They've complained to my licensing board.

There's a page for that: A complaint was filed against your license. The record you build here is the same one you'll need there.

Should I just refund them to make it go away?

That's a business decision, and only you can make it. Whatever you decide, write down what was offered, when, and on what terms.

The work was fine. Why do I need all this?

Because "the work was fine" is your view, and theirs is the opposite. Dated photos and messages are what let someone else see it your way.

Is what I write here private?

Yes. It is your account, and nothing leaves it unless you send it.

If you're answering

A homeowner says your work was bad, unfinished, or overpriced

You may think the complaint is unfair, and it may be. But the homeowner has usually written their version down already, in a review, an email, or a complaint somewhere official. Your version needs to be just as clear, and better supported.

Start your side of it Read a real one

Free to build. $59 once, for this case, if you want to download the finished file.

Last updated Oct 10, 2026

Written by Dave Shelton, founder of BuildMyEvidence. Thirty years in business taught him that the person with a clear record gets taken seriously.

Start with what was agreed

Find the quote, estimate or contract, and every version of it. Then write down, in plain words:

What you agreed to do.
What was specifically left out.
The price, and how payment was meant to work.
The start date, and any finish date that was given.

Most of these disputes come down to a gap between what one side thinks was agreed and what the paper actually says. Write down what the paper says first, before what anyone remembers.

Then the changes

Jobs change. The owner asks for something extra, a hidden problem turns up behind a wall, a material is out of stock and something else goes in. Each of those is a change, and each change is where a dispute tends to start.

For every change you can find, write down:

The date it came up.
Who asked for it, or who found it.
What was said about cost and time.
How it was agreed: in writing, by text, or only in conversation.

If a change was only agreed out loud, write it down now, in as much detail as you have, and say plainly that it was verbal. A dated note made now is better than nothing, and it is honest about what it is.

Photos, messages and who was there

Go through your phone. Pull out every photo from the job and check the date each one was taken, not the date you sent it. Find the date a photo or video was taken Group them by stage of work.

Do the same with messages: texts and emails with the owner, in order, saved somewhere other than the phone. A screenshot is only useful later if it shows the name, the date, and enough of the conversation around it. Screenshots that still make sense in a year

Then note who else was on the job: your crew, subcontractors, suppliers, any inspector. Write down what each of them saw or did, and when.

Payments, kept separate

List every payment you received, with the date and method. Then every invoice you sent, and what is still unpaid. Keep this apart from your account of the work. When money and workmanship get mixed into one long story, both become harder to follow.

What to leave alone

Don't reply to a public review in anger. If you reply at all, keep it short and factual. It will be read by people deciding whether to hire you, and possibly by whoever ends up dealing with this.
Don't go back to "fix" things without agreeing in writing first what you will do and when.
Don't change or delete old messages or photos, including the ones that don't help you.
Don't rewrite old invoices. If something needs correcting, issue a new document with a new date and say what it corrects.

What your side looks like when it is in order

BuildMyEvidence is a place to put it. You write down what happened, as it happens, and attach what you already have. Everything gets a date and a number.

For something like this, that gives you:

What was agreed, and every change, each with its date and how it was agreed.
One chronology of the job, from first quote to the complaint.
Their points, listed separately, with your photos and messages underneath each one.
Your own statement, in your words, numbered, with a page at the end to sign by hand.

You can read every page in full before you pay. The screen copy carries preview marks across it. The file you download is clean, and it is $59 once, for this case. What the $59 covers

It is a record, not a lawyer, and it does not tell you whether you will win. It makes sure that in three months, when somebody asks what happened, you are not relying on what you remember about a job you finished months ago.

Start your side of it

Read one that is already written

Two of our four worked examples are written from this side — somebody answering something they did not start. You can open them and read every page, free.

Case 004 · answering a claimA withheld deposit, from the landlord's side$1,450 held back on a $2,000 deposit. One side had photo pairs twenty-one months apart; the other had a recollection.Case 002 · answering a complaintAccused of the noise, from the other side of the fenceSeven complaints over four months. What the accused neighbor had was a work calendar, and it did more than he expected.

Questions people ask

They've complained to my licensing board.: There's a page for that: A complaint was filed against your license. The record you build here is the same one you'll need there.
Should I just refund them to make it go away?: That's a business decision, and only you can make it. Whatever you decide, write down what was offered, when, and on what terms.
The work was fine. Why do I need all this?: Because "the work was fine" is your view, and theirs is the opposite. Dated photos and messages are what let someone else see it your way.
Is what I write here private?: Yes. It is your account, and nothing leaves it unless you send it. Privacy

Start your side of it

Free to build · $59 once if you download it