Small Claims Court

Can you sue a contractor in Small Claims Court for bad or unfinished work?

Last updated October 7, 2026.

Yes. If a contractor did poor work, walked off the job or kept money for work never done, you can sue in Ontario's Small Claims Court for up to $50,000, plus interest and costs. You usually have two years from the day you discovered the problem. If you hired the contractor for your home, the Consumer Protection Act, 2002 adds rights on top of the contract, including a deemed promise of reasonably acceptable quality and a 10 per cent cap over a written estimate.

Most renovation disputes come down to three questions: what the contract promised, what it costs to put things right, and whether you acted inside the deadlines. This guide walks through each one. For an overview of the court itself and how Carson Frankum, a licensed paralegal in Hamilton, helps with claims like this, see our page on Small Claims Court help in Ontario.

How does suing a contractor work in Ontario, step by step?

The court process is set out in the Rules of the Small Claims Court (O. Reg. 258/98). The consumer rights come from the Consumer Protection Act, 2002, which is still the law in force today: e-Laws notes that the newer 2023 Act will replace it only on a day still to be named. Here is the usual order of events.

Document the problem before anything is fixed. Take dated photos and video of the defects or the unfinished work, and keep the contract, any written estimate, invoices, receipts, texts and emails. Once another trade repairs the work, the original evidence is gone.
Get written repair estimates. A quote from another contractor shows the court what it costs to fix or finish the job. Under rule 18.02, a repair estimate served on the other side at least 30 days before trial is received in evidence unless the judge orders otherwise.
Check your contract rights. Ontario's consumer guidance says any home renovation contract worth more than $50 must be in writing. If the agreement was for future work and you never received a written copy that meets the legal requirements, section 23 lets you cancel within one year. If you signed it in your own home, section 43 gives you a 10-day cooling-off period after you receive the written copy.
Put your complaint in writing. Write to the contractor, say what is wrong, what you want (repair, refund or payment) and by when. Under section 92, notice to a supplier can be given in any way, but a letter or email with proof of sending is far easier to prove later.
Confirm who you are suing. Use the contractor's exact legal name. A person who trades under a business name can be sued in that name (rule 5.06), but if the business is a corporation, the corporation is the defendant.
File a Plaintiff's Claim (Form 7A). Explain what happened in plain language and attach the contract, estimate and key invoices (rule 7.01). The filing fee is $108 for most people. You file where the work was done or where the contractor lives or carries on business, which our guide on which courthouse to file in explains.
Serve the claim within six months of the date it is issued (rule 8.01(2)), then file proof of service.
Wait for the defence. The contractor has 20 days after service to file a Defence (rule 9.01). Many contractors also file a claim of their own for the unpaid balance.
Attend the settlement conference. It is held within 90 days after the first defence is filed (rule 13.01(3)). At least 14 days before it, each side must serve and file the documents it will rely on, including any expert report.
Go to trial if it does not settle. A judge decides, and rule 17.03 even lets the judge inspect the property in the parties' presence. Our guide to what happens at a Small Claims trial covers the day itself.

Deadlines that matter in a contractor dispute
Deadline	What it is for	Where it comes from
10 days after you receive the written contract	Cancel a contract signed in your home, for any reason	Consumer Protection Act, 2002, s. 43(1)
1 year after the contract	Cancel if you never got a proper written copy (future work, or signed at home)	s. 23 and s. 43(2)
1 year after the contract	Give notice to cancel, or claim a remedy, for an unfair practice	s. 18(3)
1 year after paying	Demand a refund of a charge taken against the Act, such as more than 10 per cent over an estimate	s. 98(1) and s. 10
2 years from discovery	Start the court claim	Limitations Act, 2002, s. 4 and 5
6 months after the claim is issued	Serve the claim on the contractor	Small Claims Rules, r. 8.01(2)
20 days after service	Contractor files a Defence	r. 9.01

What can you claim from a contractor?

The court can order payment of money up to $50,000, not counting interest and costs, or the return of personal property worth up to that amount (Courts of Justice Act, s. 23, and O. Reg. 626/00). Our guide to how much you can sue for explains the limit in detail. In a renovation case, the usual heads of claim are:

The cost to repair defective work. Section 9(1) of the Consumer Protection Act deems every supplier to warrant that services are of a reasonably acceptable quality. A clause in the contract that tries to take that away is void (s. 9(3)).
The extra cost to finish an abandoned job. A judge will often compare what it costs to get the job you paid for with what you still owed under the contract. If you never paid the balance, that balance is usually taken off your claim.
An overcharge above the estimate. If the contract includes an estimate, the contractor cannot charge more than 10 per cent above it (s. 10(1)), unless you agreed to extra or different work (s. 10(3)).
A refund after a valid cancellation. Once you cancel under the Act, the supplier must refund what you paid (s. 96(1)), and you can sue if it does not (s. 96(6)).
Your materials or property. If the contractor kept fixtures or materials you bought, you can ask for their return.

In an action under the Act, section 100(3) also lets the court award exemplary or punitive damages on top of the refund. These are rare and depend on the facts.

Working on the other side of this dispute? If you are the contractor and the customer has not paid, see our guide to suing for an unpaid invoice.

What changes the answer?

