Call Kurtis: How To Make Sure You're Covered When Remodeling

VACAVILLE (CBS13) -- The tiles for the Harringtons new kitchen floor showed up damaged. And they were on the hook.

Mike and Shannon Harrington bought the tiles on their own for a contractor to put in -- all to save money.

But they said that decision is delaying their entire home improvement project.

After two decades in their kitchen, they wanted a fresh look.

"It was kinda dated and small," they said of their old kitchen.

They hired a contractor to install new cabinets and flooring they bought on their own.

But when the flooring was delivered?

"Warped, defective tiles," Shannon told a Call Kurtis producer.

The contractor noticed they're slightly bowed in the middle.

"If we would have stood on them, they could have cracked," she said.

But the company wouldn't refund them for these boxes, which were worth almost $300, putting their project on hold.

"That made me sick to my stomach," she said.

"If they're going to buy something on their own, they're responsible for that," said Melanie Bedwell of the Contractors State License Board.

She recommended consumers buy materials through a contractor, and make that part of the deal.

If materials show up damaged, it's the contractor's job to fix it and not yours.

"There's absolutely nothing wrong with getting your own materials and saying, 'This is exactly what I want to have,'" she said.

"You buy a defective product, you expect to get your money back," Harrington said.

And after contacting Call Kurtis, the company refunded their money for the warped tiles -- but not before setting back their remodeling plans three weeks.

They decided to buy similar tiles through their contractor instead, as they finish their dream kitchen.

"It's worth it," Harrington said.

Before you hire any contractor for a job, you'll want to make sure they're licensed through the CSLB.

That way you have more protections if anything goes wrong.