Utility Company Takes on Wrong Avocado Farmer After Causing Fire, Loses Out Big

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Brad Dickson • Managing Editor
Apr 26, 2022 5:00 PM EDT

An avocado farmer scored big time when a utility company's downed line set fire to his crop. He was completely fine with moving on with the matter and contacted the company to see if they could help replace the fence that was destroyed… to the tune of $10K. They denied all responsibility for the issue and told him to sue. So sue he did. If only they had just paid what he was initially asking, these idiots would have saved themselves a lot of grief… and a lot of coin too. 

This thread was posted Reddit's r/MaliciousCompliance subreddit by a family member of the farmer, Redditor u/SomeoneYouDontKnow70. In this thread, they recount the tale of their brother-in-law's experience growing avocados in California. They report that, while they don't know exactly how much their brother-in-law made out with, it was well worth his sister and brother-in-law's time.

When will these big corporations learn to own up for their mistakes? It would only save them money in the long run.


 

 

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  • 01
    Font - Posted by u/SomeoneYouDontKnow70 5 hours ago 34 Won't compensate me for my fence? Then compensate me 100 times as much for my crops! M The malicious compliance in this story is not mine; it's my brother in law's. Some of the details may be slightly off, but the overall story is true. My brother in law grows avocados in California. Several years ago, a portion of his ranch was ravaged by a wildfire, or so he thought at first. When the smoke cleared, it became obvious that the fire was caus
    via u/SomeoneYouDontKnow70
  • 02
    Font - Since he had been planning on diversifying his crops anyway, he decided he'd simply replace his fence, replant, and move on. To that end, he called up the electric company that owned the downed line and asked them for about $10K in compensation to replace the fence that had been destroyed by their electrical line. They denied any and all culpability in the matter and told him that he should sue them if he didn't like it. What the electric company didn't realize was that my sister, his wif
    via u/SomeoneYouDontKnow70
  • 03
    Font - My sister didn't represent her husband because she's typically on the other side of these cases, but she did advise him on everything he needed to bring to court to win his case, and she helped him find a very reputable lawyer with a solid record of winning cases like these. Not knowing what they were up against, the utility persisted in refusing to negotiate, hoping that by forcing my brother in law to trial, he would simply give up and go away. Spurred on by my sister's insistence that
    via u/SomeoneYouDontKnow70
  • 04
    Organism - When all was said and done, my brother in law confided to me that he would have gladly settled for the $10K in arbitration and that it would probably have taken him over a decade to even sell a million dollars worth of crops. The utility had to have their day in court, though.
    via u/SomeoneYouDontKnow70
  • 05
    Font - Frenetic_Platypus · 3 hr. ago 25 S 4 So that's what they mean when they say you can save a lot of money if you stop toasting avocados. Vote Reply Share •.. YourMomThinksImFunny · 2 hr. ago Holy guacamole that was good. Vote Reply Share •.. jemy74 · 1 hr. ago Take my award. It was the closest thing I could find to an avocado. Vote Reply Share ... Salt_Koala2526 · 2 hr. ago This is a very appropriate comment. Vote Reply Share •..
    via u/SomeoneYouDontKnow70
  • 06
    Font - ago ScubaPride · 2 hr. ago Fun fact: Avocado in french is Avocat... avocat also means lawyer Vote Reply Share ••. nxpu2gs1t743 · 2 hr. ago I don't know what to do with this knowledge Vote Reply Share •.. PRMan99 · 2 hr. ago Spread lawyers on your toast. Duh. Vote Reply Share •.. Imtinyrick22 · 2 hr. ago OBJECTION! *ad hummusim *argument Vote Reply Share •..
    via u/SomeoneYouDontKnow70
  • 07
    Font - Mellowcanuck · 3 hr. ago That's delicious malicious. Vote Reply Share
    via u/SomeoneYouDontKnow70
  • 08
    Font - QuestorTapes · 2 hr. ago A lot of places have a policy of not settling any types of cases like that, simply to avoid having nuisance cases brought against them. Once word gets around that they never settle, most people with invalid claims just give up. Vote Reply Share •.. SomeoneYouDontKnow70 OP · 2 hr. ago Yes, but as my sister was telling me, if they had made the slightest effort at basic discovery, they would have realized that they were going to lose in court. Plus, California awards
    via u/SomeoneYouDontKnow70
  • 09
    Font - eddiekoski · 2 hr. ago Thanks for this story I am still salty about the time I had to basically higher an electrition to yell at utility. Vote Reply Share PepperAnn1inaMillion 2 hr. ago /*hire, but thanks for the image of you lifting up a guy in overalls so that he can shout downwards. Vote Reply Share
    via u/SomeoneYouDontKnow70
  • 10
    Font - xseptinthegenitals · 2 hr. ago Stop, I can only get so hard Vote - Q Reply Share
    via u/SomeoneYouDontKnow70
  • 11
    Font - cellophaneflwr · 1 hr. ago Honestly, this is one of those situations where it is better to do what your BIL did (take it to court and follow through with his wife's advice). Maybe that utility company will learn from their grave mistake and not treat others like this - at the very least I bet there are new policies/procedures for handling this type of situation. Vote Reply Share
    via u/SomeoneYouDontKnow70
  • 12
    Font - god_peepee · 2 hr. ago Wait, so did they pay him the million dollars in damages? Vote Reply Share SomeoneYouDontKnow70 OP · 55 min. ago I don't know how much of it went to him in the end. The lawyer takes a significant cut, but the amount he got was well in excess of the $10K he was asking for to begin with. Vote Reply Share
    via u/SomeoneYouDontKnow70

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