Moral Delema, need advice Please

OK, so most of you know my shop burnt down 2 days before my back surgery, w/ a customers pump inside..
I figured I'd pick-up a few hundred before I was layed-up for a few months..
I had quoted the man a price for the removal/reinstall and pump overhaul.. The fire TOTALY destroyed this guys pump..
I called the man and told him what happened and that I wouldn't be able to do ANYTHING for a few weeks on account of my surgery..
He "said" he understood and went on for 30 minutes about how he found the tractor in the woods and was bringing it back to life after 10 years of it hidden in the forest..
SO FAR, I've gotten about 35 phone calls from this guy wanting to know WHEN I can get back to his tractor.. because NOW he "needs it"..
I scoured the web and FINALLY found a pump and paid 1600.00 for it on account I have NO CORE..
I called him to let him know, I BOUGHT a pump and it would be at my house in the MIDDLE of the week, Wendsday..
He called Monday, Tuesday AND wendsday raising hell about, how it shouldn't take "that long" to get a pump..
I received the pump Wendsday nite but didn't find it on the porch till this morning.. Thursday..
I opened the box and low and behold it has the wrong inlet and outlet fittings on it..
NORMALLY that wouldn't be a problem, just go to the shop and get the correct ones.. guess what?? NO SHOP..
SO, I put on my back brace, grab my walker and head to the burnt up building and found EVERTHING I need to get the pump right..!!! fuel inlet/outlet and 4 line connectors.. What a miracle..
My question to you "understanding fellas" IS..
Should I hold this guy to the original quote??? or eat the 1600.00 and shake his hand, tell him how sorry I am that things went this way, and be on my merry way???
BTW.. the quote was less than 450.00 ... So either way it goes, I'm loosing over 1000.00.. and to tell you the honest truth, I'm not even sure I'll be able to bend down that far to get the pump back on..
I know I OWE the guy a pump because it wasn't HIS FAULT AND it's been almost a month since I've been able to get up and around.. BUT Dam.. he SAID he understood about the back surgery.. and the phone calls were killin me..
On top of all that, I'm going to have to hire a helper to go with me incase something goes wrong..
What to do.. what to do..??
I called the customer this morning a told him I'd have his tractor running this weekend... I have to wait till the wife goes to work before I can leave the house or she'll KILL ME.. Lol
Lets hear.. good or bad.. I'm stuck on this one... OR it might be the pain killers clouding my judgment..

Well, I'm no lawyer (or back surgeon) but I'm not one bit sure that you are LEGALLY responsible for the loss of his pump just because it was in your shop fire. I believe this would depend on if you were negligent in causing the fire, leaving the pump in an unsafe location etc. none of which seems to be the case. There is also a notion of "unjust enrichment" that would suggest he should pay the difference between the price of the new pump and the work you agreed to do to the pump (minus the core if you take responsibility for that?).

You don't have to charge him for each phone call if you don't want to. I certainly wouldn't do the whole job for free if that was what you were considering. Somewhere between the original quote and $1,600 plus R+R would be a fair price in my mind, but it sounds like you just want to be done with the guy.

He should pay the original quote and quit bothering you the cost of the new pump should be paid by your shop insurance policy if you didn't have insurance then you have to suck it up and pay out of pocket You still need the original 450 to cover r+r and time you had in taking the pump apart
He shouldn't a freebie unless there was a written time quote

Yair . . . thepumpguysc.

Accidents happen and things go pear shaped, there is only so much you can or should do.

Your health and well being are your main considerations and if I had your misfortune the client would wait for my insurance company to replace the pump and then I would send it out to another pumpshop and arrange for them to do repairs as required.

If the four hundred and fifty bucks you have quoted did not cover it I would probably pick up the tab for the balance.

The fact he may have to wait a few months for insurance settlement is not my problem. Gear was accepted into our shop with all care and no responsibility . . . it may be different in the US.

This is not an unusual scenario, these sort of unfortunate occurrences happen all the time and although I understand your concerns, you should in no way accept responsibility . . . **** happens.

That's my take on it anyway . . . for what its worth.

All the best with your recovery.

Cheers.

Morally I think you have he responsibility to replace the pump that was destroyed under your care. Even though it is a tough hit, I believe replacing it will reward you many times over in the long run. It shows you to be an outstanding, honest businessman of good character. He still has a obligation to pay the original repair quoted for the pump. Last, but not least your customer is a worm of the lowest regards. What rational person would be calling you repeatedly when the job was of no rush to start with and then with regards to the circumstances. In the end we all have to deal with our own conscience. I wish you the best of luck.

Morally speaking, and to keep my reputation intact, I'd eat the cost of the new one. But I'd sure show him the receipt for the replacement, and if this guy is even half a human being, he'd throw something in to help cover the incident, unfortunate as it was.

I don't even know you, but if I was within an hour or two's drive, I'd come down and offer to provide whatever free labor I could to help you out for the day. I've turned a wrench or two before. Maybe there's a fellow forum member close by who would offer to give you a hand ?

