Blood everywhere .. The bottle went BANG

[Ducatiboy stu]

Yeah he wil say " did you keep it in the fridge". Its going to be up to you to prove you did.

Talk to a solicitor......but steer clear of this guy

 

[philmud]

I wouldn't think it'd matter much whether or not you kept it refrigerated. A company like that should only send people home with idiot-proof products (not calling you an idiot Grainer). Unless you signed a fairly specific disclaimer, or they tattooed a detailed warning on your forehead, you had a reasonable expectation that they'd attenuate the beer properly, and not send you home with explosives. I'd get onto a solicitor specializing in public liability stuff, maybe Shine lawyers or Slater and Gordon - they have a touch of Saul Goodman about them but this stuff is their bread and butter. You could subpoena some forum members to tell the judge what happens when you bottle under-attenuated beer!

 

[wide eyed and legless]

Stay away from no win no charge, I went with them to mediation against QBE before we went in my solicitor was telling me to back off and accept $2000, saying if we get that we will be lucky.
Went before the mediator, the mediator and my brief never said a word, I argued my case against the QBE solicitor and they agreed to pay me $21,600.
The solicitors supposedly acting on my behalf then put out their hands for 20%, I paid them 10% and told them they were lucky to be getting that.
Small claims would also be one way to go but I think you would be only able to claim out of pocket expenses.

 

[philmud]

To be fair, that's one experience. All I mean is don't necessarily go with the guy who did your conveyancing.

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

Um...dont know how an AHB member would go in court. They would not be considered expert and could be regarded as hearsay evidence and they may not be viewed as expert witnesses ( especially considering you have aired your greivence on this forum, they will view it as collusion ). You are prob going to need someone who has some sort of qualifications in the field. Something that most on here do not have. The defence lawyer will just tear them apart. You can bet your arse the uBrew will vigourously defend, and if they win then expect to pay their costs. It sucks balls but going to court is not just a matter of saying " the bottles blew up and i got hurt and its their fault" They will question you on every little detail about what you did when you first left uBrew with the bottles up untill they blew up.

Not trying to discourage you, but lawyers are heartless ***** in the court room and will stop at nothing to win. I have been in court and cross examined...its not fun at all.

 

[OzPaleAle]

Huntingdale ubrewit don't seem to care and have not responded in 2 days they just say I should have kept them in a fridge ..

Speaks volumes about what they think about their customers, the least you would want is "oh I'm really sorry to hear that I hope you are ok", and engage with you further.

Probably then complains how tuff it is for small business's these days…….

 

[goomboogo]

Do they keep records of OG and FG?

 

[philmud]

Um...dont know how an AHB member would go in court. They would not be considered expert and could be regarded as hearsay evidence and they may not be viewed as expert witnesses ( especially considering you have aired your greivence on this forum, they will view it as collusion ). You are prob going to need someone who has some sort of qualifications in the field....You can bet your arse the uBrew will vigourously defend, and if they win then expect to pay their costs.

Yeah, I was being tongue in cheek - of course being a forum member wouldn't qualify someone as an expert witness.

Also though, I'm not sure they wouldn't try and settle out of court - AFAIK they aren't a multinational and there's a very real chance they'd lose, even if Grainer stored the bottles improperly. Do you think CUB could sell VB if it exploded when not refrigerated?

 

[wide eyed and legless]

I doubt it would get into court Stu it would be mediated to an agreement outside court,unless the defendent is either stupid or both, even the small claims is done this way now, taken all the fun out of it.
I have been taken to small claims a number of times ( never lost a case ) but the funny stories I could tell about the antics that some people get up to, everyone a gem.

 

[shaunous]

I'd go see a solicitor about it just incase, they charge nothing for the first visit and u can always pull out anyway, make sure u take shitloads of photo's. It don't matter if they say to store the bottles in a fridge, does it state the fridge has to be turned on and under 4*c, even if it does things can grow still at this temperature and cause expansion inside the bottle. They have a 'duty of care', and sending u home with the potential to be harmed and then offer no apology is going against that.

