A Bad Day in an LFS

[Ruby Shark]

Oh Becca I'm sorry that you are going though this. I would feel just like you in this case...not wanting to get ripped off but feeling bad at the same time.

In my opinion the tank was placed in an inappropriate place where it was a danger to their costumers. And to put merchandise up in one of these tanks is just a ridiculous and risky move on their part.
It should have been kept in a safer place...especially if the tank already belonged to someone else. It's not your fault that they have a lack of space.
The way the staff treated you was also disgusting...they could have at least asked you if you were alright.
The most I would pay is wholesale because the store didn't purchase the tank themselves so the money is coming out of their pockets. But then again it's also their fault that it was placed where it was.

Good luck with everything and please keep us posted.
I'm really glad to hear that you were not hurt.

 

[fishdudein]

Becca, just want to say again that I'm glad you weren't hurt, and wish you the best of luck tomorrow. This has been an interesting thread to follow.

You sound like you are a genuinely good person with a good heart. Good people need to stand up for themselves occasionally. Keeps the world in order.

 

[vantgE]

Well heres my thought that I don't see mentioned, The guy paid the lfs to drill his tank, the lfs is responsible for his tank, his tank is brocken in the lfs, by a customer. If you don't pay the only person to lose out is the guy who owns the tank maybe talk to him again and see about buying him a brand new drilled tank, without the help of the lfs(who does not seem to deserve the business anyways)
And if he's happy with that then that will work, but you have to conseder the fact that the man might not have his tank replaced if you don't pay, So as an alternative leave it for now and keep in touch with the guy who's tank you broke

 

[Ruby Shark]

And if he's happy with that then that will work, but you have to conseder the fact that the man might not have his tank replaced if you don't pay, So as an alternative leave it for now and keep in touch with the guy who's tank you broke

I think Becca said that the store is going to replace it. I would think that if the tank is on their property they are responsible for it no matter who broke it. I don't think they can refuse to replace something when the reason it broke had nothing to do with him. The cost of replacement or lack there of should be between Becca and the store. But what do I know? LOL

 

[Becca]

Well heres my thought that I don't see mentioned, The guy paid the lfs to drill his tank, the lfs is responsible for his tank, his tank is brocken in the lfs, by a customer. If you don't pay the only person to lose out is the guy who owns the tank maybe talk to him again and see about buying him a brand new drilled tank, without the help of the lfs(who does not seem to deserve the business anyways)
And if he's happy with that then that will work, but you have to conseder the fact that the man might not have his tank replaced if you don't pay, So as an alternative leave it for now and keep in touch with the guy who's tank you broke

That's a good idea, really. But quite honestly, he's already had his tank replaced by the store.

 

[Cali]

Becca, good luck with your dilema. I have been following this thread from the beginning (actually, I read the 5 thread pages on that Detroit Reef message board, too) B)


My thoughts are that the store employees probably weren't that knowledgeable about what to do in this type of situation... and, as a result, they acted poorly.


I think what you really need to do is talk to the store owner (as, I believe, you plan on doing) and tell him what happened. If it were me, depending upon how the owner reacts to what I tell him, then I would decide whether or not to offer to pay (wholesale) for the tank. I say that I would decide AFTER I talk to the owner because I believe your paying for the tank is not legally your responsibilty, but maybe ethically it is. If the owner is understanding and aplogetic, then I'd be more apt to offer to pay for the tank (wholesale). If the owner is snotty and acts as if this whole deal is my fault, then I'd not offer to pay and I would share some of the good info our board buddies have provided in this thread: The irresponsible way in which they had the tanks stacked, the insulting behavior of their staff etc, the fact that you are not legally responsible for paying for the tank (and that you don't appreicate them strong arming you into paying)...

Then, after that, you could contact the BBB (as they told you to talk to the owner first).

All the best, Becca!


Get some rest and think about it later... There's no need for you to stress yourself about it.

 

[jacblades]

normally i dont advocate sueing if something was even partially your fault but in this case, the employees (or owners) were extremely rude, treated you like a criminal, and dont seem to have good business practice (as others have experienced as well). id say sue the poop out of them to teach them a lesson. or maybe even shut them down. not asking if you are hurt, asking a woman in an extremely rude manner to leave her kids on the sidewalk-people like this should not be in businesses that deal with the public.

if the owner of the tank has already had it replaced, then you should do nothing.

i used to work for satan at a breakfast place (yes i swear-satan in the flesh). one time i hit the wrong button when putting in an order on the computer screen. the manager made me pay for it and then wouldnt even give me the pancakes i just paid for. ok-that doenst have much to do with anything but that restaurant had awful business paractices. the managers not only treated the employees like trash, but the customers too. they usually didnt kepp employees longer than a month (which i suppose is why they hired me right off the bat even though i had no experience serving.) places with people like that should not be in business and if you have the power to do something about it, then you should.

 

[Cali]

one time i hit the wrong button when putting in an order on the computer screen. the manager made me pay for it and then wouldnt even give me the pancakes i just paid for.

jac, I know you didn't mean for this to be funny, but it made me LOL!!!!