Whether you are a "consumer." The Act protects an individual acting for personal, family or household purposes, not a person acting for business purposes (s. 1). If you hired the contractor to renovate a unit you rent out or a business space, your claim may rest on the contract alone.
The size of the claim. If repairs cost more than $50,000, you can still sue in Small Claims Court by giving up the excess, which our guide on waiving the amount over the limit explains. Otherwise the case belongs in the Superior Court of Justice, where you would need a lawyer. You cannot split one claim into two cases to stay under the limit (rule 6.02).
An arbitration clause. A term in a consumer agreement that forces disputes into arbitration is invalid to the extent it stops you from suing in the Superior Court of Justice (s. 7(2)). The Small Claims Court is a branch of that court (Courts of Justice Act, s. 22(1)). After a dispute arises, you can still agree to arbitration if you want to (s. 7(3)).
When you found the problem. The two-year clock starts when you knew, or reasonably ought to have known, about the loss, who caused it and that a claim was appropriate (Limitations Act, s. 5). A leak that shows up a year after the job may still be in time. Under section 15, no claim can be started more than 15 years after the work itself. If you and the contractor agree to use a mediator, the clock pauses while that process runs (s. 11).
A lien on your home. If an unpaid contractor registers a construction lien, the lien claim is enforced in an action in the Superior Court of Justice (Construction Act, s. 50(1)). That part is outside paralegal scope and needs a lawyer.
Whether it is a renovation at all. Damage from a car crash, for example, follows very different rules; see suing for vehicle damage.

A worked example

For example, imagine a Hamilton homeowner named Priya who signs a $14,000 written contract, at her kitchen table, to redo a basement bathroom. She pays a $7,000 deposit. Six weeks in, the tile is cracked and uneven, the shower leaks into the drywall and the crew stops showing up. Her texts go unanswered.

Priya photographs everything and gets two written quotes from other contractors. The lower one is $9,500 to tear out the bad tile, fix the leak and finish the job. Because she still owed $7,000 under the original contract, she frames her claim around the difference, $2,500, plus about $1,200 to replace the water-damaged drywall, plus interest. She sends a dated email setting out the defects and asking for payment within 14 days. Her ten-day cooling-off period is long gone, so cancellation is not her main remedy; her claim rests on the contract and the section 9 quality warranty.

When no reply comes, she files a Plaintiff's Claim in Hamilton, where the work was done, attaching the contract, the quotes and the photos. The contractor files a Defence saying Priya changed the design, and a Defendant's Claim for the $7,000 balance. At the settlement conference both sides see each other's documents, and the judge can make recommendations. Whether Priya recovers anything depends on the evidence; the point of the example is how the claim is built, not how it ends. If the contractor's claim worries you, our guide to a Defendant's Claim explains how both claims are tried together.

Common mistakes people make

Fixing the work before recording it. Without photos and a written quote made before repairs, it becomes your word against the contractor's.
Claiming the whole repair bill. If you never paid the balance of the contract, the court may deduct it. An inflated claim can also cost you under the offer rules our guide to offers to settle explains.
Suing the wrong name. A trade name on a truck may not be the legal entity. Check the business name before you file.
Waiting out the clock. Two years passes quickly while a contractor keeps promising to come back. The existing article on the limitation period for small claims covers the general rule.
Large cash deposits with no receipt. Ontario's consumer guidance recommends keeping deposits to no more than 10 per cent and avoiding cash deals, because without a receipt you may have no proof of what you paid.
Ignoring the contractor's counterclaim. A Defendant's Claim needs its own Defence within 20 days (rule 10.03), or you risk default on it.

What to do this week

Photograph and video every defect and every unfinished area, with dates.
Gather the contract, estimate, change orders, invoices, receipts and all messages in one folder.
Ask one or two other contractors for written repair or completion quotes.
Look up the contractor's legal business name and address for service.
Send a dated written demand, or a written cancellation notice if one of the cancellation rights still applies, and keep proof of sending.
Mark the two-year limitation date in your calendar, counted from when you discovered the problem.
Check the Small Claims Court fees and whether you qualify for a fee waiver.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a lawyer to sue a contractor?

No. Ontario's own guidance says you do not need a lawyer or paralegal to sue in Small Claims Court. Section 26 of the Courts of Justice Act lets a party be represented by a person authorized under the Law Society Act, which includes a licensed paralegal.

Can I just refuse to pay the balance instead of suing?

You can, but the contractor may then sue you for the balance, or register a lien, and you would raise the defects as your defence. If you hold back money, keep it set aside and keep your evidence, because a judge will decide what was actually owed.

Can I complain to the province as well?

Yes. Ontario accepts consumer complaints, but it says it may not be able to help with events more than two years old, with quality disputes beyond the basic legal guarantees, or with compensation other than a refund or cancellation. A complaint is not a substitute for a court claim.

Who was supposed to get the building permit?

Ontario's renovation guidance says getting building permits is the homeowner's responsibility, unless the contract says the contractor will get them. Check your contract wording before you blame the contractor for a missing permit.

What if the contractor has disappeared or closed the business?

You can still sue and get a judgment, but collecting it may be hard. Before filing, think about whether the contractor or company has assets, and read about how to collect on a Small Claims judgment.

Can I sue for the cost of an inspector's report?

A successful party can usually recover reasonable disbursements, including expert reports (rule 19.01(1)). Costs other than disbursements are capped at 15 per cent of the amount claimed unless the court penalizes unreasonable behaviour (Courts of Justice Act, s. 29).

Where would a Hamilton renovation claim be heard?

If the work was done in Hamilton, you can file in Hamilton, because that is where the claim arose (rule 6.01). Our page on the Small Claims Court in Hamilton covers the local court office.

Sources

Need help with a Small Claims Court matter? Contact us today for a consultation.

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This page gives general information about Ontario law, not legal advice for your situation. Cheddar Paralegal PC is a paralegal firm licensed by the Law Society of Ontario; licensed paralegals can help only with matters the Law Society allows paralegals to handle.