Real life MMD: She broke my phone — should I make her pay?

VoucherMan

Go for it. Sue her. What have you got to lose? After all - Where there's blame there's a claim. Why just £500 for the phone. What about the stress, inconvenience?

Or you could take some responsibility yourself. A £500 phone at work :eek:
But protect yourself for the future. Ask friends and family not to help you in future. Accidents have a habit of happening when you least expect them.

princesssal

seriously...I hate people like you!! It was an accident, accidents happen. There is no need to sue or try to rip off everyone else when an accident happens as most of the time it was your fault in the first place!

silvergirl

People are much more important than phones, but we have forgotten this. (How many adults do you see wandering about staring at their phone with tiny children toddling behind out of sight?)
If you were talking to your boss, a simple aside 'Let it ring' would have been enough. Why not have it in your pocket?. £500 and not insured? Display or foolishness?
If you just had to get to the phone, carry it on you. The neurosis about mobiles is nonsense. It's a thing.

nomoneytoday

Why not simply have the phone repaired?

Apple do a fixed price repair, which is 1/3 the price of a new one for example?

kymi

I'm curious to know how you would "make" her pay for a replacement. To be honest I think she should offer to at least contribute but if she cant afford it and wont, then it seems as if you're stuck between the proverbial rock and a hard place.

You were mad not to have in insured, (at least on your house insurance) so it sort of serves you right!

Iphones cost £500, I bought one last year, but I'm sensible enough to have it insured.

whitewing wrote: »

What mobile costs £500? I didn't even know they went up to that price. How was the mobile purchased? If within a certain number of days and paid on a debit or credit card, there may be some kind of cover from the card issuer.

dianemckeaveney

She should not have to pay... and how embarassing you already asked her to pay!

In an open office environment when others are trying to work why was your phone not on vibrate or silent.... its much more plesant to your colleagues to do this and respect the working environment.

Your technology was uninsured and you should have had this on such an expensive item. I think your colleague was more than sorry for the accident by offering you a spare phone of hers.

mb79_2

If you're phone was on vibrate then perhaps your colleague shouldn't have touched it. I assume it wasn't though so you can't expect people to put up with it ringing in the office. I used to have a boss who would post ringing phones in the paper shredder. You'd then have the hassle of begging to facilities to let you have it back. Anyway if you can't afford to replace a £500 phone, why do you have a £500 phone?

hibbard

You are paid to work, not to take private phone calls, so the fact that it rang was your fault. Keep it switched OFF when at work.

Rachb2

I have to say I agree with the majority here:
1) It's a bit foolish to spend £500 on a phone (could you not get a similar one for free with a contract) when by the sound of your post you couldn't really afford it.
2) Why do you have your PERSONAL phone on at work? Everyone I know isn't allowed there phone on their desk when they are supposed to be working.
3) It was an accident, they happen, if the phone is that poorly built that it breaks after being dropped once, then at some point you would have broken it yourself. The fault lies with you here, not your colleague, you didn't insure an expensive phone, that was so badly made it broke when being dropped once. My old brick of a Nokia has been run over by my car and it still works!
4) Your colleague told you she didn't have £500 to replace your phone, but did offer you a replacement, which I reckon would work just as well, but you turned it down. So again the fault is with you, you could have had a replacement, but you decided to hold out for the money.
5) How exactly are you going to make your colleague pay? Take the matter to the police?? It's not going to happen is it.

I hope you have learnt your lesson here and I am sorry that it cost you £500.

misterfish

So the phone worked OK after the accident. It stopped working the next day. Just as likely to be a coincidence and as others have said it should have been insured and most certainly on silent in an office environment.