Legal Question in Consumer Law in Maryland

Property damaged in warehouse

I bought a roll of carpet from a wholesaler in Georgia and found a local installer to install it.

The installer said I could have the roll of carpet shipped to a flooring store in Maryland, whose owner said he would accept delivery and hold it until the installer came to pick it up.

While my roll of carpet was at the warehouse, however, another installer came to pick up a roll of carpet for a different job. He mistakenly took MY carpet and cut the 54 linear foot roll in half. Due to the layout of my rooms, the carpet was going to be cut in a specific pattern in order to maximize coverage and minimize seams. With two 27' pieces of carpet, this can no longer be accomplished. The owner of the flooring store is trying to minimize the impact of the additional seams and is not offering any type of compensation for this error. I'm of the opinion that, even if he voluntarily accepted this carpet without remuneration, he still has an obligation to ensure that something like this wouldn't happen.

What recourse do I have against the flooring company for not ensuring that something like this would occur?


Asked on 5/16/08, 2:19 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Michael Hendrickson Law Office Michael E. Hendrickson

Re: Property damaged in warehouse

The legal question might reduce to something like: Did the flooring store owner(bailee)use ordinary care (or whatever the applicable standard of care might be adjudged to be) in caring for the carpet while it was in his possession?

If not, then the law could hold him liable, but if so, then no liability. This is, obviously, a question of fact for the trier of fact(judge)if the matter should end up in court, and one that cannot be anwered here in this forum on the facts provided.

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Answered on 5/18/08, 10:25 am


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