Sec. 20-429. Required contract provisions; enforceability. Negative option
provisions prohibited. Owner to receive copy. Contracts considered home solicitation sales. Contractor-financed contracts. Commissioner may dispense with certain contract requirements. Court may order recovery of payment of work performed. (a) No home improvement contract shall be valid or enforceable against an
owner unless it: (1) Is in writing, (2) is signed by the owner and the contractor, (3)
contains the entire agreement between the owner and the contractor, (4) contains the
date of the transaction, (5) contains the name and address of the contractor, (6) contains
a notice of the owner's cancellation rights in accordance with the provisions of chapter
740, (7) contains a starting date and completion date, and (8) is entered into by a registered salesman or registered contractor. Each change in the terms and conditions of a
contract shall be in writing and shall be signed by the owner and contractor, except that
the commissioner may, by regulation, dispense with the necessity for complying with
the requirement that each change in a home improvement contract shall be in writing
and signed by the owner and contractor.
(b) No home improvement contract shall be valid if it includes any provision obligating the owner to instruct the home improvement contractor, by a date determined by
such contractor, that periodic home improvements are not to be performed unless it also
includes a provision requiring the contractor to remind the owner of that obligation by
means of a card or letter mailed to the owner and postmarked not earlier than twenty
days, and not later than ten days, prior to such date.
(c) The contractor shall provide and deliver to the owner, without charge, a completed copy of the home improvement contract at the time such contract is executed.
(d) The commissioner may, by regulation, require the inclusion of additional contractual provisions.
(e) Each home improvement contract entered into shall be considered a home solicitation sale pursuant to chapter 740 and shall be subject to the requirements of said chapter
regardless of the location of the transaction or of the signing of the contract. Each home
improvement contract in which the owner agrees to repay the contractor an amount
loaned or advanced to the owner by the contractor for the purposes of paying for the
goods and services provided in such contract, or which contains a finance charge, (1)
shall set forth the information required to be disclosed pursuant to the Truth-in-Lending
Act, sections 36a-675 to 36a-685, inclusive, (2) shall allow the owner to pay off in
advance the full amount due and obtain a partial refund of any unearned finance charge,
and (3) may contain a finance charge set at a rate of not more than the rate allowed for
loans pursuant to section 37-4. As used in this subsection, "finance charge" means the
amount in excess of the cash price for goods and services under the home improvement
contract to be paid by the owner for the privilege of paying the contract price in installments over a period of time.
(f) Nothing in this section shall preclude a contractor who has complied with subdivisions (1), (2), (6), (7) and (8) of subsection (a) of this section from the recovery of
payment for work performed based on the reasonable value of services which were
requested by the owner, provided the court determines that it would be inequitable to
deny such recovery.
(P.A. 79-606, S. 12, 14; P.A. 86-94, S. 1; P.A. 88-269, S. 9; 88-364, S. 108, 123; P.A. 91-325, S. 3; P.A. 93-215, S. 1;
P.A. 01-155, S. 1.)
History: P.A. 86-94 inserted new Subsec. (b) providing that no home improvement contract shall be valid if it includes
a provision obligating the owner to instruct the contractor by a certain date that work is not to be performed, relettering
former Subsecs. as necessary; P.A. 88-269 expanded Subsec. (a) to include eight required provisions and added Subsec.
(e) providing that the contracts are to be considered home solicitation sales; P.A. 88-364 corrected an incorrect reference
to the statutory location of the cancellation rights in P.A. 88-269; P.A. 91-325 amended Subsec. (a) by authorizing commissioner to dispense with the necessity for complying with the requirement that each change in a home improvement contract
be in writing and assigned by the owner and contractor; P.A. 93-215 added Subsec. (f) re contractor's right to recover
payment for work performed; P.A. 01-155 amended Subsec. (e) by adding provisions re contracts financed by loan or
advance from the contractor.
See Sec. 1-2a re construing of references to "United States mail" or "postmark" to include references to any delivery
service designated by the Secretary of the Treasury pursuant to Section 7502 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 or any
successor to the code, as amended, and to any date recorded or marked as described in said Section 7502 by a designated
delivery service and construing of "registered or certified mail" to include any equivalent designated by the Secretary of
the Treasury pursuant to said Section 7502.
