Newbie tuning liability question

[Wimblees@aol.com]

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In a message dated 1/29/03 7:46:24 AM Central Standard Time, 
keys88@hotmail.com writes:

> I regards to the recent self destructing piano post, It brought to mind a 
> question about a tuners liability overall.  When I get the experience and 
> confidence one of these days to make my first tuning /service call, how do 
> you deal with things that are beyond your control with the customer?  So 
> many bad conditions can exist in a customers piano, such as extremes as the 
> cracked harp, broken bridges, loose tuning pins that won't hold, rusty 
> strings that break, and so on.  Not to mention the piano in such ill repair 
> that it cannot be tuned properly without further repair, that the customer 
> may not won't to pay for at the moment.
>   My question is if anyone has an invoice that they have the customer 
> initial, that you clearly explain your terms, so there is no 
> misunderstanding.  Such as, you won't be held responsible for "such and 
> such" base on the condition of your piano, or that a large pitch raise is 
> done at the customers own risk, due to the age of the piano, or so on.
>   Thanks very much
>   
> Tom
>   
> 

Tom

Problems with a piano before you got there are not your fault. You did not 
cause the strings to rust, the tuning pins to become loose, and even for the 
plate to crack. Even while you are tuning, unless you had the hammer on the 
wrong pin, and over stretched a string, you didn't break a string while 
tuning. The string broke while you were tuning. 

Part of the experience of being a tuner is identifying the problems with a 
piano before you to start work on it. As you tune, it is your responsibility 
to identify problems, and then point them out to the customer. If you see 
rusty strings, tell the customer that there is a good change they will break. 
If you run across a loose tuning pin, tell the customer it needs to be 
replaced, or else the piano will not stay in tune. 

The more you can tell the customer about the problems with the piano, the 
less likely you'll be blamed for those problems in the future. But I have 
never heard of any one needing a "disclaimer" on their invoice. 

Wim 

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