Camera not collected problem

mongoose2009

Hi

I run a small business repairing camera equipment.I had a customer bring a camera to me in Aug 2008 for a repair.I inspected it and found it needed a circuit board.It was uneconomical so I spoke to him and said I may get a 2nd hand one in.After 2 weeks he phoned me and I spoke to him and said that one hadnt come in and I would reassemble the camera for him to collect at anytime.It does say on my receipt that any camera not collected after 30days from completion of work will be scrapped or disposed of as I get hundreds of cameras in and cant store them. after 3 months he didnt call me so i scrapped the camera. anyway he phoned me nov 2009 eg.15months later and wanted his camera back i told him it was scrapped and he was not happy with this and wanted a replacemnt etc.
I dont think its reasonable to come back to me 1 year after no word and expect a camera
what do you guy think is my position?

COOLTRIKERCHICK

i think they are trying to pull a fast one.

but as long as it is printed on his receipt that he had when he left you his camera, you should be covered. did you get him to sign it too?

If he keeps on, just tell him to go and get legal advice... and make sure you log all dates etc of phone calls etc

paulwf

I remember having this situation many times but with bicycles which made the problem much worse as obviously they are much larger and more people dump them at shops as they don't know how to dispose of them.

There is a proper legal procedure but I can't remember what it is exactly. I know the trade association has the documentation but I don't have access to that any more. I would suggest contacting your trade association or Trading Standards or if you get stuck PM me and I'll give you contact details of where I got the advice from.

IIRC the best procedure is to have a workshop ticket which outlines the weekly storage charge which the customer signs and then they get a copy. You have to then send a letter by recorded delivery if they have missed the collection date. After a certain period when the storage charge outweighs the value of the item you can sell or dispose of it to recover your costs. Don't quote that though, my memory is a bit hazy on the specifics...I'm certain there is a legally agreed procedure though.

BTW now is a good time to get signed workshop tickets in place, our trade body produced them and had them legally checked before issuing them.

ukbill69

Im not sure, but I think you should have returned the item to the customer, as it was there property and paid by them. If you sent them a letter saying you would scrap it or emailed them and made sure someone got the letter then your covered. But if not I think you may have broken the law. Best if you ring trading standards and ask them what the legal rights are.

mongoose2009

Thanks for the replies
I will speak to TS on monday but I'm not concerned as the camera was 5 years old and faulty to start with

martindow

Is this really an issue at all? The camera needed a repair which was uneconomical so in effect the camera had no value. If he goes down the road of claiming he would have to show that the camera had a value and that he has incurred a loss

mongoose2009

this is what I tried to tell him
this is probably why he left it a year it wasnt that important

ukbill69

What id suggest buy a broken one on ebay and give him it.

paulwf

mongoose2009 wrote: »

this is what I tried to tell him
this is probably why he left it a year it wasnt that important

Perhaps not so much with cameras but with bike some people saw it as free secure storage, which is why a storage charge after a set period is so important. There's also those people that live abroad for part of the year or end up in hospital and of course those that do a spell in prison...try not to get on the wrong side of the last group