what should i do ?

[ewoolsey]

I had to go threw the neighbor's yard to do a dead elm , that would fall in there yard, any way i drove over there side walk that i put boards down , but it cracked it any way , so they want $350 to replace , i was only going to charge them $ 150 , as they let me dump on them ,and they don't have any money , so i hate to make them pay for there neighbors walk , going to get my own est. to fix walk i do know that, has any boby have this happen?

 

[troythetreeman]

####ty
i cracked one once, just went and bought a bag of cement and fixed it myself

 

[Nailsbeats]

I guess if I was in your shoes I would pay them the $350 and move on. You cracked it and should have to pay what they would have to, to have it replaced. Or you talk them into letting you replace it and by the time you are done with that you probably should have just payed up and cut your losses. Just my thoughts.

 

[2treeornot2tree]

$350 sounds like a fair price. I cracked a corner of a sidewalk this spring. Luckly the home owners son said he would fix it because he was the one that original put it in and he is self employed so he knows how it is to be a small company. Or he is fixing it because he did a crappy job the first time. I dont think it should have broke, but lesson learned. The only good thing that came out of this job was that I got to see my first flying squirrel up close. Like a foot from my eyes. I dont know how was more suprised when he popped outta that hole, him or me.

 

[mattfr12]

Luckly the home owners son said he would fix it because he did a crappy job the first time. I dont think it should have broke

Any good sidewalk should definetly be able to take on some oak logs

 

[ozzy42]

I had to go threw the neighbor's yard to do a dead elm , that would fall in there yard, any way i drove over there side walk that i put boards down , but it cracked it any way , so they want $350 to replace , i was only going to charge them $ 150 , as they let me dump on them ,and they don't have any money , so i hate to make them pay for there neighbors walk , going to get my own est. to fix walk i do know that, has any boby have this happen?

Leave some sawdust and leaves on the walk.






















Just kiddin.
I know it sucks ,but it is your responsibilty to make it like it was.
If you have the time and know how,you could probly do it yourself for a hundy,but if your not sure then better off just to grin and bare it.

 

[Rftreeman]

WHAT SHOULD YOU DO???

what you need to do is own up to YOUR #### up and not try to pass the buck, you broke the thing so fix it, I never will understand people that want to place blame or fault on someone else for something they screwed up....FIX IT AND FORGET ABOUT IT.....

 

[ewoolsey]

WHAT SHOULD YOU DO???

what you need to do is own up to YOUR #### up and not try to pass the buck, you broke the thing so fix it, I never will understand people that want to place blame or fault on someone else for something they screwed up....FIX IT AND FORGET ABOUT IT.....

OK ! were did i say i was trying to get out of it ? and were did i screw up, it was a poorly made walk . i did put down boards . i was just seeing if anyone else went through this .

 

[thepheniox]

Yeah I would just pay up. Anytime I've ever done damage I either fix it right or pay to get it fixed. I feel I have a duty to leave the place with everything the way it was when I got there. Although most of the time when I explain that something got damaged and I need to fix it they tell me not to worry about it. I give them a couple are you sure you don't want me to fix it. Then I don't worry about it and let them fix it. That's how I would handle it.

 

[thepheniox]

Sorry yes getting your own estimate is the same as getting it fixed right in my books. Sounds like you are doing the right thing. But I don't understand the charging the neighbor comment. Do you mean charging the customer more because you have to get the walk fixed?

 

[Slvrmple72]

$800 dollar Red Oak removal, poor judgement bombing of a limb and $400 dollar repair to sidewalk. Meeting and exceeding the customers expectations of professional service in light of said screw up was second only to the friendship I have built with my Masonry/Brickwork friend Bill who did the repairs right away. He has referred thousands of dollars of work my way and insists I have done him the same. Did I mention that the customer was really picky? Yup, been there, done that. You can finish bustin up cracked concrete with the other side of the splitting maul.

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

OK ! were did i say i was trying to get out of it ? and were did i screw up, it was a poorly made walk . i did put down boards . i was just seeing if anyone else went through this .

The way it is made is moot, if you did not get a damage waiver for accessing the tree through their yard, then you find a way to make them whole. As stated above, it will probably cost you more in time and materials then the $350 they want, with all the running around it takes to buy everything, frame it up....

The first thing I do when I cause damage is offer to do something in trade that is fast and easy: trim a few trees, clear gutters....

 

[Rftreeman]

OK ! were did i say i was trying to get out of it ? and were did i screw up, it was a poorly made walk . i did put down boards . i was just seeing if anyone else went through this .

then you shouldn't have drove across it plain & simple, this was a very preventable screw up on your behalf and hopefully you'll learn from it......as for my experience of breaking concrete, I broke a driveway once because I was being lazy and didn't want to climb the tree so I set up the truck on a steep driveway and when the weight shifted off the front of the truck the back wheels came up and it rolled over the wheel blocks and slipped off the rigger pads and cracked the edge of the drive, I got wrote up and lost my bonus for that quarter but it didn't matter to me cause it was my fault and I could have prevented it from happening....that is my point, it was preventable...

 

[sgreanbeans]

Pay it and walk. If you bring in your own flatwork guy, then you still own any problems he may cause. Flatwork guys do not even consider damage to turf, they expect it. It will most likely end up costing you more.

 

[dbl612]

repairs

Pay it and walk. If you bring in your own flatwork guy, then you still own any problems he may cause. Flatwork guys do not even consider damage to turf, they expect it. It will most likely end up costing you more.

the homeowner will probably trust the guy he hires more than your guy, and thus no chance of "i'm not satisfied with the repair". life goes on, some lessons are costlier than others. we all learn from our mistakes, me at the head of the list! LOL.

 

[ewoolsey]

thanks for info guys, have a great day, dont crack any side walks .

 

[indiansprings]

Before I paid 350.00, I'd rent a concrete saw for a half day, saw out the damage section, form the damage section back up with a couple scrap 2x4's get two or three bags of quickcrete, mix it up in a wheel barrow and trowel it down and broom finish it.
All the posters who said you break it, you own it are correct. If you damage something, no matter how poorly made it was before, you owe it to the customer to fix it. I've took it in the hiney a couple of times, but it turned out to be a positive in the long term.

 

[flushcut]

I smashed a sidewalk once not just a crack but smashed in the most glorious and spectacular fashion I'm talking driven eight inches into the ground. The HO was not going to pay for a rigged removal and just wanted it dropped so ok. I cut it out formed it up and poured it myself on a sunday while listening to the Packers game and drinking beer with him. I have masonry exp. so it was not an issue and it cost him less than $40 to replace and it led to more work. Then again he was one of the exceptions, not the rule, when it comes to HOs.
Back on topic you break it you own it and gotta make it right.

 

[Brutis]

Thats the thing about tree work, it always sucks!

 

[DangerTree]

I'd chalk this one up as a learning experience and for all you guys out there that think you know how it should be done that aint it. Try thinking about the consequences of failure before you act and this kind of thing wont happen. More importantly try learning from others mistakes before becoming the instructor.