Is not construed to apply doctrine of full performance. 200 C. 713-716, 718-720. Cited. 209 C. 185-187. Cited. 215
C. 316, 319-321. 325-328. Cited. Id., 336, 337, 339, 340. Cited. Id., 345-347, 349, 350. Absent proof of bad faith on part
of homeowner, statute does not permit recovery in quasi-contract by contractor who fails to comply with requirement for
written contract. Id., 350, 351, 353, 354. Cited. 224 C. 231, 233, 234, 236, 239. Sec. 20-427 et seq. cited. Id. Cited. Id.,
240. Cited. 237 C. 123, 134, 135.
Cited. 18 CA 581, 589. Cited. 20 CA 625, 629. Cited. 24 CA 223, 226, 228. Cited. 27 CA 162, 163, 166, 167. Cited.
33 CA 294, 300. Cited. 35 CA 253, 254, 257. Cited. 38 CA 420, 430. Cited. 40 CA 351, 353, 354. Cited. 43 CA 184.
Requirement that a consumer is fully notified and understands his or her right to cancel a contract is central to Home
Improvement Act. Home improvement contract violated requirements of the act because contract and cancellation form
did not have a transaction date. 72 CA 53.
Subsec. (a):
Cited. 200 C. 713, 717. Subdiv. (1) cited. 215 C. 316, 321. Cited. Id., 316, 325. Cited. Id., 345, 349. Cited. Id., 350,
353. Bad faith exception to enforcement of provisions discussed. 224 C. 231, 232, 234, 235. Subdiv. (6) cited. Id., 231,
235. Cited. Id., 240, 242. Subdiv. (6) cited. Id., 240, 242-245. Cited. 232 C. 666, 671. Provisions of statute mandatory but
strict compliance not required and contract valid even though two copies of cancellation notice not attached to contract
and cancellation date not noted. 247 C. 218.
Cited. 18 CA 463-466. Cited. Id., 581-583, 586-589. Cited. 24 CA 223, 224, 226, 228. Subdiv. (6) cited. Id., 223-
226, 228. Subdiv. (3) cited. Id., 223, 227. Subdiv. (6) cited. 27 CA 162, 164, 165. Cited. 31 CA 682, 687. Subdiv. (6) cited.
Id., 294, 300. Subdiv. (7) cited. Id., 294, 301. Subdiv. (6) cited. 35 CA 253, 255. Subdiv. (7) cited. Id. Subdiv. (1) cited.
40 CA 351-353, 355, 356, 358. Subdiv. (1) cited. 45 CA 586. Because the contract in this case consists of two separate
documents, the documents read together constitute a contract that satisfies section's requirements. 69 CA 136.
Complete absence of a written contract that complies with Home Improvement Act, or at the very least a written and
signed memorialization of changes in the terms and conditions of the original contract, as required by this subsec. cannot
be deemed "minor and highly technical" deviation from the act. 48 CS 248.
Subsec. (b):
Cited. 200 C. 713, 717.
Subsec. (c):
Cited. 18 CA 581-583.
Subsec. (e):
Cited. 224 C. 231, 234. Cited. 232 C. 666, 680.
Sec. 20-429a. Certain solicitation practices prohibited. No contractor or salesman shall solicit or otherwise endeavor to procure home improvement work or a home
improvement contract from an owner by notifying the owner that a contractor will commence home improvement work unless the owner instructs the contractor not to commence such work by a date determined by the contractor.
(P.A. 86-94, S. 2; P.A. 88-269, S. 10.)
History: P.A. 88-269 made technical changes, deleting specific references to Sec. 20-419.
Sec. 20-427 et seq. cited. 224 C. 231, 239.
Sec. 20-430. Commissioner to adopt regulations. The commissioner shall adopt
regulations in accordance with chapter 54 to carry out the provisions of this chapter.
(P.A. 79-606, S. 13, 14.)
Sec. 20-427 et seq. cited. 24 C. 231, 239.
Sec. 20-431. (Formerly Sec. 20-425). Appeals. Any person aggrieved by an order
or decision of the commissioner under this chapter may appeal therefrom in accordance
with the provisions of section 4-183.
(P.A. 79-606, S. 8, 14; P.A. 86-403, S. 96, 132.)
History: P.A. 86-403 made technical changes; Sec. 20-425 transferred to Sec. 20-431 in 1987.
