in the Live Free or Die state. One Senate and three House bills relating to home contractors are on the table this legislative session and they have — to some extent — the support of members from both parties, the Attorney General, the Home Builders and Remodelers Association of New Hampshire (HBRANH), the Building Officials Association, and a former legislative clerk, Leo Callahan of Dover, who has collected the names of 30 bilked homeowners set on testifying in favor of a license requirement.
Laws in the Works
New Hampshire House Bill 177 (also known as the Study Bill) sets forth requirements for home improvement contracts exceeding $5,000. This bill would establish a committee to study the feasibility of licensing residential building and remodeling contractors.
“The HBRANH’s goals for the Study Bill are to have the legislative committee review several issues including: 1) residential building and remodeling contractors’ licensing programs in other states; 2) the introduction of a 'Contract for Construction' law; 3) the feasibility of licensing programs which contain a continuing education program; and 4) the concept of a state-wide residential building code for site-built construction,” says HBRANH’s Executive Director Kendall Buck
If the House passes a Study Bill, a committee will also look at the feasibility of creating a reimbursement fund for bilked consumers that some states like Massachusetts already have. The committee would report on Nov. 1, but the law would not be in place until 2006 if it is approved.
Also, among home improvement contractors and building inspectors, support for some type of license requirement has increased, but some said it could take time to convince those who feel regulation "is not the New Hampshire way."
“While the official policy of our association is against builder licensing, we are prepared to investigate developing a comprehensive program as detailed in our study bill,” said Buck. “A sense of the members who are attending membership meetings leans towards adopting a comprehensive program. We are adamant that any licensing program include educational, continuing education and testing requirements. We would hope to pattern this around the NAHB designation curriculum.”
Another House bill (number not yet available) outlines requirements dissatisfied consumers must follow before they can file a lawsuit for defective construction against the contractor. The bill requires homeowners to notify builders of alleged construction defects prior to filing lawsuits and also requires a timeframe to give builders an opportunity to address defect concerns. Most importantly, for consumers, the bill preserves the right for homeowners to sue if they are not satisfied.
“Our Consumers Notice & Opportunity to Repair bill is modeled after other bills that we feel have the elements that will suit New Hampshire and is directed as much to builders and remodelers as it is to their customers,” said Buck.
To date, approximately 24 states have adopted this type of legislation and other states are developing their own versions.
But will these bills and laws help the consumer in the end? According to Buck, when it comes to legislatures trying to pass laws to protect consumers, “our stance is that laws of that nature are not for the professionals in our industry who provide quality products and services. Consumer protection laws are aimed at the less than qualified and scrupulous individuals and companies in our industry. Unfortunately, you cannot legislate against crooks or stupidity.”
Demand for Building Materials to Remain High in 2005
Although a new NAHB survey indicates that building materials shortages have eased somewhat in recent months, economists at a press briefing at the 2005 International Builders’ Show in Orlando, FL, cautioned that builders should brace themselves for another tight market in 2005. Read the article from Nation’s Building News here.
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