Recently, I was asked what a contractor could do after discovering that he underbid a job by 50%. Short of suicide, the answer depends on the nature and status of any contract as well as the type of error that led to the bad price. Is There a Contract? The first thing we need to know is whether there is already a contract between the owner and the half-priced contractor. Assuming that we're dealing with private parties (the rules change when the owner is a government agency), if no contract exists, then the contractor can usually just withdraw or correct the bid. In the absence of a state law requiring a written contract, a contract can still arise
