Should she replace it? Part 3

[Langarg]

I can’t believe we have a part 3 🤣 this has provided some lighthearted entertainment at a time where I’m feeling really let down by someone I considered a good friend. So thank you! I have posted an update on thread 2, will post it here also.

I have sent the following text message ‘Having reflected on what you have said, how the airwrap was lost/broken or otherwise is irrelevant. I considered asking you for pictures of the broken airwrap or asking to speak to your sister to ask her what happened but it will get us nowhere. All that matters is I am down a Dyson airwrap and I want a new replacement. You’ll need to either transfer me the £399 tonight to pay for this or purchase it yourself from boots and send me the email receipt this evening. You can then sort out with your sister whether she is going to contribute to the cost of it. We can then put this behind us’

I have no interest in maintaining the friendship after this for obvious reasons. I am worried that she’s seen the thread (how can she not have 🤣) and knows this fine well so will have no intention of replacing it sadly.

I don’t think I’ll ever get the truth (was there even a wedding at this rate?! 🤣) all that matters to me now is getting a replacement airwrap!!!!

This.

She already told OP she didn't want to put it on her credit card.
Understandable perhaps...but tough.

I agree with the advice that the OP has gone ABOVE and BEYOND reasonable expectations. I think CF just doesn't have the money, even on a credit card.

What insurance covers the OP lending it for a wedding and then that friend lending it without permission to someone else who then spilled wine on it and broke it?

She has a credit card. She has access to the money. She caused this, it didn’t belong to her and she needs to replace it. It really is that simple.
It’s up to her to pay off her credit card as and when she can manage to; but she has to replace it now.

Sadly I have to concur... He'd have to be pretty grubby to pretend to drive to a hotel.

A trail of messages politely asking for her airwrap back. That is all she has. That is not evidence of anything else. Sure she could accuse her to the police but police can't do anything without proof just like they won't be able to make the friend pay for the airwrap. Its time the OP starts to be more like her friend to pay her back a taste of her own medicine. She has either damaged or stole something of hers and she is 500 down so now it's time to make the "friend" lose some money too!

If the story ended up in the Daily Fail I think they should buy you a new airwrap as payment for the story... Sorry if your friend ghosted you... I keep thinking back to those Judge Rinder programmes. Is there any way you can embarrass this friend enough into replacing it? Or a solicitor friend who could write a formal letter saying the matter will go to Small Claims Court if £500 isn't paid by a certain date or a new item bought from Boots?

I can't believe the friend hasn't had someone point out this thread yet and the matter dealt with - unless you're the only honourable one out of every single guest at that wedding!

I totally agree. OP has said she's a people pleaser and has already told us that when CF told her (on the phone) that the sister had broken it she was "lost for words". I don't think OP can assert herself F2F (that's OK, many people would be nervous trying to do so) and I think pursuing a civil claim through the Small Claims court is the only way to go - hands off, from a distance.

It's already appeared in the Daily Mail, and Bored Panda, but of course anonymously.

This is good advice IF CF is genuinely potless. However, if she has assets e.g. she owns a car which isn't on Finance, then it's absolutely worth pursuing through the small claims court as Enforcement Agents can seize her car until she pays.

I've been following since the beginning, but didn't post as didn't feel I had much to add. But went to bed far too late last night having caught up on the thread, and had a thought about the wedding. The wording mentioned has always been that OP wasn't invited as they 'only had two witnesses'. But all weddings only have two witnesses. I now can't help wondering if this was some sly wording the couple came up with to give anyone they weren't inviting. Perhaps they had two witnesses, plus XX guests!! If not, it still doesn't really make sense why the wedding would be two hours away requiring an overnight stay.

I really hope she comes good today, OP and you get to order the reduced one at Boots at her expense, but if not, I wouldn't fear small claims court. There are lots of posters on here with experience of using it, and it sounds like less stress than you are currently experiencing. I definitely would not just write it off as many seem to be suggesting (all of a sudden and only on thread 3?!)

