I severed a Chorus Fibre cable (not mine), resulting in 200m of cable having to be relaid. Will I be liable?

Forums › New Zealand Broadband › I severed a Chorus Fibre cable (not mine), resulting in 200m of cable having to be relaid. Will I be liable?

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#2176690 11-Feb-2019 18:22

Going to the media could be another option. Chrous would probably shut up pretty quickly if it got decent media coverage.

Makes me glad I was present the entire time for the fibre install at my inlaws (who I am currently living with). The contractors were probably annoyed at me hovering but if my hovering encouraged them do the job properly I'm happy I did so. I presume the OP's neighbour had their install done without anyone monitoring/checking the work done.

ObidiahSlope

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#2176693 11-Feb-2019 18:32

The damages would probably be covered by the personal liability cover of your home contents policy.

While you may be able to bat away attempts by Chorus to charge you there exists the possibility you may fail.

Insurance companies get grumpy with policy holders who try to sort things out fail and then dump the problem and costs onto the insurer. A quick preliminary advice of a claim letter to your insurer would keep them in the loop and allow them to stick their oar in if they felt it was warranted.

Obsequious hypocrite

hio77

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Lizard Networks

#2176694 11-Feb-2019 18:32

KiwiSurfer:

Going to the media could be another option. Chrous would probably shut up pretty quickly if it got decent media coverage.

Honestly this is the worst action.

since it's on geekzone, it's already fallen into the "Social media" category anyway..

@chorusnz will likely pop up when they have something they can comment with.

#include <std_disclaimer>

Any comments made are personal opinion and do not reflect directly on the position my current or past employers may have.

PolicyGuy

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#2176705 11-Feb-2019 18:56

No, don't dispute the invoice!

Send it to the provider of your house and contents insurance with a covering email stating that
1) this presents as a claim against your Public Liability cover
2) in view of the grossly negligent manner in which the ducting was "installed", your view is that there should be no admissible claim against you, and
3) settling this claim in favour of Chorus would be to establish a precedent that would, in your view, allow Chorus to avoid any responsibility for their poor workmanship

That's what you pay all those insurance premiums for, let their legal department release a whole pack of legal hounds
:D

IANAL, BTW

Edit: ObadiahSlope was quicker off the mark than me!

mrob210

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#2176713 11-Feb-2019 19:08

I got home from work and my neighbour had spoken to the chorus guys. They said there would be no liability on my part and they intend to take it up with the installer.

I was really impressed with them to be honest, they were very polite and friendly and have set up a temporary fix while they work out what to do with the rest of it.

Being a little bit cynical I will wait and see but I’m happy for now how it’s been dealt with.

snnet

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#2176721 11-Feb-2019 19:21

My own installation would put me in the same boat as your neighbour -- so its pleasing to see they will not be chasing you. They plan to do the exact same thing for my installation and I _know_ it's going to get hit by a hedgetrimmer

SomeoneSomewhere

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#2176765 11-Feb-2019 20:51

mrob210: I got home from work and my neighbour had spoken to the chorus guys. They said there would be no liability on my part and they intend to take it up with the installer.

I was really impressed with them to be honest, they were very polite and friendly and have set up a temporary fix while they work out what to do with the rest of it.

Being a little bit cynical I will wait and see but I’m happy for now how it’s been dealt with.

My experience, though not specifically with Chorus, is that the people sent out to repair faults are generally a lot more knowledgeable than the install bashers.

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MadEngineer

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#2176788 11-Feb-2019 22:09

We've had fibre and even a large 100pair comms cable cut by various contractors. I asked once during one of the many repairs of a repeatedly damaged cable at one site and was told they don't chase anyone for the repair and just get it fixed.

You're not on Atlantis anymore, Duncan Idaho.

hio77

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Lizard Networks

#2176789 11-Feb-2019 22:21

MadEngineer:

We've had fibre and even a large 100pair comms cable cut by various contractors. I asked once during one of the many repairs of a repeatedly damaged cable at one site and was told they don't chase anyone for the repair and just get it fixed.

I've seen so many of these take ages to repair because they go oh. well .. better cover it up.

