Backhoe bent rops

[hawkeye08]

I would take him to court and live with whatever the judge decides. I'm no lawyer, but I think you have a reasonable expectation to not expect anything more than normal wear and tear even without a contract. Think of it this way: if he drove it into a lake and left it there he would be liable for damages. I think it is quite clear that he is liable in this case as well. Maybe you can get some engineering documents that state what the failure load would be on the rops to make it clear to the judge that what happened to it was far from a normal event.

Really not worth going to court over. Attorney fees and court costs can add up quick.. wouldn't take long to owe more than it cost to fix it.

Forgive him (so you can move on) and remember not to loan things to him. Forgiving is not forgetting, you have learned from this and won't repeat. Without forgiving him, it is like wishing him dead and taking the poison yourself. He most likely does not care and it won't bother him.

Easier said than done, wish I could follow my own advice more often.

 

[twinsticks]

Her boyfriend asked to borrow the tractor and he knew that I was very uncomfortable letting him use it he told me That he only needed it for a couple of days that tirned in to over a month ... I had to call him several times and tell I needed it back .. Well he said he wants to see the damage tonight I am not home buty brother is so he will point it out to him if he does not see the damage.... As for my sister dont really care any more she should have said order the parys and I will pay for them its not like they dont have the money... They are very well do to off very well ....

 

[twinsticks]

I can forgive him but I will not forget what he did it was sneaky .. He returned my trailer and tractor when I was not home I noticed it a week later when I uncovered it and thought I was seeing things actually looked at pics I took when I bought to be sure..... He knows he hit several things with it he should have just told me then cover it so I would not see it......

 

[hawkeye08]

I can forgive him but I will not forget what he did it was sneaky .. He returned my trailer and tractor when I was not home I noticed it a week later when I uncovered it and thought I was seeing things actually looked at pics I took when I bought to be sure..... He knows he hit several things with it he should have just told me then cover it so I would not see it......

Awesome, sounds like you are going to enjoy your tractor again and not be bothered by the dirtbag. You'll probably look back on this a few years from now and laugh, your sister's boyfriend must have about *(^^&%$^ his pants when he did it. It is often the ones that can afford it that are the worst when it comes to someone else's things.

 

[Willl]

When you finally get a new ROPs on,,,,can I borrow it ? j/k

 

[Singlecoil]

Really not worth going to court over. Attorney fees and court costs can add up quick.. wouldn't take long to owe more than it cost to fix it.

Forgive him (so you can move on) and remember not to loan things to him. Forgiving is not forgetting, you have learned from this and won't repeat. Without forgiving him, it is like wishing him dead and taking the poison yourself. He most likely does not care and it won't bother him.

Easier said than done, wish I could follow my own advice more often.

I couldn't disagree more. This would be small claims court so no attorneys allowed. This is exactly the kind of case that small claims courts were created for.
To me, I don't think I could ever let something like this go as it is and I get the impression that the OP might feel the same. He also mentioned that the guy has plenty of money so what it comes down to is: you may be seeing this guy for years. When you see him do you want to be saying to yourself, "He screwed me out of a thousand bucks," or "He tried to screw me out of a thousand bucks but I made him pay. I hope he learned his lesson."
By making him do the right thing you'll be teaching him a valuable lesson; one he was clearly never taught by his father.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

I had a guy want to borrow my tractor to grade down a hill at his house, said he would buy a box blade and give it to me, for letting him use my tractor. I didn't loan it to him, mostly because I found out he wanted to grade down along his street, where they usually bury phone lines, etc.... and I wanted no part of him hitting something using my tractor.

I've also loaned my chainsaw to a coworker, who returned it with a new spare blade just in case he had damaged mine, which he hadn't.

My FIL has a BX23, I showed him the pictures, he said WOW, musta hit something really hard going in reverse.

 

[hawkeye08]

I couldn't disagree more. This would be small claims court so no attorneys allowed. This is exactly the kind of case that small claims courts were created for.
To me, I don't think I could ever let something like this go as it is and I get the impression that the OP might feel the same. He also mentioned that the guy has plenty of money so what it comes down to is: you may be seeing this guy for years. When you see him do you want to be saying to yourself, "He screwed me out of a thousand bucks," or "He tried to screw me out of a thousand bucks but I made him pay. I hope he learned his lesson."
By making him do the right thing you'll be teaching him a valuable lesson; one he was clearly never taught by his father.

It's your right to disagree, perhaps the OP would rather say, "I've learned my lesson about loaning out my equipment to someone I don't trust." Too many folks just want to go to court... I wonder what the agreement was when the tractor was loaned regarding the condition of its return? Was anything said? What would the court decide? Do you really think that the OP should go to court for $500 against his sister (I have not heard that she dumped the boyfriend) and perhaps have her thinking every time she saw her brother saying, "What a jerk?" Makes for really fun family gatherings.

BTW, you'll probably not teach the dirtbag a lesson... he really does not care if he hasn't paid by now. Even if he pays later, I doubt that he will learn anything.

I'm glad you brought up lessons his father should have taught him, I have a memory of my dad waiting in line at a gas station many years ago and when it was his turn to move up and get gas, some teenagers raced in from the other direction and started to get gas. Dad put the car back in park, got out and rolled up his shirt sleeves as he was walking towards them. One of them asked, "What are you doing old man?" My dad explained the error they made and then proceeded to tell them that he was going to beat the crap out of them if they didn't move and take their proper place at the end of the line. They looked at this "old man", put the gas hose back, got in their car and left. The gas station attendant said it was about time someone had spoken up to the punks, they had been doing that for a couple of years, upsetting other customers. Sometimes bullies do need to learn lessons...

 

[hawkeye08]

Sure you're not a lawyer?
Suppose he did go to court and the unimaginable happened: BIL wins.
That would make for some great conversation down at the grange.

-jim

I agree, dirtbag can probably tell a convincing story, he certainly has practice at lying.

 

[ChuckinNH]

The problem is that people who do these kinds of things think that is acceptable behavior, and it is to them so trying to make them feel guilty about it doesn't work.
Tell me, if you had just stepped out of a doctor's office, and he had given you 4-6 months to live would you pursue it, or let it go? I wish that I could guarantee you that much time, but I can't.