I have received a Notice To Owner from a possibly unpaid subcontractor for our cabinets. For 8 months now, they have only returned to do punch out work and warranty work. All of this was fabricated materials and custom. The builder/contractor supposedly has not paid them in full, so the cabinet people say. They say they are owed 25k. We have only received NTO just now, and not within the 45 days of commencement or when they first did cabinet work and install which was months ago. In fact, we still have warranty issues that are not fixed. Our construction loan has been paid/released in full to the builder with the exception of about 10k in overages we have agreed to pay to the builder for some very specific things that are not cabinets. The problem with that is that the builder still has not finished our home in some areas and has not contacted us or returned to finish. They have breached contract thus far. Our main stairway is not done and the parts and laborers due to covid excuses are either late or they say they have no one to do the work. The cabinet people claim the same when it comes to our warranty issues. The NTO can't be valid if it was sent well after last labor and materials with the exception of punchout warranty issues of which I believe were also more than 45 days ago the last time they were here. Does the cabinet company have right to file a lien?
If the NTO was not delivered to the owner within 45 days of first starting the work, then a claim of lien would not be valid or enforceable under Florida's Lien Laws.
As for breach of contract, we would need to review your written contract to advise of your rights or responsibilities when work is not completed or fixed.
Any NTO must be served before final payment if there is a final contractor's affidavit. In any event, the NTO must be served within 45 days of first furnishing. There is no situation that allows a subcontractor to serve the NTO more than 45 days after first furnishing. There are prior appellate decisions in Florida to suppor this (the statute was amended to prevent serving a NTO more than 45 days after first furnishing). Hope this answers your questions.