What Louisiana law says about contractor obligations
Louisiana does not rely on a single contractor-protection statute. The Civil Code and several title statutes work together to give homeowners overlapping, enforceable rights. Understanding that framework is what makes a demand letter powerful here.
La. C.C. Art. 1994 establishes an implied warranty of workmanship and fitness. Every contractor, regardless of what the contract says, warrants that the work is performed in a professional manner and is fit for its intended purpose. This warranty cannot be contracted away. A clause that purports to waive it is unenforceable under Louisiana law. That means a contractor who installed a roof that leaks after two rains cannot point to a liability-limiting clause and call it a day.
La. R.S. 37:2150 et seq. requires any residential contractor performing work exceeding $2,000 to hold an active state license. The consequence of unlicensed work is significant: an unlicensed contractor cannot bring a legal action to recover unpaid fees. They have no standing. On top of that, the homeowner can pursue damages for violations of the licensing requirement. If your contractor was unlicensed, every demand you make carries additional legal weight.
La. R.S. 51:1405, the Louisiana Unfair Trade Practices Act (LUTPA), covers deceptive conduct by contractors. Misrepresenting qualifications, concealing defects, using unfair methods to obtain payment, or making materially false statements about the scope of work all fall within LUTPA's reach. The statute provides actual damages, up to $500 per violation in statutory damages, and attorney's fees. That last piece matters: the threat of fee-shifting is a serious pressure point in a demand letter.
How long you have to act in Louisiana
Louisiana calls its limitation periods "prescription" rather than statutes of limitations, but the practical effect is the same. Under La. C.C. Art. 2695, breach-of-contract claims against contractors prescribe in six years for oral contracts and ten years for written contracts. Those are among the longer windows in the country.
The clock starts running from the date you could reasonably have discovered the breach, not necessarily the date the contract was signed. For a contractor who disappeared mid-project in January, the six-year clock began when you first had reason to know the work wouldn't be completed. For a contractor whose defective foundation work only became apparent two years after the job "finished," prescription arguably starts at discovery.
Do not take those windows as permission to wait. Evidence degrades. Contractors change addresses, dissolve LLCs, and become harder to serve. Witnesses' memories fade. The sooner a demand letter goes out, the sooner you create a documented record that the contractor was put on notice. That record is worth having even if the dispute does eventually end up in court.
If the work involved a home solicitation, La. R.S. 9:3506 gives you a separate three-day right of cancellation. If the contractor failed to disclose that right, the violation is independent of any breach-of-contract prescription and adds another LUTPA claim to the pile.
What you can recover from a Louisiana contractor
Recovery depends on the facts, but the statutes stack. In a straightforward case, you can recover:
Cost to complete or repair. The measure of damages for defective or incomplete work is what it costs a different licensed contractor to finish the job or remedy the defects. Get a written estimate before you write the letter. That number becomes the anchor of your demand.
Money already paid. If you paid a deposit or progress payment for work that was never performed, that amount is recoverable as unjust enrichment or breach of contract. Louisiana courts do not require you to elect between theories in most contractor cases.
LUTPA statutory damages. If the contractor's conduct was deceptive, you can claim up to $500 per violation in addition to actual damages. Misrepresenting a license, giving a false completion date to induce payment, and hiding known defects are each separate violations. Three violations means up to $1,500 in statutory damages on top of your actual losses.
Attorney's fees. LUTPA authorizes fee recovery for successful claims. In a demand letter, citing this provision shifts the contractor's calculus: settling now is cheaper than litigation where the plaintiff can also recover legal fees.
Licensing-related damages. If the contractor was unlicensed and performed work exceeding $2,000 without a valid license, you have a claim for damages under La. R.S. 37:2150. That claim runs alongside your breach-of-contract and LUTPA claims, not instead of them.
Typical recoveries for Louisiana contractor disputes run from $800 to $8,000 depending on scope. A clear demand letter with documented damages, a repair estimate, and statute citations shortens the path to the high end of that range.
Evidence you'll need before you send the letter
A demand letter without documentation is an opinion. A demand letter with documentation is a legal position. Gather these before drafting.
The contract or written scope of work. If you have a signed contract, that's your primary document. If the agreement was verbal, write down everything you recall: date, parties, scope, price, timeline. A written summary of an oral agreement created contemporaneously is admissible evidence and demonstrates you're organized.
