Selling gear that needs work

[wmw999 2,447]

A couple of comments in a Fatalities thread had me wondering -- is there a standard course of action to take when someone sells equipment that needs work? It's unrealistic to say that the seller has to eat the cost of the work unless it's part of the sales deal, just as people sell cars and houses that need work.

E.g. -- selling a canopy that needs a reline. It's clearly stated in the ad. Should one or more lines be cut when selling? Should the evidence be flagged? Or a canopy being sold as a water canopy, or a H/C that needs a worn flap repaired?

I'm not completely disinterested. I'm selling a canopy that needs a reline (to a newly-certified rigger -- I'm not real worried about it in my case). But what's a good procedure otherwise?

Wendy P.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[RiggerLee 61]

I've never heard of any one "demilling" a canopy before sale for any type of liability reason. The military started doing that as a policy at some point. I bought a bunch of canopies at an auction once and they made me sit there with a pair of sesores cutting the lines off before I could take them out of the ware house.

Generally people, or at least I, tend to be upfront about the age, wear, and condition of the gear from the very beginning in a sale. Why waist time? Their going to see it at some point any way. Why blow all that money shipping it back and forth. And if they can't be trusted with basic maintenance they don't need to be buying it any way.

A car is do for an oil change. Are you going to drain the oil out of it before you sell it for liability reasons?

Lee

Lee
lee@velocitysportswear.com
www.velocitysportswear.com

[wolfriverjoe 1,523]

Well, what exactly are you asking?

If it's a 'strict liability' issue, a signed statement from the buyer stating that they were aware of the issue at the time of purchase would probably suffice

If it's a morality/conscience issue, then it's a bit tougher.

I think you might be referring to the worn out Velo from the '16 SDAZ incident.

In that case, did the seller sell a bad canopy to an unknowing buyer?
Did the seller do the equivalent of selling a souped up Camaro with bad brakes to a clueless 16 year old kid?
Did the buyer know he was getting a crappy canopy but bought it anyway?
Did he promise the seller that he would get the weak points patched?

So, for a seller with a canopy that needs a reline:

The buyer wants it because it's lower priced, but the seller is wondering if the buyer is short on funds and is going to 'cheap out' and wait on the reline because they will last "a few more" jumps.

One could argue that as long as the buyer has been told of the defects, the seller is off the hook. But, from seeing your posts on here, I don't think you would feel completely 'off the hook' if the buyer didn't get new lines and got hurt because of it.

Maybe give the buyer's DZ/S&TA/Rigger a call and let them know. It's at least somewhat likely that the seller became aware of those people during the vetting process leading up to the sale. As in, the buyer talked to the DZ and made sure the jumper was a real buyer, not a scammer. The seller talked to the S&TA to make sure that experience/skill were appropriate for the canopy.

Let them know that the lines are not the best. And that the buyer knows they need replacing.

Is this "snitching" someone out? Maybe.

It would be a tough call.

"There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy

"~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

[billvon 2,991]

Quote

E.g. -- selling a canopy that needs a reline. It's clearly stated in the ad. Should one or more lines be cut when selling? Should the evidence be flagged? Or a canopy being sold as a water canopy, or a H/C that needs a worn flap repaired?

I think the safest way to handle that is to give them a receipt for the canopy with all that information called out. That way they know it, you have a record of it and you have a reminder if questions come up in five years.

Beyond that, knowing who you are selling to is the best way to make sure you're not selling to someone who will put your 3000 jump water canopy into their rig and start jumping it as a working main.