 

[jeffrey]

About the pancakes, well besides being funny, they cant do that. besides the fact that the cost to make them would probably top out at a nickle.
Just like being short money in a float, they cannot make you pay it. if something goes missing, they cannot hold you responcible, unless you were the only one that had access to it, and then they have to prove it was you still, and can only charge you and then try and sue you for hte cost of whats missing.

What bussiness owners try and get away with it retarded.
it makes me mad.
Unrelated story, girl firends sister, working at blockbuster, xmas eve. only been there a little while, well the manager tell her that she is only getting regular time, not the double time and half she was legal entitled to, first I phoned and had a chat, manager seemed like a dork, and wouldnt say or do anything. So I call my gf's father, who happens to be the minister of labour here, and well turns out she got a settlement of 5500 bucks.
Point being, if a bussiness doesnt follow the rules, staple their ass to the wall, or they will never learn and keep treating more and more people with the same disrespect.

Then, after that, you could contact the BBB (as they told you to talk to the owner first).

All the best, Becca!

All the BBB can really do is put the incedent on file, so if someone calls and asked about the company the BBB will be able to say there is one complaint against them.


I say do not pay, as you have every legal right not to pay. you also have hte right to sue.
It was on there property, and really it doesnt matter if you broke in and started swinging with a baseball bat and then got hurt, a good laywer could sue and get money for injury.
Mind you just saying that you will be contacting a lawyer for punitive compensation unless they wish to settle out of court could net you an easy few hundred bucks, cause if you ask for 400 even, thats less then their lawyer will charge them for answer the phone about the subject. and still less then the deducable for their insurance.

They were in the wrong, treated you like a criminal when THEY were in the wrong.
If you pay I will be dissapointed.

But please let us know what happens.

 

[Becca]

Jeffrey - regardless of what happens, I still say you're going to make a fine lawyer one day. LOL. I'll be set in my mindframe "I was wrong and I'm morally obligated to pay these guys. Damn, I wish I would have been more careful, I don't want to hand out that money..."

And then I'll see your post and I can't help but go "Yeah! Forget those losers! They can't touch me!! I don't want to shop at their store anymore anyway!!! GO JEFF!! YEAH!"

LOL. You're really good with words. Just had to say that.

 

[Becca]

Ok folks. The matter has been settled. And I'm sure everyone here will be pleased. I was going to make the call, but quite honestly, I was a nervous wreck and just not sure I could handle it. I knew I'd buckle. So, I opted to let my husband, Brian, call. He spoke with the store owner, Jim Aytes. Below is what I got from Brian:

Here's basically the gist of the conversation, per my husband:

<!-- Start of Brian's Mail -->

LFS: (anonymous person): Pet connection
Bri: May I speak with Jim Aytes please
LFS: (person) May I tell him who's calling?
Bri: Brian Slickis
LFS: (person) Sure, one moment
Jim: Hi, this is Jim
Bri: Hi Jim, my name is Brian Slickis. I was calling to discuss something that happened in your store on Sunday. My wife and I were looking at some tank decorations, and she was trying to reach a piece of driftwood in the top tank of a stack and fell and broke one that was lying on the floor.

(this isn't direct quoted, so don't post it as such...he actually interupted me the minute he figured out who i was)
Jim: Oh, yeah, they told me about that. I certainly don't expect you to pay for the tank, and I want to apologize for the way Alex handled the situation. It was his first weekend in charge in charge.
Bri: (lying sort of) Well, I don't think it was really handled badly, I'm sure he dealt with it to the best of his ability, and especially to have something like that happen the first week he's responsible for it...

Basically he said he's happy no one was hurt, apologized for how the situation was handled, and said he definitely does not expect us to pay for it.

I even said "I appreciate that, but we did say we would pay for it, and I'll stand by my word, so I'd be glad to reimburse you the replacement cost"
and he refused politely

key points: he apologized for how the situation was handled, said he was glad no one was hurt and that he definitely doesn't expect us to pay for the tank, and of course said he hopes it won't discourage us from coming back.

<!-- End of Brian's Mail -->

So, it looks like everyone's happy. We tried to offered to pay - for those that felt I was morally obligated. The store owner made good of a bad situation, and most importantly, I'm not out $150, or even $85, when I very easily could have been, because of a stunt I pulled that could have resulted in more than just a scrapped knee.

*breaths a huge sigh of relief...*

 

[jacblades]

woohoo-but he needs to fire that employee or give him a spanking...

 

[treefrog]

Glad things worked out! I have been following the whole thing, but felt any advice on my part would have been repetitous.

 

[Cali]

Yeah, Becca!!!! I'm SO happy!

I had a feeling that was how it was going to turn out. I suspected that those employees were not the ones in charge and that they were probably as unsure of what to do as you were.


Many kudos for that classy store owner!!!

You, my dear, can rest easy now!

 

[steppy104]

thats great! so it was just a matter of employees doing a sad job then...not the stores fault. glad everything turned out ok!