[RE-wrenches] What's the right action?

[R Ray Walters]

I would just cut him a check for the $600, no interest because you're not a bank. (My money market pays 0.1% annual, so its pennies anyway) He can apply that as credit, or use it to buy some at Sam's club.

It's not your fault that he didn't come get the batteries for 8 years; that's just plain crazy.  If you had had them sitting there all that time, they would be toast, or you would have had to maintain and store them all this time, and they still would be toast, and he would owe you storage and maintenance. If he had picked them up and stored them himself, they would be toast. 

I deal with lots of weird stuff like that too, neighbors, etc. and no one EVER can complain about a full refund. He will consider himself very lucky that he's getting his full investment back on 8 yr old golf cart batteries that would only be worth the core charge now. 
I had people leave equipment with me for months before, and I charge a storage fee, just to encourage them to come get it. You pay at least 50 cents/ sq ft a month rent for your space I'm sure. Just rent on the space 8 batteries would have taken would be over $200. This incident cost you time and money, and he's getting a full refund. That's more than fair.


R. Walters
ray at solarray.com
Solar Engineer




On Oct 6, 2011, at 9:49 AM, David Katz wrote:

> Hi Allan
> You could credit him the interest on the $600 he loaned you.
> David
>  
> From: Allan Sindelar [mailto:allan at positiveenergysolar.com] 
> Sent: Thursday, October 06, 2011 03:32 AM
> To: RE-wrenches <re-wrenches at lists.re-wrenches.org> 
> Subject: [RE-wrenches] What's the right action? 
>  
> OK, here's one way off the beaten path.
> 
> I live in an historic offgrid rural neighborhood of eccentrics. Makes for quite rewarding life and work. In 2003 a neighbor came to me for a system. His budget was $6K and needs were modest. He didn't want installation, would install it himself. We built a system on a plywood panel with DR2424 and XP250, DC175, SunSaver, Tri-Met, with all proper disconnects, prewired with connection points labeled. Array was two SX150s on a pole-top rack, and it used eight golf carts; a good budget system for that time. Phil Undercuffler (of Outback now) did the work well. The neighbor was pleased with the result and took the system home with him except for the batteries. Paid in full, check was good (as they virtually always are).
> 
> He never came back for the batteries. We saw each other periodically, and after once or twice I stopped asking about them, figured he had his reasons. Golf carts are the only batteries we routinely stock, and his were eventually rotated back into stock to keep it fresh, so no special-order loss there. Last week we passed on our "road" and he stopped me to ask for the dimensions for the battery box he was about to build, and said he'd be in touch to get the batteries.
> 
> In 2003 golf carts were $75 and cores kept the beer fund stocked in good weather. Today they're $150 exchange, with a $20 core value. So I'm posting to get preemptive guidance when he comes for his batteries. 
> 
> It seems the most straightforward approach is to simply tell him the current cost of the batteries and offer to apply the $600 he paid in 2003 toward the current cost for eight without core exchange. He won't be expecting to fork out an extra $760. I'd like to keep him satisfied, and can see at least eight different ways to approach this, all justifiable and none ideal. 
> 
> Has this ever happened to you? What would you do, that's fair, equitable, and is likely to keep a reasonable customer happy? 
> 
> I'll post what eventually happens when it's done. Of course, that could be another eight years.
> 
> Thanks, Allan
> -- 
> Allan Sindelar
> Allan at positiveenergysolar.com
> NABCEP Certified Photovoltaic Installer
> NABCEP Certified Technical Sales Professional
> New Mexico EE98J Journeyman Electrician
> Positive Energy, Inc.
> 3201 Calle Marie
> Santa Fe, New Mexico 87507
> 505 424-1112
> www.positiveenergysolar.com
> 
> 
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