Failure to Deliver a Pool Table

[glhtristar]

My question involves small claims court in the state of: Georgia


I was employed at a Entertainment, Party company that sold Jukeboxes, Pool Tables, Arcade style games, dart boards, etc. On August 21, 2011 a regular customer came into the stole to inquire about a custom pool table. She was purchasing it for her husband for their anniversary.

The pool table she wanted would have been customized and shipped by September 15,2011. Unfortunately she was going on a cruise from the 13th to the 20th of September. I asked my boss if I could have the item shipped to my house, seeing she was a regular customer that I knew from the 6 years I worked for the company. My boss agreed to allow the delivery to come to my house, but I had to make the purchase.

The lady and I agreed for her to give me $5,000 cash, and I would put the money in the bank and use my debit card for the purchase. I had delivered other merchandise to her residents in the past, so I knew where she lived. We exchanged phone numbers, and she left.

I called her the next day, and we met at the store. I gave her a copy of the receipt, complete with order # and delivery date.

On September 11, 2011 my boss approached me and informed me of some terrible news. My father suffered a massive heart attack, and was in ICU in Ohio. I left work, went home, booked a flight and left for Cleveland.

My father was in the hospital until February 10, 2012...he suffered 3 mini strokes, full cardiac arrest, his liver and kidneys shut down. He passed away on the 10th. I did not leave Ohio til February 23, 2012 to return to work.

When I got back to work, I was told that the lady had filed a lawsuit against the company & me for her pool table. I called the lady and informed her of the situation, and tried to apologize. I even told her that I would refund the money, and the store offered her a $500.00 gift card. She declined both.

On June 12, 2012 at approximately 1:10am I received a phone call from the lady's husband. He informed me that he & her are both lawyers and that I was being sued and they were pressing theft charges against me. I told him to call me at a reasonable time, and that I was more than willing to re-imburse the money. He kept asking question after question about how much i spent for the airline ticket, hotel expenses, etc. I hung up on him 3 times. I did a quick search of the phone number, and it was his business line, it clearly shows it on his website. He and her are Personal Injury Attorneys.

Questions; Since they want to go to court, will I have to pay them all the money at once, or set up payment plans? Can I do anything legally about him calling that late at night? Is there set time limits when a lawyer can call (9am-5pm)? Can I really be arrested for theft?

[jk]

When I got back to work, I was told that the lady had filed a lawsuit against the company & me for her pool table.

It would appear the solution is to give the pool table to them. Why is that not solving the problem?

[Mr. Knowitall]

The pool table she wanted would have been customized and shipped by September 15,2011.

So it was to be shipped by Sept. 15.

The lady and I agreed for her to give me $5,000 cash, and I would put the money in the bank and use my debit card for the purchase.

Why in the world would that be necessary, and why in the world would she agree to it? She paid $5,000 cash for the pool table. You can put that into the cash register, and from there into the business's bank account - no need to involve your personal debit card.

Unfortunately she was going on a cruise from the 13th to the 20th of September. I asked my boss if I could have the item shipped to my house...

Did you ask her about having the pool table shipped to your house? Pool tables, as you know, weigh a lot - you cannot move them by yourself. Why would you have wanted the pool table in your garage, with a team from work having to come out to your home, load it up and deliver it, rather than in a company warehouse where the team and truck would already be present.

My boss agreed to allow the delivery to come to my house, but I had to make the purchase.

It makes absolutely no sense that your boss would either agree to deliver the pool table to your home, or that he would insist that the purchase be made under your name as opposed to the customer's.

I called her the next day, and we met at the store. I gave her a copy of the receipt, complete with order # and delivery date.

You gave her a receipt showing that you had purchased a pool table in your name, with your debit card, to be delivered to your house? And she thought that was an acceptable receipt for a $5,000 cash payment?

I have to expect that the pool table would be coming in as a freight delivery - it sure wouldn't be coming by UPS. So you might have had an approximate delivery date, but you wouldn't know the actual date until the freight delivery truck began its run.

On September 11, 2011 my boss approached me and informed me of some terrible news. My father suffered a massive heart attack, and was in ICU in Ohio.

I'm sorry to hear that.

I did not leave Ohio til February 23, 2012 to return to work.

You had no contact with your home or office at all during your absence? No cell phone?

I even told her that I would refund the money, and the store offered her a $500.00 gift card. She declined both.

How would you "refund the money" if you had spent it on the pool table?

With a freight delivery, the trucking company would have called your home to inform you of a delivery date. You apparently were out of town and not checking your messages. So what happened to the pool table? It was left sitting in the delivery company's warehouse for six months? Why wasn't your boss able to redirect the delivery to the customer's address?

On June 12, 2012 at approximately 1:10am I received a phone call from the lady's husband. He informed me that he & her are both lawyers and that I was being sued and they were pressing theft charges against me.

You implied you gave her a receipt that would have showed your name as customer, and that she was okay with that. You say you paid for the pool table with your debit card, so you can document that as well. You say you were out of town and thus never accepted delivery of the pool table. So what is it that you're being accused of stealing, and on what basis?

Questions; Since they want to go to court, will I have to pay them all the money at once, or set up payment plans?

If the issue here is that they want their $5,000 back, and you didn't in fact pay for the pool table, you would be well served to give them their $5,000 back. As was previously suggested, it's still not clear why nobody has given these people their pool table. You got back in February, four more months have passed... what's the problem?

Can I do anything legally about him calling that late at night?

You could have chosen not to answer, or taken your phone off the hook. What's done is done.

Is there set time limits when a lawyer can call (9am-5pm)?

He was calling as a customer who was well overdue for an explanation as to why you had his $5,000 and he had no pool table.

Can I really be arrested for theft?

Did you pay for the pool table in the amount of $5,000 on August 21, 2011, or not?

[Wilson2012]

I asked my boss if I could have the item shipped to my house, seeing she was a regular customer that I knew from the 6 years I worked for the company. My boss agreed to allow the delivery to come to my house, but I had to make the purchase.

Makes zero sense to me personally. Why wouldn't company take the customer's payment and store the pool table -- where they would normally store pool table inventory -- until the customer is ready to take delivery? Why make it so complicated?

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Can I do anything legally about him calling that late at night? Is there set time limits when a lawyer can call (9am-5pm)? Can I really be arrested for theft?

I'm confused. Why shouldn't he keep calling? You have his $5,000 and he has nothing, if I read correctly? How would you feel?

Look at it from his perspective. His wife made a deal with someone who's not the company. That someone has $5,000 of their money.

And you are probably emotional and upset. Understandable.

So you are both probably very emotional and upset at this point.

Have you simply asked him what he wants? What does he say?

Perhaps it may help if you get someone to talk to him for you? But I'm not an attorney. Just someone who can't make sense of this.