Mechanic's lien laws?

[Axtman]

At what point does an item left for repair and not picked up become the shop's property?

A local guitar store gave me aTechamp Puma 1000 bass head to repair. Normally I would just repair the time and return it with my invoice. This amp's IcePower module is $350. I did not want to spend that kind of money without letting the owner know how expensive the repair would be.

The guitar store has tried many times to contact the owner without success. I don't know what to do.

[nosaj]

I always got my money from guitar shop an left Amp there, since I work from home, I don't want to be storing stuff that's not mine.
nosaj

[Justin Thomas]

That varies by state &/or local laws. Maybe someone else in your area can chime in. Chuck? Anybody else from Washington Not-DC?

Jusrin

[Tom Phillips]

...A local guitar store gave me a Techamp Puma 1000 bass head to repair...

If that happened to me, and it has in the past, I would just drop the amp back to the store. The owner is the store's customer so the store should deal with it. The only issue is that you may not get paid for your evaluation time but that's probably worth it to get it off your mind. The idea is to break all links that make it your liability. If the owner does surface and decides to have the amp repaired, then a suitable down payment would be my request.

[J M Fahey]

+1
Send it back to music shop, let them store and deal with it.

If/when customer appears and accepts repair and price, they can send it back to you.

[glebert]

Agree with others, make the store deal with it. Here in Oregon the laws are slanted against the repair shop, you have to hold it for 2 years and then it can only be sold in a public venue, and maybe only for the amount owed for the repair or something like that. The store I work through has policy stated that probably wouldn't stand up to legal scrutiny but scares people into not abandoning their stuff. Also, taking a sizeable deposit makes sure people are invested in the process too.

[Axtman]

I took the unrepaired amp back to the store. No charge. I said let me know if the owner wants to proceed with the repair.

By the way, I have bought amps that were left at a repair facility for years. I will look into Washington State laws. I think as long as the store tries multiple times to contact the owner without a response for a long time, the amp is theirs to dispose of. Imagine taking your car in to be repaired and coming back years later to claim it.

[The Dude]

In my state, you have to send notice via registered mail/signature required so that you can prove the customer was notified. Otherwise, he can claim you never contacted him.

[glebert]

I took the unrepaired amp back to the store. No charge. I said let me know if the owner wants to proceed with the repair.

By the way, I have bought amps that were left at a repair facility for years. I will look into Washington State laws. I think as long as the store tries multiple times to contact the owner without a response for a long time, the amp is theirs to dispose of. Imagine taking your car in to be repaired and coming back years later to claim it.

While these laws suck for the person doing repairs, think about the person who takes their car/watch/jewelry/amp to a shop and a few weeks later go back and they say "Well, we tried to call you and didn't get an answer so we just sold it off for a few bucks. Sorry." So the question becomes 1.) what is a reasonable way to contact a person (and be able to prove it) 2.) What is a reasonable amount of time to give a person to respond and 3.) if they don't respond, what is a reasonable way for the shop to dispose of the item and be able to recoup their costs, but not get excess profit.

[Tom Phillips]

While these laws suck for the person doing repairs, think about the person who takes their car/watch/jewelry/amp to a shop and a few weeks later go back and they say "Well, we tried to call you and didn't get an answer so we just sold it off for a few bucks. Sorry." So the question becomes 1.) what is a reasonable way to contact a person (and be able to prove it) 2.) What is a reasonable amount of time to give a person to respond and 3.) if they don't respond, what is a reasonable way for the shop to dispose of the item and be able to recoup their costs, but not get excess profit.

Now that you have used the word "reasonable" three times, remember that we are forced to deal with rules made by politicians.

[glebert]

Now that you have used the word "reasonable" three times, remember that we are forced to deal with rules made by politicians.

My point was the intention of the laws are to protect consumers but you can't just pass a law that says "don't be an a-hole."

[Justin Thomas]

... you can't just pass a law that says "don't be an a-hole."

Why not? Look at some of the other stupid crap they pull. Has anyone actually tried? Maybe we should try that. What have we got to lose at this point?

Jusrin

[Axtman]

I could not find anything online about unclaimed merchandise for repair in Washington State. My friend's repair shop sign says after 90 days, he charges storage fees. The two amps I got from him were left for over two years!

Nowadays, with cell phones and email, there is no excuse for the customer not contacting the repair shop. If the customer wanted the merchandise repaired, they would constantly contact the shop.

[Bill Moore]

Here in New Mexico, they constantly change the lien rules. I have a signed work order when a vehicle is dropped off for evaluation, I contact the person with an estimate for repairs after the diagnostic fee. Also in the work order, I have the disclaimer about not responsible for theft, and vehicles left after 30 days will accrue a $5 per day storage fee. I have offered customers money for declined to repair vehicles, but some don't want to pay for the diagnosis fee, (there is some labor involved to disassemble an engine!) I usually let the thing sit until I have some storage built up, and then send the (registered) letter that I intend to file a lien, with a current price. Some will give me a title, but other wise I go through the BS, X number of days after letter, advertise for auction in 3 different locations, (the trick is to use little used bulletin boards). Then after the day advertised for auction, apply to DMV for title. Most of the time I have the vehicle sold anyway, so I just have the title assigned to the buyer.
I would have to check since it's been a few years, but probably something has changed again!

[Axtman]

My father tells a story about breaking a heel off a shoe while he is on a business trip. He takes the shoe to the local shoe repair shop. The guy hands him a claim ticket and says, "They will be done on Thursday." Well, my father forgets about the shoes. A year or so goes by, and my dad finds the ticket. So, the next time he is in the city, he goes to the shop to see what happens when he gives the guy his ticket. The repair guy looks at the ticket and says, "They will be done on Thursday".