Sec. 20-427 et seq. cited. 24 C. 231, 239.
Sec. 20-432. Home Improvement Guaranty Fund. (a) The commissioner shall
establish and maintain the Home Improvement Guaranty Fund.
(b) Each salesman who receives a certificate pursuant to this chapter shall pay a fee
of forty dollars annually. Each contractor who receives a certificate pursuant to this
chapter shall pay a fee of one hundred dollars annually to the guaranty fund. Said fee
shall be payable with the fee for an application for a certificate or renewal thereof.
The annual fee for a contractor who receives a certificate of registration as a home
improvement contractor acting solely as the contractor of record for a corporation, shall
be waived, provided the contractor of record shall use such registration for the sole
purpose of directing, supervising or performing home improvements for such corporation.
(c) Payments received under subsection (b) of this section shall be credited to the
guaranty fund until the balance in such fund equals seven hundred fifty thousand dollars.
Annually, if such fund has an excess, the first four hundred thousand dollars of the
excess shall be deposited into the consumer protection enforcement account established
in section 21a-8a. Any excess thereafter shall be deposited in the General Fund. Any
money in the guaranty fund may be invested or reinvested in the same manner as funds
of the state employees retirement system, and the interest arising from such investments
shall be credited to the guaranty fund.
(d) Whenever an owner obtains a court judgment against any contractor holding a
certificate or who has held a certificate under this chapter within the past two years of
the effective date of entering into the contract with the owner, for loss or damages
sustained by reason of performance of or offering to perform a home improvement
within this state by a contractor holding a certificate under this chapter, such owner
may, upon the final determination of, or expiration of time for, appeal in connection
with any such judgment, apply to the commissioner for an order directing payment out
of said guaranty fund of the amount unpaid upon the judgment for actual damages and
costs taxed by the court against the contractor, exclusive of punitive damages. The
application shall be made on forms provided by the commissioner and shall be accompanied by a certified copy of the court judgment obtained against the contractor together
with a notarized affidavit, signed and sworn to by the owner, affirming that: (1) He has
complied with all the requirements of this subsection; (2) he has obtained a judgment
stating the amount thereof and the amount owing thereon at the date of application; and
(3) he has caused to be issued a writ of execution upon said judgment, and the officer
executing the same has made a return showing that no bank accounts or real property
of the contractor liable to be levied upon in satisfaction of the judgment could be found,
or that the amount realized on the sale of them or of such of them as were found, under
the execution, was insufficient to satisfy the actual damage portion of the judgment
or stating the amount realized and the balance remaining due on the judgment after
application thereon of the amount realized, except that the requirements of this subdivision shall not apply to a judgment obtained by the owner in small claims court. A true
and attested copy of said executing officer's return, when required, shall be attached to
such application and affidavit. No application for an order directing payment out of the
guaranty fund shall be made later than two years from the final determination of, or
expiration time for, appeal of said court judgment.
(e) Upon receipt of said application together with said certified copy of the court
judgment, notarized affidavit and true and attested copy of the executing officer's return,
the commissioner or his designee shall inspect such documents for their veracity and
upon a determination that such documents are complete and authentic, and a determination that the owner has not been paid, the commissioner shall order payment out of the
guaranty fund of the amount unpaid upon the judgment for actual damages and costs
taxed by the court against the contractor, exclusive of punitive damages.
(f) Whenever an owner is awarded an order of restitution against any contractor for
loss or damages sustained by reason of performance of or offering to perform a home
improvement in this state by a contractor holding a certificate or who has held a certificate under this chapter within the past two years of the date of entering into the contract
with the owner, in a proceeding brought by the commissioner pursuant to this section
or subsection (d) of section 42-110d, or in a proceeding brought by the Attorney General
pursuant to subsection (a) of section 42-110m or subsection (d) of section 42-110d,
or a criminal proceeding pursuant to section 20-427, such owner may, upon the final
determination of, or expiration of time for, appeal in connection with any such order of
restitution, apply to the commissioner for an order directing payment out of said guaranty
fund of the amount unpaid upon the order of restitution. The commissioner may issue
said order upon a determination that the owner has not been paid.
