Re: my friend is being scammed - ??

Posted by Prune Man (65.161.188.11) on February 05, 2004 at 10:23:22:

In Reply to: my friend is being scammed posted by dwisey on February 05, 2004 at 04:15:59:

I'm gonna call your friend 'A', and the other guy that was asked to fix the brakes 'B' for the moment.

Obviously, 'B' thinks he is owed something. He wouldn't be going through this trouble unless he could rationalize it in his thinking. He must have tried talking to 'A' before he sent the letter.

-Did 'B' do any work? Did he supply any parts? Did he take it to another person to do the work?
-What was wrong with the brakes? Pads? Master Cylinder? Hoses? All of it!?
-Did 'A' have to do the work himself, or take it to a shop afterwards? Who did the work?
-Did 'A' and 'B' discuss payment beforehand?

Your friend 'A', needs to talk to this guy, or at least send a certified letter explaining that 'B' needs to provide receipts for parts, and a itemized bill for his time before 'A' will make any agreement to pay.

'A' should probably not threaten to notify the IRS about tax evasion he cannot prove. At least not on paper. There may be a law against that.

Also, are you using the term "friend" too loosely? There are a lot of friends that I would do anything for - no charge. Then again, there are a lot of deadbeats I know through friends, who want something done for free - so they call me.

We have a saying where I grew up. "F@^& you. Pay me!"

Ever take a car to get the brakes fixed? The $99 special always costs $300. $300 is the "Magic" amount for brakes. No matter what is wrong the brake man always points out a crimped hose, or a leaky master cylinder. If friend 'A' has working brakes, and it cost $300, he got a average deal pricewise. depending what was actually replaced, it might be a ripoff, or a really great bargain. Hard to tell without knowing more.

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