Edwin and Alan
Edwin hired Alan to professionally finish the floorboards in his house. Alan sanded and polished the floors and sent Edwin an invoice for the amount he had quoted. However, Edwin refused to pay. Alan then started legal action to recover the debt and the Local Court referred the matter to mediation with CJC.
At mediation, Edwin explained Alan�s quote had included making sure the level of the flooring near the kitchen was even with the yet-to-be tiled kitchen floor. This had not happened yet and he therefore wasn�t prepared to pay the invoice. Alan explained to Edwin that the new tiles would raise the kitchen floor by several millimetres. Raising the wooden floor by this amount would involve removing, raising and reinstalling the floorboards and joists, which was very expensive and had definitely not been included in the quote, which was just to sand and polish the floors.
After lengthy discussion, Edwin realised he would not be able to prove to the court that Alan agreed to make the wooden floor level with the kitchen tiles. Alan agreed to discount his invoice in order to save court costs. They agreed on a price and Edwin paid straight away.