A thought:
SCC needs an evidence chain. So all messages need to have been screengrabbed and put in order. Produce the file now and get it all laid out in order.

There's mediation involved usually to try to resolve the issue (via a 3rd party on the phone)

Evidence needs to be submitted to the court for the final bit and then they have the right to put their evidence.
But their evidence of "someone else broke it" isn't a defence.

The house insurance with accidental damage. Doesn't really matter if it's the friends sister, or the friend someone needs to claim the house insurance.

If i was op i think rather than messing around much longer I'd want it back in my possession in any condition and claim my own insurance

Honestly at this point I think you should be getting a sister (if you have one) or friend or anyone to back you up and go round there and start banging on her door till she answers. Not so easy to ignore then. Say you want the damaged one back. If she doesn't give it back that's probably another lie too. As someone else said you don't throw your phone away if it's wet so surely you wouldn't an airwrap especially if it's not even yours in the first place! She should have admitted it and asked if you could get it repaired and she will pay what it costs to repair!

I wouldn't believe a word about the drink ruining the hair dryer. I think she'd be far more likely to dry it out and return it to you if she'd done that.

I would love to know what her and her sister's hair looks like now!

Does accidental damage pay out for something you've borrowed? Will the insurers not need a receipt?

Its always easy to think about things in hindsight but I like to think as soon as I was advised that the hotel had "lost" it, I'd have moved heaven and earth for a crime number. That way, right now, CF friend would be facing a potential fraud charge.

Good point, I hadn't considered anything other than her being petrified at the thought of "the internet" knowing who she was, not considering how such a brazen person would react. And I ALSO didn't consider that it would risk OP's anonymity, so absolutely do NOT listen to me OP, I'm clearly a cretin. A vengeful, angry (on your behalf) cretin.

Thanks for the course correction Mrs!

She doesn't want the damaged one back!

I don't think you are a cretin, I think you're an honest decent person and as such you find it difficult to get your head around the slippery behavior of lightfingered Laura!

If she ends up having to claim on her own insurance she’ll need it as proof that it’s broken.

It would actually be £70 as the sum claimed would be between £500 and £1k (AirWrap cost + legal costs + 8% Statutory Interest). I really hope OP pursues a claim against CF, but she's already posted she's reluctant to do so, so I fear CF is going to get away with this (and she probably already knows it). 😞

Could you propose a trip to Boots with your friend, OP? So that she can do the right thing and benefit from this offer?

(I am another person blissfully unaware what an AW is before this thread and now wanting to learn more)

Completely agree. And a CCJ would affect CF's credit rating, which would affect other things in her life (like when she needs a loan for something). There's more than one way to f*ck with a CF! 😂

Yes we have mutual friends, they don’t know about this.

A few people have asked if the wedding was actually bigger than she made out. I do believe it was just her, DH, her sister and her mum as the witnesses and no other guests.

I actually can no longer find the deal for £399 on the boots website so I’m hoping I haven’t shot myself in the foot by saying the deal ends tonight and for her to transfer me £399 (fat chance of that happening anyway!).

A good point by a previous poster to keep my cards close to my chest with regards to my next steps, in case she is reading the thread.

A number of posters have suggested turning up at her house. I don’t think this is a good idea, I won’t be doing it. Not only do I risk losing my ‘assertiveness’ in person due to sob stories or guilt trips, I also wouldn’t want to come across as threatening.

I too would like @kkloo and @Pickledpoppetpickle to read this excellent summary by @HootyMcBoobs, and then tell us how they would have dealt with this situation.

Oh - and I'd like to know how, exactly, @Pickledpoppetpickle thinks @Langarg's 'friend' has 'struggled to put things right' - was it by staying silent in the hopes it would all be forgotten, lying about what happened (potentially causing serious trouble for hotel employees), lying about calling the hotel, lying about going to the hotel, trying to fob off the OP with a cheap, second hand, inferior replacement or trying to guilt trip her? Where is there any apparent effort even the tiniest one - to put things right??