(g) Before the commissioner shall issue any order directing payment out of the
guaranty fund to an owner pursuant to subsections (e) or (f) of this section, the commissioner shall first notify the contractor of the owner's application for an order directing
payment out of the guaranty fund and of the contractor's right to a hearing to contest
the disbursement in the event that the contractor has already paid the owner. Such notice
shall be given to the contractor within fifteen days of the receipt by the commissioner
of the owner's application for an order directing payment out of the guaranty fund. If
the contractor requests a hearing in writing by certified mail within fifteen days of receipt
of the notice from the commissioner, the commissioner shall grant such request and shall
conduct a hearing in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54. If the commissioner
receives no written request by certified mail from the contractor for a hearing within
fifteen days of the contractor's receipt of such notice, the commissioner shall determine
that the owner has not been paid, and the commissioner shall issue an order directing
payment out of the guaranty fund for the amount unpaid upon the judgment for actual
damages and costs taxed by the court against the contractor, exclusive of punitive damages, or for the amount unpaid upon the order of restitution.
(h) The commissioner or his designee may proceed against any contractor holding
a certificate or who has held a certificate under this chapter within the past two years
of the effective date of entering into the contract with the owner, for an order of restitution
arising from loss or damages sustained by any person by reason of such contractor's
performance of or offering to perform a home improvement in this state. Any such
proceeding shall be held in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54. In the course
of such proceeding, the commissioner or his designee shall decide whether to exercise
his powers pursuant to section 20-426; whether to order restitution arising from loss or
damages sustained by any person by reason of such contractor's performance or offering
to perform a home improvement in this state; and whether to order payment out of
the guaranty fund. Notwithstanding the provisions of chapter 54, the decision of the
commissioner or his designee shall be final with respect to any proceeding to order
payment out of the guaranty fund and the commissioner and his designee are exempted
from the requirements of chapter 54 as they relate to appeal from any such decision.
The commissioner or his designee may hear complaints of all owners submitting claims
against a single contractor in one proceeding.
(i) No application for an order directing payment out of the guaranty fund shall be
made later than two years from the final determination of, or expiration of time for,
appeal in connection with any judgment or order of restitution.
(j) Whenever the owner satisfies the commissioner or his designee that it is not
practicable to comply with the requirements of subdivision (3) of subsection (d) of this
section and that the owner has taken all reasonable steps to collect the amount of the
judgment or the unsatisfied part thereof and has been unable to collect the same, the
commissioner or his designee may in his discretion dispense with the necessity for
complying with such requirement.
(k) In order to preserve the integrity of the guaranty fund, the commissioner, in the
commissioner's sole discretion, may order payment out of said fund of an amount less
than the actual loss or damages incurred by the owner or less than the order of restitution
awarded by the commissioner or the Superior Court. In no event shall any payment out
of said guaranty fund be in excess of fifteen thousand dollars for any single claim by
an owner.
(l) If the money deposited in the guaranty fund is insufficient to satisfy any duly
authorized claim or portion thereof, the commissioner shall, when sufficient money has
been deposited in the fund, satisfy such unpaid claims or portions thereof, in the order
that such claims or portions thereof were originally determined.
(m) When the commissioner has caused any sum to be paid from the guaranty fund
to an owner, the commissioner shall be subrogated to all of the rights of the owner up
to the amount paid plus reasonable interest, and prior to receipt of any payment from
the guaranty fund, the owner shall assign all of this right, title and interest in the claim
up to such amount to the commissioner, and any amount and interest recovered by the
commissioner on the claim shall be deposited to the guaranty fund.
(n) If the commissioner orders the payment of any amount as a result of a claim
against a contractor, the commissioner shall determine if the contractor is possessed of
assets liable to be sold or applied in satisfaction of the claim on the guaranty fund. If
the commissioner discovers any such assets, he may request that the Attorney General
take any action necessary for the reimbursement of the guaranty fund.
(o) If the commissioner orders the payment of an amount as a result of a claim
against a contractor, the commissioner may, after notice and hearing in accordance with
the provisions of chapter 54, revoke the certificate of the contractor and the contractor
shall not be eligible to receive a new or renewed certificate until he has repaid such
amount in full, plus interest from the time said payment is made from the guaranty fund,
at a rate to be in accordance with section 37-3b, except that the commissioner may, in
his sole discretion, permit a contractor to receive a new or renewed certificate after that
contractor has entered into an agreement with the commissioner whereby the contractor
agrees to repay the guaranty fund in full in the form of periodic payments over a set
period of time. Any such agreement shall include a provision providing for the summary
suspension of any and all certificates held by the contractor if payment is not made in
accordance with the terms of the agreement.
