Suing??

Bucky Badger

Bucky Badger

Go Kyle Go
Joined
May 11, 2003
Messages
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Location
Madison WI
Here is the story.

5 weeks ago I brought a lawn mower to a very small engine shop to get a tune up, because under load the mower would run very porley.
I got a call 45 minutes later saying there was little compression under load, and it would be cheaper to put a rebuilt engine on rather than fix the one that was on there. I agreed to that...Guy said it would be done in 3 days..well I went in on every friday to see my mower was done and NOPE. Last friday I went in and ther was a red schroud on the motor instead of the black on that came with it...I walked up to a young kid...the only one there.....I asked him how the motor went. He told me the owner only told him to put a new schroud on it. There is a new on-off switch and they are waiting for a fusable link....At this time I was pissed..took pic of the mower showing the motor never came off the frame,and had a different schroud on it. I asked the employee for my old schroud back, which he gave me.

I went into the office on the 5th of Jul and asked the owner what is going on. I said that's not a different motor just a different schroud. He said the old one was cracked and was letting water in...He back peddles and tells me the motor was not bad after all and needed a new switch and fusable link....At that time he said I will probably have "some" money coming back!!! I said I better because I paid for an ENGINE. I got home and looked at the schroud and it is not cracked anywhere!!!! At this time I have no written price for the repairs since he made these changes.

I authorized no repair but the engine.

Does this sound like fraud or deceptive business practices?
What exactly would this be called?

I feel that he put the new schroud on making me think the engine was different, but I cought him red handed.

Does this sound like something for small claims court?
 
Have to ask but what type of mower [rider,push,self propelled?] and brand? What brand engine? What's the bill?
 
SST55 said:
Have to ask but what type of mower [rider,push,self propelled?] and brand? What brand engine? What's the bill?
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60 in Swisher pull behind. 13 Briggs, I/C OHV we agreed on 250 for the motor and for labor I gave him a working riding mower that needs tranny work.
He has all money an the riding mower.
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I would start with a letter from your lawyer saying that a suit in small claims court will be forthcoming if he doesn't do the agreed work. Give him a week to either do the work, or return your money and your mower in the orginal condition.
 
TexasRaceLady said:
I would start with a letter from your lawyer saying that a suit in small claims court will be forthcoming if he doesn't do the agreed work. Give him a week to either do the work, or return your money and your mower in the orginal condition.
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I'm trying to avoid the letter from my lawyer, that would cost me another 75 bucks
 
I think we all know what that slimey SOB is up to.

If the matter can't be resolved through diplomacy then it looks like you either give him your money or make a lawyer that much richer.

Is there a consumer group or maybe a "on your side" type news program in your area?

Either way, let him know that you'll be letting others know of his dirty business practices.
 
It just sounds like the guy is trying to screw you over. He figures it will cost you too much to get an attorney involved and so you will just pay him and drop it.

I think if it were me, I would try calling the Better Business Bureau and see what they have to say. A lot of times, they can call the owner and get results simply because the guy won't want to have a bad report with them. That kind of thing can cost him a lot of money in the long run. Some people actually check with the BBB before dealing with a business for the first time. A bad word from them can send that customer elsewhere and cost the guy a lot more than it would just to treat you fairly and make you happy.
 
it might not be worth the hassle to go through small claims court. give him this url (if he's computer literate) and tell him that you are going to rate his business in detail with what he did. he may not want the bad rating and give you your money back. yelp is a pretty nice service and i give a lot of weight to what people say on it.
 
