Was I right

[KevB]

No.

I'm not sure who the 'Mainbrace man' is but sounds as though he did you a favour. I suppose you could have always joined Seastart (who's service is excellent) for £140 then your £37.50 would seem even more of a bargain.

If I was in the same position and was presented with a £37.50 bill I would have bitten his arm off and given him a few drinks on top.

It's nice to hear there are people out there in the marine industry who don't rip you off left, right and centre because they can.

 

[nct1]

Given that someone lost their life on the east cost recently, trying to sort out a boat in shallow water, in terms of earning a living, how much would you risk your life for ?

Yes I know you did some of it yourself, but you were risking the loss of your large asset, if your boat was only worth 37.50 would you have taken the risk ?

Or put it another way, if a fender worth 37.50 had detached itself and gone near a rocky shore, would you have risked the boat to rescue it.

Assuming you will be passing that way again, I would be inclined to send a nice thank you card, and a bottle of something decent with the balance, so that if you snag a another line, they will still be willing to help.

I only wish central heating engineers were as decent as this chap sounds.

 

[duncan]

Re: Duncan .... I agree ....

because I always apologise when suggesting someone was/is wrong............especially nice people like Nigel

(just realised you may have thought I was in some way responding to your post because of timing and names - it was a response to the original poster!) /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[LadyInBed]

Re: So that is a NO then

Riggy - “you really are a tight-arse” You are not wrong - the clue is in the fact that I was anchored (£2.50 / night) and not on a buoy.

DWR - “You asked the forum for support for your actions” No I didn’t, read the question.

Fireball / Nigel - The only request I made to Mainbrace was to tow me in, at £12.50 I thought the price was very reasonable. The problem arose with the hours work to clear the prop, I had already snorkelled and assed the scale of the job - 10 mins (and done half of the work). If the bill had been worded differently (£30 tow in and £7.50 to unwind the net) there would have been no complaint.

Stingo - Let’s put it this way - I don’t often need a macerator! /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif
Employment - Unemployed at the moment, when I get hard up, I work for whatever is on offer but I don’t charge an hour for ten mins work.

I would not dream of paying someone to do a job that I am capable of doing. The majority of these replies help to demonstrate why boat owners get ripped off, sorry if that offends you.

 

[ashanta]

I know it's annoying but he probably does need to earn 25 per hour to maintain his business which for Mainbrace is very seasonal. They are not the making a packet. You only have to look at how hard they work with the shop, fuel and taxi?
I think you know yourself that you would have preferred to stay anchored and clear the problem yourself. I know I would have wanted to.

Still It doesn't seem that expensive for peace of mind.

Regards.

peter.

 

[Rowana]

I get the impression that most replies have got the wrong end of the stick. Either that, or I have.

As I understand your post, you got a tow in from Mainbrace at an arranged cost, and he then secured you to the wall to dry out.

Subsequently, after you had dried out, he removed the net, BUT YOU HAD NEVER ASKED HIM TO DO THIS, AS YOU WERE GOING TO DO IT YOURSELF.

Is this the correct reading of the situation??

If that IS the situation, I'd have been inclined to tell him that was NOT what was agreed - Tow in only.

Having said that, I think the price was VERY reasonable and I would have paid, but pointed out that I only wanted the tow.

That's why it's always very important to state EXACTLY what your requirements are at the outset.

 

[LadyInBed]

Yes Jim, you are correct, but it just got up my nose to be charged an hour for ten mins work that he wasn’t asked to do.

 

[KevB]

I think you'll find that the vast majority of businesses who supply a service charge a fixed rate per hour or part thereof.

[ QUOTE ]
saying he had cleared the prop and taken a few barnacles off as well,

[/ QUOTE ]

Also, I'm sure I would have noticed someone playing around with the bottom of my boat especially if they were scrapping barnicles off!!. Why didn't you stop him?

 

[LadyInBed]

fixed rate per hour or part thereof.
Possibly so - if you contract for that work to be done.

With the radio on and snoozing - No, I didn’t hear him, and I don’t think you would have heard half a dozen or so barnacles being pushed off your prop either, even without the radio on!

 

[Rowana]

I think I would have been a bit hacked off as well if someone had done some work that I hadn't asked them to do in the first place.

Bit of a difficult one !