Liability advice- Missing the Point

[Richard Brekne]

PianoSvFla@AOL.COM wrote:

> Al & Jody,
>
> Although the advise from the other techs are correct as far as the technical
> causes and results, I feel the point is being missed. Your customer is taking
> a stand on a legal point, that is , the piano was fine before you serviced
> it.

First of all, I'd like to say this posting gives a lot of good advice
lower on.
As far as the above paragraph, is concerned, the customers "legal" point
above
rests on her ability to prove the point from a technical standpoint.
This is
impossible to do. It is totaly unreasonable to conclude that a piano
that
literally comes apart at the seams because it recieve a relatively minor
pitch
adjustment could have been  in "fine" condition, or anything close to
it.

> Regardless of the type of damage done, she must have a proponderance of
> evidence to prove to the court that it was functioning fine before you
> serviced it. She can do this by going back to the original owner and
> supplying to the court from them an affidavit to that fact.( And you know
> they will to protect themselves.)

This simply wont hold. Neither have the technical  insight to have
relevant
opinions. And the actual cirmcumstances of the incident show clearly
from a
technical standpoint that the piano was in serious trouble before being
worked
on.


>
> It is not necessary for your customer to understand the how's and why's of
> what happened because she is not a professional in the business, that's why
> she came to you. She is also not obligated to have you repair the piano
> because in her mind your credibility is tainted. She can simply have the
> piano repair and sue you for the repairs if you refuse to pay.

I dissagree here, she is obligated to prove in some legal forum that you
were at
fault for the present condition (after tuning) of the piano, otherwise
she can
not charge you in any way whatsoever.


>
> At this point I would recommend to treat this as a legal issue and protect
> yourself. To start with I would  send her a registered letter return receit
> explaining
> you opinion concerning the matter. Do not offer to buy,repair or return the
> fee as this would be an admission of guilt and leave you open for liability.
> Do not show her the posts as this would only cause further hard feelings in
> rubbing it in for being a fool for buying a poor quality instrument. (
> Besides you don't know their true financial situation ) These posts are
> better off in the hands of your lawyer to firm up his case, not in hers' to
> benefit her lawyer in rebutting them. Remember she is making a legal point
> not a technical one.

This is good sound advice.

>
> I have found that people who threaten usually don't follow through with it.
> If she has a strong case she will simply serve you a subpoena.
> If she insists on discussing her piano with you then she is negotiating,
> that's good. Do not speak about the damage and who's fault it is. Listen to
> her quietly and simple offer her the scenario of "How would she like this
> conversation to end?" If her terms are acceptable to keep you out of court
> such as returning the tuning fee, since SHE is suggesting it agree. Send her
> a check and in the memo part write "Payment in full." This will put a close
> to further payment and  keep her from coming back and requesting more money.
> Seek the advise of an attorney to discuss your situation, most of them give
> you the first 15 minutes for free. Also what I have said applies to Florida,
> some of the laws maybe slightly different in your state.
> In the future you might also discuss ways of protecting yourself, such as
> waivers, incorporating etc...

I agree with most of this, tho I really must say that all this talk of
lawyers and lawsuits is kind of overkill so far. I would be a little
more cautious then the above suggests in dealing directly with her. 

If she does starte moving in the direction of a lawsuit, (small claims,
or otherwise), It is important to not deal with her directly. Thing is,
she doesnt have a leg to stand on. Hopefully tho she will see early on
in any such process. The piano was no good to begin with and that you
are probably as much a victim here as anyone.


Personally I think the main issue here is how carefull piano techs
should be or should be required to be, when approaching such "jobs". 
Regardless of ones stance on the subject of PSO's, one must simply be
aware that certain piano makes, and / or pianos that have seen
obvious abuse, are at risk. I always look over carefully any "doubtfull"
piano ahead of time and if I am in doubt, I refuse the job. I issue a
death certificate and inform the customer that he/she can always find
somebody out there willing to work on it but that it is my proffesional
opinion that the piano is dead. I do this to protect myself. To keep out
of awkward situations. I always feel a bit sorry for folks in this
position, so I always refuse payment when writing out a death
certificate. I know some other technicians will take issue with this
point, but I have very good reasons for doing so, and very good
experience with the results.

As far as how much of this kind of "beforehand caution" a customer is
entitled
to, it is difficult to judge. When piano techs as a whole can't aggree
more then
they do on what constitutes a PSO, or what constitutes a DOA, it makes
matters
worse. My advice to you is to learn from this incident, be more cautious
in the
future, and a bit more selective as to the quality of instruments you
are willing
to work on. I wouldnt worry much about your present situation tho. At
worst it
will develop into a "pain in the arse" situation that will sooner or
later die
upon its own unreasonablness.

Freindly regards
Richard Brekne
I.C.P.T.G.  N.P.T.F.
Bergen, Norway