SlowNeasy said:
it might not be worth the hassle to go through small claims court. give him this url (if he's computer literate) and tell him that you are going to rate his business in detail with what he did. he may not want the bad rating and give you your money back. yelp is a pretty nice service and i give a lot of weight to what people say on it.
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If he is trying to fraud me it's worth 5000 if I win.... 70.00 to file
 
#17D500winner said:
Just going on your side of the story only, there's no doubt in my mind that what he's doing should be considered fraud.
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You may have a really hard time proving it though. If he didn't present you with a bill before you discovered the old motor was still on it, he can likely say that he just hadn't even planned on billing you the full amount after he discovered that he could save your old engine. It sounds like it would be really, really hard to prove it. Realize that YOU have the burden of proof if this goes to court and the only "proof" you likely have is your word. Of course, he is going to swear that it was simply a misunderstanding and that he, of course, would never defraud a customer. Had you paid a bill for another motor and then dicovered that the old motor was still there, it would pretty much be a slam dunk. I don't want to be a downer, but I'd hate to see you go to court and waste your money and your time and end up with nothing but court costs, filing fees and frustration.
 
Ben One makes a good point, another is you gave him a "busted up mower with a bad transmission" instead of paying him his labor $. The only way he could make a buck and stay in business was to fix it as he did. He was going to explain all this to you but you talked to the "kid" first and not him.

He hasn't presented a bill so how can you say he was trying to defraud you?

My experience has been the "I'll do this for you if you do that for me deals" that someone always feels taken advantage of. Much better to sell him your "busted up mower" take the cash and apply it towards his final bill.
My 2¢.

disclaimer: I used the term busted up mower only as a example.
 
SST55 said:
Ben One makes a good point, another is you gave him a "busted up mower with a bad transmission" instead of paying him his labor $. The only way he could make a buck and stay in business was to fix it as he did. He was going to explain all this to you but you talked to the "kid" first and not him.

He hasn't presented a bill so how can you say he was trying to defraud you?

My experience has been the "I'll do this for you if you do that for me deals" that someone always feels taken advantage of. Much better to sell him your "busted up mower" take the cash and apply it towards his final bill.
My 2¢.

disclaimer: I used the term busted up mower only as a example.
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We settled on the old mower as a price of 150.00, which is on the estimate form.

I have him on mp3 saying the reason the schroud is different is that the old one had a crack...I have the old one, it does not have ANY cracks. Yes he consented to me "documenting" the conversation.

I cought him in a bold face lie on tape...One lie and the judge is not going to believe much else he says.

As far as staying in business, my mower was suppose to be done 4.5 weeks ago....He says he's been TOO BUSY to get to it!!!!! Friday was 5 weeks and I still don't know when i'll get it...

Before you do any other work on someone elese equipment you must get consent to do other work.

I'll see how it plays out mon or tues
 
BobbyFord said:
I'd have Vito and Guido go down to his shop to see how he is because they're "concerned" :growl:
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LOL....Vito & Guido got 'WHACKED' last week....send Salvatore & Vinny instead....

On a more serious note....That motor has an MSRP NEW of almost $700.00....The cheapest ive seen them new is around $425.00.....4-5 weeks for a motor change out is unacceptable...NOBODY is that busy....Next time do it yourself..It's not that hard...Take your time....
 
MELROSEMAFIA said:
LOL....Vito & Guido got 'WHACKED' last week....send Salvatore & Vinny instead....

On a more serious note....That motor has an MSRP NEW of almost $700.00....The cheapest ive seen them new is around $425.00.....4-5 weeks for a motor change out is unacceptable...NOBODY is that busy....Next time do it yourself..It's not that hard...Take your time....
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Yeah, If I know it was going to be like this I would have done it my self, But it was suppose to be done in 3 days...Lesson learned
 
Benevolent One said:
You may have a really hard time proving it though. If he didn't present you with a bill before you discovered the old motor was still on it, he can likely say that he just hadn't even planned on billing you the full amount after he discovered that he could save your old engine. It sounds like it would be really, really hard to prove it. Realize that YOU have the burden of proof if this goes to court and the only "proof" you likely have is your word. Of course, he is going to swear that it was simply a misunderstanding and that he, of course, would never defraud a customer. Had you paid a bill for another motor and then dicovered that the old motor was still there, it would pretty much be a slam dunk. I don't want to be a downer, but I'd hate to see you go to court and waste your money and your time and end up with nothing but court costs, filing fees and frustration.
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Very good advice, IMO.
 
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