Is there a level of workmanship for all of your clients or just some?
Hi Diana!
Prior to hiring a contractor, always make sure that they have General Liability insurance (covers 3rd party property damage and bodily injury caused by operations of the contractor).
If the contractor has General Liability insurance (which they should) then you would be able to make a claim against the contractors insurance company for the damage caused by their operations.
In addition to this, it is wise to have the contractor provide you with a certificate of insurance, naming you as the additional insured on their General Liability policy.
I take it that this was not the case here, but maybe you should try explaining to your contractor that his/her insurance carrier should be able to cover this. If they still do not comply, then you can try threatening them with a negative review and a complaint to the BBB and the consumer agency that licenses the contractor. If that does not work, then you either should speak to an attorney and take the contractor to small claims court, or write a complain to the licensing agency that licenses the contractor.
Sorry to hear you are going through this, but hopefully this is a learning experience for you as well as others reading this who are looking to hire a contractor.
In our professional opinion, this would be the optimal time to utilize the company’s GL policy. Always request from your contractor, to be added as Additional Insured/Certificate Holder on their COI, for instances like this.