Knocked my friends phone out of his hand while playing a game, now he says I have to pay $350-$400

Lcandlelarbra5212 on 05/01/2017 - 11:51
Last edited 06/01/2017 - 08:09 by 1 other user

So I was on holiday with my friend and we were playing handball, he was on the sidelines when the ball went over to him, going for the ball I accidentally knocked his phone to the ground where the screen cracked.

I've had friends damage cars and not pay, on the same trip a friend broke a door handle which he isn't going to pay for. (I told him it was fine though so that could be naivety on my part)

Anyway I feel like it's dog not to get his phone fixed but I also feel he wouldn't fix it if the roles were reversed and I have prior experiences with friends not repairing or paying for shit they damage. HELP

Mobile

Comments

  • [Deactivated] on 05/01/2017 - 11:56
    +3

    I have prior experiences with friends not repairing or paying for shit they damage.

    well they arnt friends.
    if he hasnt paid for stuff he has broken of yours tell him about those times.
    or you can be a little bitch with no back bone and just pay up.

    he knew the risk to play on his phone while people are playing handball near him…

    plus no phone has a $400 screen cost.

    • candlelarbra5212 on 05/01/2017 - 12:15

      To be fair it wasn't this friend that buggered my car, but it's definitely a precedent. I definitely agree about he knew the risk, he also didn't have a case on the phone, when I brought it up him and two other were just like "nah it's your fault you have to pay.

  • Savas on 05/01/2017 - 11:59
    -1

    Yep, serves your friend for being antisocial. Also had a teacher who was forced to pay for the cost of a phone when the kid shouldn't have even had it out.

    • candlelarbra5212 on 05/01/2017 - 12:16
      +2

      How does that work? This is a friend who also always brags about how much money he makes, shouting friend dinner and saying things like "it's on money"

  • Edsanwong on 05/01/2017 - 11:59
    +1

    I would fix the screen by bring it to the repairer. Definitely less than $400.

    Then I would stay away from.

    Definitely not friends anymore

    • candlelarbra5212 on 05/01/2017 - 12:17
      +2

      We have been friends for ages and would like to continue being friends. Just feel it's not fair to me but don't know what to do.

      • Slippery Fish on 24/01/2017 - 17:47

        Co-insurance.

        He didnt have it insured so you pay half he pays half. Or tell him shit happens eat a fat one honkey.

  • Pharos5 on 05/01/2017 - 12:22
    +2

    Get the phone fixed at your own repairer. $350-400 sounds inflated.

    (In my opinion) it's irrelevant if you haven't asked others to pay historically, if that friend wasn't involved specifically. Literally speaking, you broke the screen.

    However, I think it's understandable to not want to be friends with them afterwards.

  • spackbace on 05/01/2017 - 13:01
    +4

    Travel insurance? Ask if he paid for phone insurance?

  • John Kimble on 05/01/2017 - 13:11
    +1

    Handball? As in the schoolyard game with a tennis ball? or the Olympic sport handball? I'm guessing the former, which makes you sound young-ish. Accidents happen.

    Sounds like you running/bumping into him was the main catalyst of the drop, but I reckon to some extent he is not completely without liability either…e.g. if he wasn't standing in that spot, if he was paying attention to the game, holding the phone differently, had a case (as you mentioned), it may not have been damaged.

    If you or someone else hit the ball in his direction and the ball hit is phone out of his hand, would you also be expected to pay?

    I don't think you are legally obligated to pay (or are you?), so perhaps it is more of a moral dilemma??? If you decide not to pay, you would hope it doesn't affect your friendship if you have been friends for ages and are close friends?

    If you do pay, perhaps suggest you split the difference? Or if he refuses, can you pay him back over time (if you cannot afford to pay in a lump sum?).

    If you remain friends for many years, over time you would think it would balance out (e.g. he could break or damage something of yours or shout you drinks/food).

    Tough decision though. Really depends on a lot of factors like how much you value your friendship and how he would react if you don't pay I suppose.

    $400 does sounds a bit high? Did he pull that out of the air, or has he actually gone and received a quote? I would be getting a second opinion on that…shouldn't be more than ~$200 I would have thought? e.g. iPhone 7 Plus through Apple is A$ 228.95 (https://support.apple.com/en-au/iphone/repair/service/pricin…).