Personally if they apologised and paid ya medical bill I'd be happy, but since they haven't, Fuk em. They're a franchise aren't they, might be better off contacting head office, not your local small business owner.

 

[Mardoo]

Huntingdale ubrewit don't seem to care and have not responded in 2 days they just say I should have kept them in a fridge ..so I will be contacting a solicitor for advice... See what happens

Totally shocking. That's fucked and totally irresponsible on their part. Been in customer service a long time (TOO long) and even the worst business I've been in wouldn't say that. Hell, the one I'm in now gave a free case of wine to a guy who got bitten by a spider in a case he bought, even though he wasn't asking for it and it clearly wasn't negligence on our part.

Put the boot in. Lawyer up AND call the Herald Sun.

 

[doon]

It's not like micros that bottle condition tell you to keep them cold or they will explode because they have gone through correct processes!

 

[MartinOC]

1. Grainer, I hope you're OK & none of your Tatt's got slashed.

2. Legal argument you may want to put to your representative for exploration:

Coopers brewery (& all others that bottle-condition their products) hold their stock after bottling (primed & bottle-conditioned) for a defined time & monitor bottle-pressures before release. This ensures that their product is released for sale in a safe state.

The fact that Ubrewit tells it's customers to keep beers released from their premises in a fridge (did they specify "refrigerated", & if so, at what temperature?) , is because they KNOW that they don't monitor their product & release them too soon (ie. incomplete fermentation, therefore unstable & potentially dangerous) in order to maximise turnover & minimise their own holding-time. By doing so, they seek to place the onus of responsibility for storage of potentially dangerous material in the hands of the customer.

Ergo, they shirked in their duty of care to their customers in order to make a quick profit.

Good luck with it & SCREW THE BASTARDS!!

 

[indica86]

They are not like a micro though, I would think they get around excise by selling you a service and not the product,
CLEARLY the service they provide is questionable at best and they should be held accountable for the complete lack of care.
Go for it and shut these fuckers down.
The u-blew-it in my area sells grain for $8kg.
Top stuff.

 

[Darren Hayes]

Totally shocking. That's fucked and totally irresponsible on their part. Been in customer service a long time (TOO long) and even the worst business I've been in wouldn't say that. Hell, the one I'm in now gave a free case of wine to a guy who got bitten by a spider in a case he bought, even though he wasn't asking for it and it clearly wasn't negligence on our part.

Put the boot in. Lawyer up AND call the Herald Sun.

Herald Sun..Why. Its notoriously a tabloid of here today gone tomorrow stories. Lawyer up... Why, how much, what do you expect to get. Ubrewit is not Coles.
I would suggest a letter to the director detailing the circumstances and request a response. See what happens.

 

[Black Devil Dog]

Scenario in the court room.

Lawyer for plaintiff: "So, Mr Ubrewit, can you explain to the court why these bottles, in your opinion, expolded"
Ubrewit guy: "He didn't keep them in the fridge" .
Plaintiff: "Why should he have kept them in the fridge to stop them expolding"?
Ubrewit: "Well, because the beer hadn't finished fermenting when we bottle it and unless it's kept refrigerated it will explode"
Plaintiff: "So, why doesn't a bottle of mega-brewed beer explode when not refrigerated?"
Ubrewit: "Because they probably wait until it's finished fermenting before they bottle it" .
Plaintiff: "Why do you think they would do that?
Ubrewit: "So that their bottles don't expode"

Judge: "I rule in favour of the plaintiff."

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

If only it was that simple

 

[MartinOC]

That's why you engage legal counsel - to simplify it for the Mediator/Magistrate/Judge.

 

[indica86]

Cleaver Green. He'll do it.

 

[Mardoo]

Herald Sun..Why. Its notoriously a tabloid of here today gone tomorrow stories. Lawyer up... Why, how much, what do you expect to get. Ubrewit is not Coles.
I would suggest a letter to the director detailing the circumstances and request a response. See what happens.

You're right. Grainer, don't take my advice on this one.

Regarding the letter to the director, is UBrewIt a franchise/chain?