February 28, 2025
Learn how to protect yourself during home improvement season with our guide on the Illinois Home Repair and Remodeling Act. Understand contract requirements, consumer rights, and steps to avoid contractor fraud. Stay informed to ensure your home projects are secure and legally compliant.
The spring and summer are popular seasons to finally get around to those much-needed home repairs and home improvement projects around the house. Sometimes, these projects require hiring local contractors, so it is essential to understand your rights and what you need to be aware of before jumping right into the work.
In Illinois, the Home Repair and Remodeling Act governs what people engaged in home repair and remodeling must do to properly conduct their business. According to the Act, those engaged in such business and are going to be completing work for over $1,000.00 must “furnish to the customer for signature a written contractor or work order that states the total cost, including parts and materials listed with reasonable particularity and any charge for an estimate.” The contract shall also “state the business name and address of the person engaged in the business of home repair or remodeling.”
Therefore, before any contractor furnishes work on your home, it is advisable to make sure their proposed work is in writing. Having a written contract allows you to hold them accountable and have a course of action if the contractor were to breach that contract at any point down the road.
Furthermore, if your contractor does furnish a contract or work order, but they do not list the parts and materials needed to complete the project with reasonable particularity – or if they omit the business name or address – you should ask them to update the contract or work order prior to signing.
Prior to a contractor engaged in the business of home repair and remodeling commencing work on your home for a contract over $1,000.00, the contractor should also provide you with a consumer rights brochure, pursuant to the Act.3.
Along with this brochure, the contractor shall have you sign a separate acknowledgment form confirming receipt of the brochure. To know what to look for, the brochure should start with the heading “Home Repair: Know Your Consumer Rights.”
The brochure described above will include a variety of information to properly inform you of your rights as a consumer, including information about avoiding fraud, contracts, basic terms to be included in contracts, and other relevant information. Read this brochure thoroughly before allowing the contractor to commence any work on your home.
Back in January 2024, a contractor was arrested after allegedly committing home repair fraud against several Lake County residents. Several homeowners went into business with a contractor that never began any work on their homes, scamming them out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The state’s attorney’s office charged the contractor with multiple felonies, and the victims still have not been reimbursed for their losses.4
To prevent these types of situations, you want to be as diligent as possible before entering into any contract with a contractor to perform home improvement projects.
Simply understanding the rights of consumers in Illinois can give any homeowner adequate power to prevent situations like those above. However, in the event you are a victim of a fraudulent contractor, be sure to contact an attorney right away.
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