Proof of payment. Bank statements, check images, credit card statements, Venmo or Zelle records. Every dollar you paid needs a paper trail. Courts distinguish between what you agreed to pay and what you actually paid. Both matter.
Photographs with timestamps. Before the contractor started, during the work, and after. Photograph defects from multiple angles. Document anything left unfinished. If you've already hired someone to assess the damage, get their observations in writing.
Written repair or completion estimate. This is the most important single document. Get a written estimate from at least one other licensed contractor showing what it costs to finish the job or fix the defects. The estimate converts your frustration into a dollar figure a court can work with.
Contractor's license verification. Check the contractor's license status through the Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors before you send the letter. If they were unlicensed for work exceeding $2,000, that fact belongs in the first paragraph of your demand. You can verify online.
All communications. Every text message, email, voicemail transcription, and written note exchanged with the contractor. Include both the promises they made and the responses (or non-responses) after the problems started.
Writing the Louisiana contractor demand letter
A Louisiana contractor demand letter has a specific job: put the contractor on written notice of the legal basis for your claim, state the amount owed, give a firm deadline to respond, and make clear what happens if they don't. Keep it to one page. Every sentence should do one of those four things.
Opening. Identify the parties, the property address, the scope of work, and the dates. "On [date], you contracted with me to [scope] at [address] for [amount]. I paid [amount] in total. The work was [not completed / defective] as described below."
The legal basis. This is where most homeowner-written letters fail. Don't just say the work was bad. Cite La. C.C. Art. 1994 and the implied warranty of workmanship. If the contractor was unlicensed, cite La. R.S. 37:2150 and state that you've confirmed their license status. If their conduct was deceptive (they misrepresented qualifications, gave false timelines to get payment, or concealed defects), cite La. R.S. 51:1405 and name each discrete deceptive act.
The damage. State the specific dollar amount you're demanding. Attach the repair estimate as Exhibit A. If you're claiming LUTPA statutory damages, identify each violation and state the per-violation amount.
The deadline. Give a specific date, typically 14 calendar days from the date you send the letter. Not "within a reasonable time." A specific date.
The consequence. State plainly that if payment is not received by the deadline, you will file in Louisiana's City or Parish Court for the full amount, including actual damages, LUTPA statutory damages up to $500 per violation, and attorney's fees where applicable. Don't threaten anything you aren't prepared to do. A small claims filing in Louisiana is limited to $5,000, but that covers most contractor disputes.
Send the letter via USPS Certified Mail. Tracking creates a record of delivery that you can attach to a subsequent court filing. Hand delivery with a witness works too, but certified mail is simpler to document.
If the letter doesn't get a response
If the deadline passes without payment or a substantive response, file a Louisiana small claims case against a contractor as your next step, using the same documentation you assembled for the demand letter.
Louisiana's City or Parish Court handles claims up to $5,000 without the formality of a full civil trial. If your damages exceed $5,000, you'll need to file in district court, where the process is more involved but the statutes that support your claim are the same.
Courts treat a prior demand letter as evidence of good faith. A judge who sees that you gave the contractor written notice and a 14-day response window before filing has a clear picture of who was reasonable in this dispute.
What to expect after the letter is sent
Most contractors respond within the 14-day window, and most of those responses are either a payment offer or a counter-narrative about why the work was acceptable. Neither is the end of the conversation.
A payment offer below your demand is a starting point for negotiation, not a final answer. If the contractor is willing to pay 70% of what you asked, decide whether the remaining 30% is worth a court filing. Often it isn't, and a negotiated settlement in week two beats a judgment six months later.
A counter-narrative is actually useful. If the contractor puts their defense in writing, you now have their version of events on the record before litigation. That document tends to be full of inconsistencies and omissions that work in your favor at a hearing.
If the contractor simply goes silent, that silence becomes evidence. Document it. A follow-up email noting that the certified letter was received on [date] and no response has been received strengthens the record for a court filing.
The contractor checking their license status after receiving the letter is a good sign. Unlicensed contractors who receive a letter citing La. R.S. 37:2150 often pay quickly, because their entire claim to any payment is legally compromised.
Sources & further reading
Primary sources
We draft from authoritative statutes and state-court self-help guidance. Every article on Sue.com links to the primary source so you can verify the citation yourself.