I was recently involved in a television shoot, and over the course of two days I lost my walkie talkie. Shit happens, I am definitely at fault for losing it.
I reported it to the show producer, let them know where I thought it was, etc.
Now, I’ve done this sort of work for many years, and this is the first time I’ve lost anything on set like that. And no reputable company would ever try to make a staffer pay for a genuinely lost part like that, as there’s production insurance to cover those sort of things.
But this show wants me to reimburse them for the $700 walkie!!
OK, ignore the emotion – I think it’s completely unethical for them to ask me to repay the cost, but that’s completely besides the point and I’m not asking if anyone agrees or disagrees with me on that.
I just want to know if they can LEGALLY ask me to pay for it. Not what they SHOULD do, just CAN they hold me liable for lost production equipment, even if it’s my fault it was lost?
If it matters, I live in Los Angeles but the shoot took place in Vegas (where the company is based out of).
Any non-binding legal advice out there for this situation?
Why wouldn’t it be legal? You lost their property; if a neighbor lost your shovel, you’d ask him to pay you back and not just refer it to your homeowner’s insurance, right? It doesn’t change because you’re an employee; they hired you to do work, not make their stuff disappear, even if it was an accident.
They can ask, you can decline, and they can decide whether to just not hire you ever again and put the claim on their insurance, to not hire you ever again and sue you for the loss/damages, or to file a claim and not worry about it.
What may or may not be legal is holding your paycheck hostage for the $700, or taking the $700 from your paycheck.
IANAL, but if you signed for it I would think you would be legally responsible. You say you reported it “lost”, did you include the possibility that it may have been stolen? If so that might affect your liability. If it’s customary to overlook things like this in your industry, you might appeal to them on that basis.
Is the $700.00 the cost of a new “talkie”? If it is you should try to negotiate a depreciated value, they’d never get a judgement based on the original cost, unless it was brand new, maybe not even then.
I’d try to negotiate a lower price. Offer them 40 to 50% of the $700.00 and give them a few mitigating circumstances.
You should also consider what effect this can have on your future employment if you decide not to pay.
You might try to get one on eBay just to shut them up. 2 way commercial radios tend to be much cheaper used then new, even if in great shape.
Assuming you are an independent contractor re your employer-employee relationship what does your employment contract say about lost or damaged items?
I don’t know how the film biz works but if I personally lost a very expensive radio through misplacing it I’d kind of feel responsible for replacing it.
I don’t think it’s “unethical” for them to ask you to replace it, it’s not like you’re a salaried long term employee, you’re an independent professional. As a commercial real estate agent I’m also an independent contractor. If the office manager loaned me an expensive digital camera, and I lost it, I would feel obligated to replace it regardless of whether his insurance would pick it up. It’s (IMO) the professional thing to do.
Yeah. I rather suspect the answer in almost any jurisdiction is that, yes, your employer can legally bill you for lost/damaged equipment, you can legally refuse to pay such a bill and your employer can legally take you to court and/or fire you. Given the choice between paying it and not paying it, you have to consider that as well as how such action might affect your future employability, among other factors. You might consider trying to negotiate the price with your employer, but if you’re going to ignore the bill you should probably seek professional legal advice, IMO.
Wow. I work in TV and have seen employees lose or break $50,000 cameras, break the mast of live trucks, but I’ve never heard of anyone receiving a bill for any of the above.
Yes, but they were salaried employees. I think being a “for hire” professional or an independent contractor has a somewhat different tone, and a somewhat higher level of expectations re responsibility with equipment. I’d also suspect the future vocational advancement prospects for people who lose or break $ 50,000 + equipment through carelessness is not particularly bright, even if they aren’t billed for it.
First, Gfactor… THANK you for those excellent links!!
To explain to those of you who find it unethical that I am refusing to pay for my mistake, let me clarify.
I’m an independent contractor, yes, but I’ve worked on this same show for about 4 years. I’m very high up in the production, I run the post production department, and I co-direct the show. So this isn’t my first dance with these guys.
In 4 years of shooting, this is the first item I’ve misplaced, and I’ve lost track of the literally 100’s of hours I’ve worked overtime without getting an extra penny for it.
So I have no qualms asking the production to cover this expense. And now I’ve learned it’s illegal for them to even try it. Woot!
All of the safety equipment issued to me by PennDOT must be returned when I cease to be a seasonal employee, or I will be billed for it. If an item is damaged, I must report it and turn in the damaged item to obtain a replacement.
You should get a job for Discovery Channel filming “Deadliest Catch”. On the “behind the scenes” episode, they said they start off with about $1 million worth of equipment, and it’s basically all destroyed by the end of the season. Presumably the film crews aren’t billed for it.
Obviously, this will vary from state to state, but at my company, if you break or lose something, and it’s determined that you are liable, the cost of it will be deducted from your paycheck, usually $25 or $50 per paycheck until it’s paid off.
Several people have lost or broken company-owned Nokia cell phones, and they ended up having to pay for them, but I know they were nowhere near $700 - they were more like $200.
