In a column appearing in on June 7, Professor Amy Boss explained that seemingly straightforward contracts with home repair companies are anything but.
The column focused on the plight of a South Philadelphia townhouse owner who has been stymied in his efforts to hold a roofing contractor accountable for property damage resulting from ongoing leaks.
Roofing work involves the sale of materials, covered by laws such as the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act or the Uniform Commercial Code, as well as services, covered chiefly by common law, Boss explained. The combination of both in a single contract makes it harder to hold roofing contractors accountable, Boss said.
Although a contractor could readily be held accountable for a negligent installation that caused personal injury, Boss said, “there’s no similar bright-line rule for property damage.”
A leading authority on commercial law and contracts, Boss is a member of the Council of the American Law Institute and the co-author of “ABCs of the UCC: Article 2! Leasing,” now in its third edition.