---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment Todd, Check out the Journal issue on plates and breakage; I think it's November 2000, but I could be wrong. There's a very good article on an experience that a member in my chapter had with a broken plate and the consequent lawsuit (the suit was dropped because the plaintiff's expert witness withdrew from testimony). It could save you a lot of trouble to give a copy to your client. If you need more information, feel free to contact me. Respectfully, Jon >List, > >This week I experienced my first cracked plate. It's not an >experience I would like to have again. The piano was a Kimball >console which, according to the customer, had not been tuned in 18 >years by the previous owner. The current owners had recently >acquired it for $300 and wanted it tuned up so the wife could play >Christmas music. I opened the piano up and found a dead mouse and >several mouse droppings (the mouse was mostly decayed), which, in my >opinion shows that the piano hadn't been tuned recently and probably >not played in several years, either. I noticed no other problems >besides a few broken Schwander butt springs, so I got out my SAT III >and checked the pitch. The piano was 185-200 cents flat. I did the >first pitch raise with no overshoot and then checked pitch >again. The SAT III reading now was about 35-40 cents flat, so I >programmed in a 25% overshoot and began tuning the piano at A0. As >I crossed the bass/tenor break, I heard a LOUD "bang" which was much >louder than any string breakage I'd ever heard, so, fearing the >worst, I got down under the keybed and looked at the plate. The >plate had cracked right through the hitch pin area. The crack was >all the way through the plate and I called the customer over and >informed her of the plate breakage and that it was probably not >feasible to repair the plate, and even if it was, there could be no >guarantees of success on such a repair. She understood that the >piano was a complete loss, I collected a minimum service call fee >and left. > >Two days later, her husband calls me up demanding that I reimburse >him for $300 or provide him with an acceptable replacement. I >informed him that I had no intention of doing so, because the plate >cracked due to lack of structural integrity. He informed me that >his opinion was that the plate cracked due to my incompetence and/or >negligence. I then explained the pitch raise procedure that I >performed and told him that to the best of my knowledge, I had >exercised due professional care and was not responsible for the >demise of his piano. As a parting comment, the customer said he >would just have to take me to small claims court and recover his >money. He could be bluffing, but then again, he seemed pretty >adamant about collecting his $300. > >So, that brings me to the questions - Have you or anyone you know >been sued because of a cracked plate? If so, how did you defend >yourself in court and what was the ultimate outcome? > >Todd L. Mapes >Associate Member PTG >Fort Smith, AR Jon Ralinovsky Piano Technician Department of Music Miami University 513/529-6548 ---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 3199 bytes Desc: not available Url : https://www.moypiano.com/ptg/pianotech.php/attachments/b4/58/3b/72/attachment.bin ---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment--
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