Contractor finishes kitchen after allegedly walking off job

MIAMI -

A South Florida family was looking for a kitchen makeover for the holidays. After the contractor walked off the job, the family contacted Local 10 News consumer advocate Christina Vazquez.

Local 10 brought both parties back to the table to make sure the couple got the product they paid for and learned something about the contract in this case, which a legal expert said could be a red flag for customers.

For weeks, Josephine Francois hasn't been able to cook a meal in her northwest Miami-Dade home. She and her husband signed a contract with Alex Millwork Inc. in October. The contract was for $4,500.

She paid the bulk of it, and the cabinets were delivered and installed. But following a dispute with contractor Alejandro Morlans, the job was left undone, with no granite countertops and no sink.

"I wanted my parents to have the kitchen they paid for," said her son, Mark Francis. "My dad was in disagreement with him."

His father, Francis said, misreading the contract, didn't pay the second installment.

"I went there and they refused to pay me," said Morlans.

The contractor said he captured that moment on his cellphone. That's when Francis stepped in to smooth things over.

"For the sake of argument, to ease off the process, we paid him," said Francois.

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Contractor finishes kitchen after allegedly walking off job