Fastest repeat in a rural area was a local dug through the 100 pair cable up the street.

He called chorus himself straight away and dug it up for them to make it easy.

#include <std_disclaimer>

Any comments made are personal opinion and do not reflect directly on the position my current or past employers may have.

Groucho

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#2176975 12-Feb-2019 10:45

It was a disgraceful install to begin with. You were absolutely right to assume some sensitive core infrastructure wouldn't just be laying on top of the ground protected from the elements and UV light by grass.

The house behind me has gone on the market but no signs have appeared yet. I'm fearing one of their For Sale sign stakes are going to be hammered right through my own fibre shallow buried in the berm. I know exactly where it is which was one better than installers. I had to rush home for the initial scope meeting because they arrived two hours before the agreed time. By the time I got there they were about to dig a third pilot hole in the berm which were nowhere near where it was buried. Apparently someone hadn't given them plans of where the conduit was. I had no issue with their work otherwise and in fact when I got home that evening the conduit had been fully laid to the house that afternoon after they did another scope 'around the corner'.

Chorusnz

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Chorus

#2177211 12-Feb-2019 16:07

From the photo and description this definitely sounds like the original install work was not done to standard. Agree or disagree with our methods, if they are not adhered to and this causes the network to be damaged then you cannot be held liable for the damage.

@Coil we perform a great many site audits. But with an average of 500 installs a day, that’s a lot of audits for our specialists to complete in and around their other duties like resolving complex build issues and approving build plans.

@mrob210 I know a lot of our billing systems are automated and I can just foresee human error somewhere kicking off the process that sends you a bill. Just to prove me wrong. If that happens please send us a private mail through Geekzone and I will get it sorted for you.

^Richard

mrob210

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#2177224 12-Feb-2019 16:39

Chorusnz:

From the photo and description this definitely sounds like the original install work was not done to standard. Agree or disagree with our methods, if they are not adhered to and this causes the network to be damaged then you cannot be held liable for the damage.

@Coil we perform a great many site audits. But with an average of 500 installs a day, that’s a lot of audits for our specialists to complete in and around their other duties like resolving complex build issues and approving build plans.

@mrob210 I know a lot of our billing systems are automated and I can just foresee human error somewhere kicking off the process that sends you a bill. Just to prove me wrong. If that happens please send us a private mail through Geekzone and I will get it sorted for you.

^Richard

Thank you very much for this! And can I just say that the guys that came out to fix the problem were great, very professional and friendly and made the whole experience much less stressful thank it could have been. Thanks again

surfisup1000

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#2177257 12-Feb-2019 17:50

You should sue them for hitting your weedwhacker with their cable!

They are negligent, imagine the power company leaving cables above ground like that!

If on the other hand, the cables were underground and you'd put a spade through it.... maybe you'd be liable. But they weren't and you didn't so you're not.

Coil

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#2177529 13-Feb-2019 11:21

Chorusnz:

@Coil we perform a great many site audits. But with an average of 500 installs a day, that’s a lot of audits for our specialists to complete in and around their other duties like resolving complex build issues and approving build plans.

But as someone said below, What if the power company left exposed cables like that?
I understand 500 installs a day is a lot, but this margin of poor workmanship observed is far to great to be excused as part of an operational expectation.

These are your own staff who you would think have their best interests aligned with the company. These staff are trained on what is right and what is wrong, these guys are intentionally doing wrong. You have a network specification that you are extremely tough with when you deal with third parties doing their own work, but your own techs are free to go around butchering millions of dollars? It is truly sad that the audits done miss some of these issues and that there are examples of such poor workman ship it makes the public label your staff as incompetent idiots.

I know this is not a quarrel between you and I Richard but I simply cannot and will not accept that answer as a tax payer who funded part of this network and as a customer who is expected to use it and as a member of the public who is expected to be surrounded by it. I am sorry mate, this is not personal between you and I but the crap needs to have been cut yesterday.

I am probably preaching to the choir here...

chevrolux

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#2177551 13-Feb-2019 11:56

Supporting poor workmanship by saying "but we do 500 installs a day" is a cop out.

That's like a truck driving saying I drove 5000km this week and only crashed twice!!

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