Dropped tree on gazebo - customer still paid!

[softdown]

It was the perfect storm:
Tree was a very hard leaner - one of three dangerous trees. One had already fallen on customers shed. That was the easy one.
Two foot wide drop zone. I may refuse such tiny drop zones in the future.
Rope got badly stretched from first pull next to house
Could not get to new and much better rope due to rural post office limited hours
Wind
Two hours sleep

Used my skid steer to pull and cut the proper hinge. Tree still clipped the corner of the gazebo a few feet away and took down 1/2 of the gazebo. I told the customer I owed him (due to gazebo) when he asked about payment.

That was a couple months ago. I kept expecting a bill or a call detailing damages. Instead I received a check to cover my expenses - $200. Now considering options:
Destroy the check
Send the check back
Cash the check
Send customer a check

Customer calls himself a carpenter. Somehow he could afford to build two circular homes in a gated mountain community. A vacation home that he rarely visits.

I only have theories as to why he apparently let me off so easy.

 

[ValleyForge]

Your labor should never be given away for free.

 

[lone wolf]

It was the perfect storm:
Tree was a very hard leaner - one of three dangerous trees. One had already fallen on customers shed. That was the easy one.
Two foot wide drop zone. I may refuse such tiny drop zones in the future.
Rope got badly stretched from first pull next to house
Could not get to new and much better rope due to rural post office limited hours
Wind
Two hours sleep

Used my skid steer to pull and cut the proper hinge. Tree still clipped the corner of the gazebo a few feet away and took down 1/2 of the gazebo. I told the customer I owed him (due to gazebo) when he asked about payment.

That was a couple months ago. I kept expecting a bill or a call detailing damages. Instead I received a check to cover my expenses - $200. Now considering options:
Destroy the check
Send the check back
Cash the check
Send customer a check

Customer calls himself a carpenter. Somehow he could afford to build two circular homes in a gated mountain community. A vacation home that he rarely visits.

I only have theories as to why he apparently let me off so easy.

Thank him and tell him you owe him one.

 

[user 122190]

Shiet happens. Unless you were negligent, and did your best, and it sounds like you did, you should be compensated for your time and effort.

 

[HumBurner]

That sucks, but life happens. I am pretty bad at advanced math, have been my whole life. Physics, trig, geometry, anything over basic basic algebra is over my head. Yet, I found myself in the forests applying all those things...not on paper but in real practice. You can account for every little thing in your head and on the ground, and still have unknown variables factor in and alter your plans.


I recently had a smaller fir that had multiple forms of lean to my lay, limbweight, etc. Trunk showed no sign of leaning or growing backwards. However, the pith and center of gravity was so far off in the tree (ovular heartwood was nearer the backcut) that it set back on me.



Did you make the client aware of the likelihood for damages to the gazebo? Did they approve?

Did you suggest a climber to piece it down? Did they decline that?



Some people also have so much money that things like that aren't a big deal. Hell, maybe he needed a new excuse to get away to the mountain home and "fixing the gazebo that darned faller broke, arrrgggh..." is just the thing to be able to get away.




Infinite possibilities.


As a gesture, offer a discount on future work or to help repair the gazebo. You may make an awesome client out of it and secure future work or learn something new.

 

[softdown]

Shiet happens. Unless you were negligent, and did your best, and it sounds like you did, you should be compensated for your time and effort.

Ordinarily I would have winched it down with steel chain. But my skid steer was literally a couple hundred yards away at the time. Lesson learned - winches often work much better. The track even started coming off the skid steer in those quarters. I took a chance and reversed course and it went back on.

At least I didn't try to use a pick up truck like I've seen so many times. Then again the pull from the skid steer seems to have overpowered the hinge cut physics. Then again the skid steer pull was into the 2' drop zone. As was the hinge cut. Ultimately the hard lean of the tree prevailed.

Youtubers should maybe not show off dropping leaners with precision due to their perfect hinge cut. I watched a show demonstrating that the night before my error.

 

[Del_]

Thank the fellow and then deposit the check.

.

 

[CatMan Fetters]

All I see is a lot of excuses, and then you still want to take the man’s money!

 

[Backstage]

You're talking it down legit with insurance etc? Deposit the check. If he wants to claim damages, do a damage claim. Keep it on the level.

If you’re doing a favor taking down a hard tree, you both need to agree ahead of time that what happens, happens. Preferably in writing.

But the point is, it’s one or the other. If a legit business does damage and then tries to pretend they weren’t there by refusing to accept payment? Not cool. If it’s a favor and he wants to tip you for expenses, fine. Talk to the guy. Figure out where everyone sits. You’ll sleep better.

 

[056kid]

Leaners drift, nothing new there.
I don't know why someone wouldn't use strawline over steel chain. 3/8" has a breaking strength of around 15,000 lbs.
The pickup might surprise you when a few blocks are involved.
How high up the stem was the Bull line?

 

[sliceoflife]

As someone who has paid to have trees removed and never been paid to remove trees there are only two/three questions here that really matter in my eyes.

Did you make the client aware of the likelihood for damages to the gazebo? Did they approve?

and

You're talking it down legit with insurance etc?

If the answer to all three is yes, then I'd say you're absolutely fine. If the answer to the last one is yes and the other two is no, cross your fingers the guy isn't a jerk who's setting you up to sue you for some outrageous damages, but at least you've got insurance. If the answer to all three is no, hope that the guy is really chill because things could get really bad, really fast if he isn't.