email date stamps proof of acceptance?

F

frans

Location
healdsburg, CA
More and more I communicate with clients via email. I even send before and after pictures for those clients who are out of town.

Many large jobs are accepted with a simple email from the customer saying "go ahead". But the actual contract I send via email is not returned physically signed. I guess because it is another step to print out my bid form, sign it, then scan it back into the computer and send it back.

I never had a problem with a customer saying they did not accept the bid after I did the work, but I am wondering if the email time and date stamp would hold up in court as an official acceptance of the terms and amounts of money.

Any one have paticular knowledge of this topic?

Thanks

Frans
 
Do you get a verbal or an email back saying they accept the bid? or am i missing that.

I have contracted work via email, but I also sign a contract and have a paid in full statement with the work detailed. I like paper work.

I know - systems crash and there goes your proof?

I would get with a lawyer on that - as this is all new (computers) and most is uncharted areas.

jz
 
I had this issue once, then I made it a point to print the bid contract and put it with the work order and have the customer sign before starting work. A few times, the signature had to be obtained a day or three beforehand, but that wasn't too big of a hassle.
 
GENERAL Statement - an email with proper details about the job offer / work to be complete, sent to the client and the client response with NO counter offer or NO changes can be considered proof of exceptance of the offer.


BEST PRACTICE - better still is to INSIST that they print the emails out sign them (even thought they have emailed back)and snail mail it back to you - this way you have the signature

just a cya

(i had a lawyer friend that answered this)

happy day

jz
 
[ QUOTE ]
I had this issue once, then I made it a point to print the bid contract and put it with the work order and have the customer sign before starting work. A few times, the signature had to be obtained a day or three beforehand, but that wasn't too big of a hassle.

[/ QUOTE ]

Boy both jersey girl & Sumo, overlooked what I said on my first post. I dont know why, it was only a few sentances.

Because both of you failed to even comprehend my post, now I am more worried about my customers 'not getting' it.


Maybe I will, like jersery girl said, have them print it out and then snail mail it back to me.

Thanks for the replies
 
Verbal approvals get thier jobs on to the job queue meaning that we are aware of the job and have scheduled it. They then have 5 working days to get the signed contract to us. Otherwise the job goes back into the 'pending' file.

In no case will we do work until we have a hot contract with signature in hand.

Had a situation where we got email approval and started the work before getting a signature. Turns out that the property lines were not where they were marked by our client. (the fence was not his, it was his neighbors' and was 3 feet over into the neighbor's land) We were cutting down what turned out to be line trees.

The neighbor got all over us and without my client's signature agreeing to indemnify us we were up the creek.

Good news is that the tree we cut was already dead, and a hazard but the remaining trees would have meant damages.
 
[ QUOTE ]

I never had a problem with a customer saying they did not accept the bid after I did the work, but I am wondering if the email time and date stamp would hold up in court as an official acceptance of the terms and amounts of money.

Any one have paticular knowledge of this topic?

[/ QUOTE ]

What I got was that you were asking IF an email was an approval for work and if it that would hold up in court.

and that be what i answers on



jz
 
Why not mail them the contract to sign once they authorize you to proceed with a return envelope?

I rarely get signatures, and havent had a problem.
 
Hei Frans,
As far as i know e-mails are not admissible in court(Though PDF's sent by mail are) Other than that I believe it is only documents or faxs that are admissible.I think its to do with the fact that e-mails are very easy to tamper with....

Didj
 
We have a place on our website for 'approving your proposal' that asks a series of questions. I too have wondered how well that would hold up in court if anything ever came up with it...

I've heard that fax signatures are NOT admissable in court....
 
fax signatures are admissible with the back up of the signed original. In other words, You could proceed with a faxed signed work order but need to have the original, signed, arrive later. This would show the date of acceptance and give you the confidence to begin prior to receiving the original. PDFs work in the same way because it can't be altered.

Real Estate deals have been done by fax for over 15 yrs.

Just remember the document is not the contract, it's evidence of a contract. A contract is a meeting of the minds with some consideration. Offer, acceptance, consideration, clear terms, ability to enter into the contract. If you've got that then you've got a contract. Put it in writing with the signatures and you've got your evidence.
 
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