Legal Question in Consumer Law in California

''We don't pay for information.''?

Company (Co.) A and Co. B provide a module used in equipment sold by Co. Z. Sales of this equipment numbers WELL over five million world-wide per year.

In an attempt to decrease their warranty return-for-repair incident count, subtle modifications were implemented in the equipment by Co. Z. This change has resulted in the failure of modules from Co. A & B to increase. In these cases, Co. Z remains the warranty return contact for the modules, BUT it is Co. A & B who actually provides/pays for the replacement.

Considering the nature of the modification, the probability that Company Z informed Company A or B prior to, or after, making the modification can be considered zero.

Estimated combined Co. A and B losses, formulated using available data combined with conservative variables, works out to be, at a minimum, over $5 million/year.

I informed both companies, trying to provide as much info as possible without giving it away. Since there are no illegal or questionable circumstances surrounding the situation, I don't feel an obligation to to tell them what they should already know. I never asked for money up front, just a contingency agreement. I'm getting nowhere.

All three are Fortune 100 Cos. Any suggestions???


Asked on 4/22/06, 10:16 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Tom Martin Law Office of Thomas Glenn Martin

Re: ''We don't pay for information.''?

The initial description of your situation is fairly clear. However, it becomes unclear when you state: "I never asked for money up front, just a contingency agreement."

What is the nature of your deals with Companies A and B? Under what circumstances are they required to accept warranty returns? Are the losses incurred by Companies A and B deducted from the contingency arrangement you have with Companies A and B? What is the product? When you say you are getting "nowhere," what are you attempting to accomplish? These are a number of questions that would help for me to better understand the situation and provide some insight.

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Answered on 4/22/06, 11:17 pm


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