    • candlelarbra5212 on 05/01/2017 - 13:19

      Nah we were just playing school yard handball because we were bored. I think I'm at least partially responsible but not fully, he and the others who were there disagree. Not worried about legal stuff more a moral dilemma. And it's a Galaxy S7 and they are hella expensive to repair, the lowest we found is $340

    • bonz on 06/01/2017 - 09:34

      Sounds like you running/bumping into him was the main catalyst of the drop, but I reckon to some extent he is not completely without liability either…e.g. if he wasn't standing in that spot, if he was paying attention to the game, holding the phone differently, had a case (as you mentioned), it may not have been damaged.
      If you or someone else hit the ball in his direction and the ball hit is phone out of his hand, would you also be expected to pay?

      Very good point, if he loves playing with the phone so much he should've been elsewhere. You mentioned above he always says "it's only money" why he didn't say "it's only a cracked screen/an accident" this time?

      Imagine if you decided to ride a bike without a helmet with some other friends, your friend swerved to avoid a dog then bumped into you, you fell over and cracked your skull, would you blame your friend for the cracked skull, or sue the bike manufacturer for not making a foolproof bike?

      What a friend!

  • poboy on 05/01/2017 - 15:55
    +1

    Without seeing the video replay it's hard to comment.

    If you were walking together down the street and you nudged into him as a reaction - then he dropped the phone - would you think you were 100% liable? If I broke my phone in this way I would chalk it up to being an accident. I would not have my friend pay because I clearly wasn't holding onto the phone in a safe manner or wasn't paying attention to my surroundings. If I force my friend to pay, I would be damaging the friendship.

    Frankly your friend is being thick-headed. You were playing a game - demonstrating a legal shot. Your friend wasn't paying attention and wasn't in a safe zone. And he wants you to pay - meaning he values his $200 screen more than your friendship.

  • the-mal on 05/01/2017 - 17:10
    +2

    If you value the friendship and don't want heaps of hassle just offer to split it and pay half. You're not obligated to pay for any of it, and honestly I think it's odd your friend expects you to pay at all.

    If you value the friendship and want it over and done with, I'd pay half and put it down to learning a lesson about your friends personality. If your friend doesn't readily accept half and still wants you to pay all of it, he ain't your friend and you're being used.

    Also, that cost looks really inflated. http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/archive/2513742

  • lgacb08 on 07/01/2017 - 07:59
    +3

    I think all your friends are being dick and they teamed up together because they know you're the one they can easily exploited. How would they react if it happened between them? Time to ditch your old friends and looking for replacement.

    • [Deactivated] on 07/01/2017 - 09:19
      +1

      Best advice here.

  • ProggerPete on 09/01/2017 - 12:02
    +1

    The way this should have gone:

    You: Sorry about your phone.
    Your other friends: ….
    Him: It's ok, I shouldn't have been waving it around near a handball game.
    Your other friends: ….
    You: I'll pay for it.
    Your other friends: ….
    Him: No way, my fault, I'll sort it.
    Your other friends: ….

    Where thing go from here depends on how things have worked out previously. I'd usually insist on paying half for something like this, but in a group of friends that have a history of letting it slide I'd do that.

    If your friends are ganging up insisting you pay then they aren't good friends. It's time for you to diversify so you don't feel like abandoning a group that clearly doesn't value your friendship is scary.

  • EnterTheShiftKey on 10/01/2017 - 19:08

    No offense to ur friends but just end it with him. Not to be a dick but if you don't want to pay the money, then screw him. It's all up to u.

    But if you want to pay for the repair, I dont think a screen repair costs that much. Try third party repair places and find the cheapest.

  • ggrant on 11/01/2017 - 03:35

    I don't think u should pay. But, easiest and perhaps fair is offer him half of bill. Keep friendship :-)

  • SnoozeAndLose on 24/01/2017 - 12:37

    Ask him to go through NCAT and you two will no longer friends

  • Jebroni on 25/01/2017 - 16:03

    hate to say this bro but if it went down like that you are the bitch of the group and they have no respect for you.

    If i was in the same situation i would expect the guy with the broken phone to be pissed (depending on the person) but everyone else to either butt out or say it was an accident and stick up for me. Same if someone broke my phone by accident.

    The ONLY solution is you pay half. It's that simple.

    If you pay the full amount you are going be walked all over in the future.

    I personally would expect anyone to pay for my phone if it broke unless they purposely intended to brake it or were being reckless.

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