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Job Theft on a Construction Site

December 28, 2007  |  from Markup and Profit Blog

A contractor called recently with a question about what to do with a homeowner complaint that some of their liquor has been stolen (just the liquor - the bottle was left behind).

He had two subs on the job site during the time when this “theft” took place, and that he had to deal with a customer that was behaving unusually. He asked several times when she bought the bottle of Old Grand Dad, but she never gave a direct answer. Which leads one to believe that the owner is not sure exactly when the booze disappeared. Perhaps we have an inside job?

This is a tough one to deal with. I would, and did, suggest that he replace the bottle with a new one. Even if it was an “inside job”, the cost of setting the matter straight was minor. He should also tell the owner that if it happens again, he was going to have the bottle dusted for fingerprints and try to find the culprit that way. That might cause any “inside job” problems to disappear quickly.

But since it could have been one of his subs, I also suggested he send a registered letter to the owner of each of the specialty companies telling them what happened. Tell them that while he could not prove who drank the booze, he had narrowed the possibilities down to those two crews. Ask the owners of those companies, nicely, to keep their eye on those crews for future problems of this kind. Make sure they know all the facts - it’s only a possibility their crew was involved, not a sure thing.

I talk about my experience with job theft in our book “Profitable Sales, A Contractor’s Guide“. In this case, the “theft” of a pair of diamond earrings was an inside job, but it took a private investigator to reveal it.

Fortunately, job theft is rare but it does need to be investigated and dealt with, using all the tact and diplomacy you can muster. Unless you catch the perpetrator in action - I don’t think I’d worry about tact or diplomacy with a red-handed thief.

The Sub-Contractor Manual helps you define your relationship with all sub-contractors. The paragraph titled “Our Commitment to the Customer” explains in no uncertain terms that your commitment to personal property protection is one of your highest priorities and under no circumstances will it be compromised. Having a written sub-contractor agreement in place with all your subs makes these issues easier to address.

Filed: Risk-Insurance