Sounds like this bloke has become a bit of a A** Hole. I'd stick to my quote as a matter of good faith but let him know what it's cost you, them tell him it's cash upfront to fit the pump. IMHO A** Holes aren't good payers

Agree with the others about the tough luck. I'd say unless your insurance picks up the pump, you're gonna have to eat it unless Mr. A**hole offers to pay for some. I have ran into these guys before. All nicey-nicey until it is an inconvenience for them, then they lose their minds. Hope he has a change of heart. Also hope you get back on your feet as soon as possible.

I usually had writing on my work order to the affect that I had no responsibility for unforeseen circumstances. Should a volcano explode, a war happen, someone break into my shop and so on, it was just a piece of life. Legally I don't think that in most states you can write yourself out of some sort of responsibility but I've seen auto shops do it all the time in this state. I think the term is bailor / bailee relationship and you have to show reasonable care and caution in having possession of some else's property. Delmer is dead on with his statement.

Were I in your shoes and having faced the aggravation of this lout, I would charge him the whole bill and hold him up till he paid it before reinstalling the pump. You basically have a mechanic's lien on the job so he can't force you to work for nothing. He could go to small claims court and take months to get a judgement and then have to force you to pay if he won, which he wouldn't. I can tell you feel bad about this and want to do the right thing but at the very least make sure you get your original quote before you reinstall that pump. I can see the jerk just driving off with the now running machine and refuse to pay.

I SURELY don't want this to go to court.. AND I NEVER even considered him NOT PAYING the original quote.. but now that it has been mentioned,, it sure is something to think about.. DAM.!!
I'll eat the 1600.00 and just get my quote and be on my way..
Word of mouth goes A LONG, LONG WAY out here.. I just hope and pray that "THE STORY" doesn't get distorted, making ME out to be the A-hole..
THANKS FOR ALL YOUR REPLIES.. TPG

Speaking of court.. I got a summons in the mail yesterday for jury duty..
I think I'll give them a call and explain to them about my back surgery and am unable to walk or drive and I'm taking 2 different types of pain killers 4x a day which "might" cloud my judgment.. LOL.. You think they'll understand?? LOL My opinion is NO.. they'll want me to drive 100 miles just to send me home..

I would get the $450 and not bother with the installation. One homeowner is not going to make or break your pump business. People are strange and I wouldn't go out of my way by hiring another person to reinstall the pump. Just tell the guy due to circumstances I cannot install it if you want to pick it up pay the $450 and be on your way.

Update.. I was feelin pretty good yesterday so decided to grab a willing friend and head out to put the pump on..
Had the pump on in 45 minutes and went to start it.. Normally it would take me 15 minutes.. DEAD BATTERY.. Called the customer, both cars in the drive, and said he had a dead battery and wondered if he was at home..
He said, NO, he wasn't there.. but would call his son who lived next door to help.. After an hour of trying to get the bat charged enough to spin the engine to bleed the system I quit..
Showed the 40yr old son what needed to be done, and left..
Threw*up about 15x and almost passed out even more.. WAY TO MUCH, TO FAST!!.. I got 3 calls from the customer BEFORE I got home and I didn't call him back.. He NEVER mentioned ANY MONEY and never showed up at the job site..
I took a handful of pain killers and passed out from the pain.. Not feelin real sporty this morning either.. I'm just NOT physically able to finish the job..

Man you have got to take I easy. Costumers like this one aren't worth loosing sleep over little lone your health. The upside is your son now knows how to get the pump off it push comes to shove.

For someone who REALLY needed this tractor, which he acts like it had been an active member of his fleet, AND not having the decency to leave a good hot battery for you for an operation that requires many turns of the engine to complete, screw him! From my time on the forum, you have enough business from good customers and I'm sure many referrals from them to not need to deal with an a##hole like him. Force him to pay at least the quote, which I never do on older machinery as I NEVER know what kind of cluster * I'm taking on. Cut him loose and make sure he never comes back or make sure he knows why you don't want him as a customer anymore. I suspect that to anyone that knows him, he has a well earned reputation as you have experienced and will understand why you dealt with him as you may have to.

Tones> it was HIS SON.. and ALL HE KNOWS is how to bleed the air out of the system..
WRWtexan>> your exactly right.. I called and told him on Saturday, I'd be there Sunday.. and the guy I took w/ me, didn't have a kind word for the "man".. he said he's known this guy for 40 years and STILL didn't have anything nice to say about him.!!!! EXCEPT, just figure yourself OUT 1600.00.!!!
My buddy said, at least the pumps easy to get back off if he doesn't pay ya.. Lol..
On a side note.. he hasn't called once today..
The way I figure it, I fulfilled MY END of the deal.. I bought this guy a pump and reinstalled it.. NOT MY FAULT his battery was dead..
I'll keep you posted, as I'm sure this isn't the end..

Pumpguy, Like others have said wish you were closer to here, I'd be there at the drop of a hat to give you a hand. I my opinion you have gone way beyond what a decent person would expect. Do take care of your back it's the most important thing to be concerned about right now.

You forfilled your end now call the phone company block his number and get some rest

If he doesn't pay take him to small claims court. And charge him then for the wasted time for two people. Chances are with his reputation the judge will know of him also and justice will be done. Good Luck.

"Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves."

Cmark said:

"Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves."

Click to expand...

I am not sure that attempting to collect the money owed from the original agreement could be called revenge. And charging for time spent after having a time agreed upon is a realistic charge. I do agree though that revenge is a dead end street.