I don't own a lot of power tools. On the odd occasion
that I really need a power tool for a project, I tend to borrow it from my
son-in-law, preferably with him in tow to operate the power tool.
But the occasion arose this summer where I needed to cut
up large planks of wood from an old deck we were dismantling so we could
re-purpose some of that wood. It would have taken far longer to saw the wood
with a hand saw than it did to dismantle the entire deck. My son-in-law and his
tools were not handy, so I decided to purchase a circular saw from the hardware
store to do the job.
Once figuring out how to attach the blade to the saw for
the first time (thank you, help boards on the Internet), the job went pretty
easily. I sawed through large planks in seconds and created neat piles of short
lengths of 2 inches-by-6 inches. All went well until I got to the last plank.
When I went to cut the last plank, the motor made an odd
sound and the saw stopped working. I'd been using the power saw for less than
an hour, but I let it sit idle for an hour or so in case I had somehow
overtaxed the motor. But when I went to use the saw again, it still didn't
work.
Since it was still early evening, I decided to return to
the hardware store.
I told the clerk why I had purchased the saw, what had
happened, and how the saw had stopped working. He asked if I still needed a saw
to get the job done. If I did, he said, he'd be glad to exchange it for a new
one. If not, he told me I could return the saw for a refund.
I told him that the job was practically done and that I
could use a hand saw on the final board.
No problem, he told me. He took the saw back and refunded
the purchase price.
A neighbor who had been checking up on my work throughout
the day noticed that I was hand sawing the last plank and pointed out that
essentially I had purchased the circular saw in the morning, used it for a job,
and then returned it after I was almost done.
"Was that ethical?" he asked. His point was
that I had used a piece of equipment without having to pay for it.
I had a choice. I could have done precisely what my
neighbor suggested I did -- just go back to the hardware store and return the
circular saw without explanation. I could have done this regardless of whether
the saw had stopped working. But I tried to do what I thought was the right
thing by explaining to the clerk exactly how much I had used the saw, as well
as how I no longer needed it for the job.
Perhaps I was a bit more forthcoming than I needed to be
with the clerk, but it seemed the right thing to do. What would you have done?
Jeffrey L. Seglin, author of The Right Thing: Conscience, Profit and Personal Responsibility in Today's Business and The Good, the Bad, and Your Business: Choosing Right When Ethical Dilemmas Pull You Apart, is a lecturer in public policy and director of the communications program at Harvard's Kennedy School.
Follow him on Twitter: @jseglin
Do you have ethical questions that you need answered? Send them to rightthing@comcast.net.
(c) 2013 JEFFREY L. SEGLIN. Distributed by TRIBUNECONTENT AGENCY, LLC.
5 comments:
When you purchase a power tool, you should expect that it'll last 10-20 years (or for your lifetime, if you take good care of it). In this case, it's about the saw, not about your project. You bought the saw in the morning and it stopped working in the afternoon. Not OK.
- Your son-in-law
Jeffrey,
Two things differentiate this from an unpaid rental: 1) The product straight out failed within the warranty and return period and 2) The clerk, the retailer's representative, offered to return it for you. There was nothing wrong or unethical here.
Completely opposite of those who purchase and return a working air conditioner after the hot month or someone who purchases and returns a fashionable dress after a gala.
William Jacobson
Anaheim, CA
Both opinions are OK. Bill J explained it correctly as he followed instructions and did nothing dishonest at all.
Yes, a saw should last nearly forever and the customer did not get what he paid for.
Alan Owseichik
Greenfield, Ma.
It goes without saying that the user in the story did absolutely nothing wrong in accepting a refund. I am shocked to read that there was a refund made, but that was the right thing, as the column title extols!
Charlie Seng
Lancaster, SC
I should note that while there was nothing unethical done, the retailer did absorb a cost in taking the return - they gave up atleast the profit they would have made in the sale, in the name of customer satisfaction. They have in essence bought your goodwill and you should repay the favor by bringing your future business to them
William Jacobson
Anaheim, CA
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