(P.A. 88-269, S. 11; P.A. 89-251, S. 150, 203; P.A. 90-233, S. 2; 90-321, S. 5; P.A. 91-325, S. 2; P.A. 94-68, S. 3; P.A.
96-117, S. 3; P.A. 97-129; P.A. 99-74, S. 1, 3; P.A. 04-257, S. 105.)
History: P.A. 89-251 amended Subsec. (b) to increase the fee for renewal of a salesman's certificate from twenty dollars
to forty dollars and increased the fee for renewal of a contractor's certificate from fifty dollars to one hundred fifty dollars;
P.A. 90-233 amended Subsec. (d) to delete former exclusion of attorney's fees from consideration as part of judgment
amount and amended Subsec. (l) to raise maximum payment from guaranty fund from five thousand to ten thousand dollars;
P.A. 90-321 amended section to allow claims to be made against fund when contractor held a certificate within the past
two years; P.A. 91-325 (1) amended Subsec. (d) by providing for the submission of bona fide documentation to replace
the hearing procedure as a means for a homeowner to be reimbursed from the fund, (2) inserted new Subsec. (e), (3)
relettered former Subsec. (e) as Subsec. (f) and expanded the types of proceedings in which a homeowner could recover
and specified that the commissioner could only issue an order of disbursement from the fund upon a determination that
the owner has not been paid, (4) added new Subsec. (g) requiring notice to the contractor before any disbursement is made
from the fund in the event that the contractor has already paid the homeowner, (5) relettered former Subsec. (f) as Subsec.
(h) and amended it to provide that a designee of the commissioner could proceed against a contractor and decide whether
to exercise the powers under Sec. 20-426, order restitution and whether to order payment out of the guaranty fund, (6)
relettered Subsec. (g) as Subsec. (i) and amended it to expand the period during which an application for disbursement
from the fund could be made from one year to two years from the final determination of, or expiration of time for, appeal
in connection with any judgment or order of restitution, (7) deleted former Subsecs. (h) and (i) re hearing procedure, (8)
made technical changes in Subsec. (j), (9) deleted former Subsec. (k) relettering remaining Subsecs. accordingly and (10)
amended Subsec. (o), formerly (p), to permit the commissioner to exercise discretion as to whether to renew a certificate
if the contractor had entered an agreement with the commissioner whereby payment would be made in periodic payments
over a set period of time; P.A. 94-68 amended Subsec. (c) to require deposit of certain surplus moneys in the Consumer
Enforcement Protection Fund, replaced "personal property" with "bank accounts" in Subdiv. (3) of Subsec. (d), provided
for the revocation of a contractor's certificate in Subsec. (o) and made technical corrections; P.A. 96-117 amended Subsec.
(b) to waive the annual fee for a contractor of record; P.A. 97-129 amended Subsec. (c) to increase the amount deposited
into the Consumer Protection Enforcement Fund from one hundred fifty thousand dollars to four hundred thousand dollars,
and amended Subsec. (d) to provide that Subdiv. (3) requirements shall not apply to judgments obtained by owner in small
claims court; P.A. 99-74 made gender neutral change and increased maximum allowable payment from guaranty fund
from ten to fifteen thousand dollars for a single claim, effective May 27, 1999; P.A. 04-257 made a technical change in
Subsec. (c), effective June 14, 2004.
See Sec. 20-427a re nonrenewal of home improvement contractor's commercial motor vehicle registration for violation
of section.
Sec. 20-427 et seq. cited. 224 C. 231, 239.
Subsec. (h):
Administrative adjudication under Subsec. by defendant Department of Consumer Protection concluding that plaintiff
swimming pool contractor violated Home Improvement Act by failure to return homeowner's deposit after his cancellation
of contract and defendant's subsequent ordering of restitution under that statute to homeowner found not to be an unconstitutional violation of separation of powers provision of state constitution. 48 CS 248. Potential reach of statute is quite wide.
It authorizes commissioner to order "restitution arising from loss or damages" to not just the owner of the property to be
improved but to "any person" injured by reason of a home improvement contractor's performance or offer to perform a
home improvement in Connecticut. Id.