Three Options to Fix Your Sidewalk if Safe Sidewalks LA Program Fails You

Broken sidewalks in front of your home or business are no joke. If someone trips on them, you could be on the hook in a slip and fall lawsuit – and it doesn’t matter if it’s a city sidewalk. The city of Los Angeles paid out tens of millions of dollars to settle such lawsuits over the years – but when you try to find out who is responsible in these kinds of lawsuits, the city will tell you to refer to a lawyer. 

With insurance companies bailing out of California, you know you have to do everything you can to keep your insurance. Most insurers are now requiring that you fix that broken sidewalk before you can be covered. You want your sidewalk fixed and fixed fast. 

So, what is a property owner to do? Do it yourself (sort of).

Option One: 

Safe Sidewalks LA Repair Program by the City of Los Angeles

As part of a settlement, the city of Los Angeles has set aside money to be used to fix sidewalks through a rebate program to make the sidewalks ADA-compliant.

Pros of Safe Sidewalks LA Program

The best part of the Safe Sidewalks LA program is the money. The city will send you a rebate check of up to $12,000 to fix your sidewalk. It seems easy: fill out the application, hire a concrete contractor with a C-8 license to do the work, easy peasy, right? 

Cons of Safe Sidewalks LA Program

Actually, not so easy peasy.  

Increasingly, concrete contractors and property owners are finding a limit to the rebate program. Specifically, the scope of work. Let’s say you have just two broken slabs of concrete. That is easily fixed with the $12,000 allotted by the rebate. However, many contractors and property owners report that city inspectors are demanding that the entire sidewalk of the property be replaced from property line to property line, including your driveway apron (the entrance), regardless of whether or not the driveway apron needs to be replaced. All that work costs upwards of $20,000. That’s at least $8,000 out of your pocket. That’s not following the spirit of the settlement. 

Not only that, but there are other hurdles in this program. For one, wait time. It can take up to three years for the city to approve your rebate. And you have to keep checking your email inbox for that approval because you only have a two week window to accept it. How is that fair? The city takes three years to award you a rebate that you only have two weeks to accept? 

There are other hidden fees. Since this is a rebate program, you (the property owner) have to pay for the sidewalk repair upfront. Also, although the rebate claims to include tree canopy and root pruning. That kind of work will set you back a few thousand dollars – to fix the city’s trees that they fail to maintain. 

Bottom line, repairing the entire concrete sidewalk panels on your property line, the approach/apron plus the canopy pruning and root pruning cost an average of $25,000, not the $12,000 the city will offer you in the rebate program. This is the reason why most homeowners opt-out of the sidewalk repair program and transition to hiring a contractor themselves which proves to be a lot less expensive.

Option 2: 

Hire A C-8 Concrete Contractor To Perform The Sidewalk Repair 

It’s great that the city is offering some relief from the price of fixing your sidewalk. However, it’s just not that cost-effective or timely. Another option is to hire a concrete contractor with a C-8 or A license to do the job and just pay them yourself without the rebate. This way, you can control how much of the concrete is fixed, as well as the price.

Pros of hiring a C-8 concrete contractor to fix your sidewalk

The biggest reasons to just hire a concrete contractor and get the work done? Time and money. With city inspectors demanding that your entire sidewalk be replaced property line to property line, it only makes sense to narrow down your project and hire a concrete contractor to get the work done.

When you hire a concrete contractor, several things will happen. For one, you won’t have to wait up to 3 years for the rebate. A concrete contractor can pull a permit within five days. To fix just the broken parts of your sidewalk will cost about $5,000 to $10,000, depending on the extent of damage and how much tree pruning will need to be done. 

In short, hiring a concrete contractor to fix your sidewalk can be a fast and affordable option. 

Cons of hiring a C-8 concrete contractor to fix your sidewalk

Honestly, there aren’t very many cons to hiring a concrete contractor to fix your sidewalk. Of course, you will have to pay for the fix yourself, without any help from the city. However, if you have the means to fix your sidewalk, this option gets you the best bang for your buck.

Option 3: 

Hiring A C-8 Concrete Contractor To Fix The Sidewalk Without Permits

According to the City of Los Angeles. If you fix your sidewalk or if you don't, you are still liable if someone trips and falls in front of your home. Yes. They can still sue you. When we get calls from potential clients, we always ask, “Is it better to leave a trip hazard exposed in front of your house, or is it better to take matters into your own hands and fix it yourself without letting the city know about it?" 

The answer is very clear. It's better to hire a C-8 concrete specialist to perform the sidewalk repair without permits than to expose your home to a trip and fall accident.

While we don’t advocate that property owners complete sidewalk repairs without permits, it is the most economical for most home and business owners. 

Pros of Hiring A C-8 Concrete Contractor To Fix The Sidewalk Without Permits

Again, we don’t suggest that you fix your sidewalks without a permit. The city most definitely frowns upon that. But with repair costs so high, this is sometimes the only option for thousands of home and business owners in Los Angeles.

Once again, the pros come down to time and money. If you choose to do work without a permit, you can get the job done in about a week at a fraction of the cost. In fact, it costs about 60% less than doing the work with a permit. 

Cons of Hiring A C-8 Concrete Contractor To Fix The Sidewalk Without Permits

The biggest con? Fixing your sidewalk without a permit can be a bit dicey. If you’re caught by an inspector, you could be issued a stop-work order, requiring the job be canceled immediately. Also, you may face fines, which vary depending on the amount of unpermitted work being done. 

The bottom line is, the city of Los Angeles is notorious for failing to fix its sidewalks. And now, with the pressures of insurers, it’s imperative that home and business owners take it upon themselves to fix the endless miles of sidewalk in the city. 

Ready to fix your sidewalk? Give us a call for a free quote today. You (and your insurer) will be glad you did.