Who's Responsible

Whose glass of water was it? And did the user know they were in a precarious position in relation to the coffee table with the drink?

I can't decide where the blame lies. I just agree that the whole situation sucks.

Lets see, glass of water on the table where it belonged, computer sitting on the floor where it doesn't belong. The person using the computer would be at fault since it was on the floor.

My daughter was at the pool with her friends. Her friend spilled her drink on my daughter's phone and fried the darn thing. She NEVER offered anything to my daughter. I was pissed at my daughter for having her phone at the pool! So, too bad for my daughter!

If I hit a car and the driver was just borrowing it and was doing nothing wrong how would it be that person's fault in any way?

I would think it was an accident and it needs to be taken care of the best way possible. Did a MAC technician take a look at it? I would do that first and then see what they say.

I think they all should help pay to replace it. Your son for bumping the table, the person who set the drink by the Mac Book, and the person using the Mac Book for not moving away from a glass of water. Yes, it was an accident but it could have been prevented by all involved. Just my opinion.

My nieces have stories like this. I would say "Bring me the computer, the warranty, and the receipt. I will go get it looked at and see about getting it fixed." Do not give them cash or a check.

Everyone, equal responsibility. The glass should not have been on the coffee table near a computer. STUPID. Who put that there? The friend using the computer should not have been using it next to water. BUT, no way would I let anyone else use my computer near water. I'm very vigilint. I manage to keep all my electronics alive in a house full of toddlers, too many cats, and a dog that thinks he's a cat and will jump up right in the middle of a table. It's hard and I OFTEN have to take water away from situations where electronics are near.

Your son really should have the least responsibility, if no responsibility at all. I believe it's awesome that he wants to help and you know that God will help him for it. Sadly, it's hard to get others to realize or take any responsibility, even when they should take most or all.

IMO, I would say that the responsibility for replacement is on the owner. He should not be letting someone use the computer on the floor (again, imo).

However, the other two (your son, and the kid using the computer), should "do the right thing" and chip in to help him pay for having it repaired/replaced.

Just my 2 cents.

I think its shared responsibility of all. I feel like the owner needs to takes responsibility for their own property, who they choose to use their property, the user for the care of borrowed property and your son for the accident.

It's no one's fault, really. I disagree that your son is 100% responsible for the cost of the Mac Book. Seriously, anything that costs $1500 should be able to withstand one spill. Is anyone else completely baffled by that? Lol!

Is the Mac Book under warranty? Does renter's insurance cover such things? I have too many questions to give advice on the subject, but I hardly think your son should be held finacially responsible, although it shows great character that he is so willing!

who was the idiot who chose to use a computer & was too lazy to move the hazards in the playing field?

As adults, we all know that you don't leave drinks next to electronics.

Financial status has no bearing: the person who was using the computer should have moved the drink. Your son should share the cost with him.

Trust your son. He was there and you were not. If he feels he was the source of the accident, then he should do the right thing and find a way to remedy the situation. There is probably more to the story than what he's sharing.

Furthermore, I am suspect something fishy is up with this story, considering there was a loan taken out for this computer, it should have warranties and possibly be insured, right? Most stores like Mac or Best Buy etc. will have an automatic 90 day warranty and encourage the buyer to get more warranties than that on items like this to protect against scenarios like this from happening.

And YES spills should be covered within the first 90 days. Furthermore, the computer would be replaced or repaired at no charge. And to be honest, short of the spill involving hydrochloric acid, liquid doesn't usually wreck a computer in such a way that it would be totaled. This would more than likely be a very affordable repair in the low hundreds (mostly for man hours) ...not a $1500 repair for parts replacement or a totally new computer.

If for some reason this kid got a $1500 Mac book and no warranty, Is the damage repairable? Or will he have to replace the entire computer? While he may not have $1500 readily laying around, repairs can be manageable financially speaking...as little as two hundred bucks usually if they go to a place like Geek Squad for example. He may also be able to go to a place like Microcenter and purchase a refurbished used computer of equal or lesser value but at a much cheaper price (as low as $300) to replace the original so that his friend will have something to use for school.

I think you need more concrete answers no matter what. I think maybe someone is trying to get a loan from you..but it isn't to fund a computer mishap. I suspect they need to the money for something else, and this whole story about a damaged computer may be a ruse. Get pictures, get proof like copies of the warranty.

If the Mac was being used with permission by the other guest? It's shared. If the Mac was not being used with permission, the guy who had it out without permission should pay.

However, since your son feels partially (he is NOT solely to blame in my opinion) he should offer to pay for some of it...that would be the nice thing to do.

However put the glass on the table next to the computer is the real person to blame. this has NOTHING to do about who is better off. It's about people being held accountable for their actions.

Does the computer owner have insurance? I would check that first. Such a hard situation to be in. Who left the water there? I would think that person has the bulk of the responsibility, but your son probably does,too, because he was not being careful when he bumpted the table. In the end, it was all an accident, but the two people who were involved should make it right if the person's insurance won't cover it. Ouch.

Water shouldn't be kept close enough to a laptop to spill on it, so I would say the drinker was at least partly responsible.

But I applaud your son for owning up to his mistake and being willing to compensate for the damage. If he feels he should pay for it, let him do what he needs to for the sake of his own conscience.

I think its the person using it's fault. The glass of water was on the table- where it belonged- and the computer was on the floor- where it does not belong. The person using the computer took responsibility for the computer when they started using it. Had they left it on a table then this crisis could have been avoided.

Hopefully the other person will realize that they are at fault and pitch in. My friend had a brand new mac book pro and she accidentally knocked over a glass of water that was on her bedstand (where her new comp. just happened to be) and it just fried the whole thing. Don't think your son will be able to repair it

Hmm, I'm thinking it goes all around here.

The owner should have been paying attention or NOT lending it out if he can't afford a new one.

The user shouldn't have been sitting with it on the floor or near a glass of water.

Your son could have been more careful and not bumped into the table (I say this lightly because I am as clumsy as they come.)

If no warranty will cover it, I'd say all 3 of them need to pitch it.

No offense, but come one. Your son is 100% responsible. This has nothing to do with who is *better off*.

It seems like a shared responsibility. The person using it and the person who put the glass near the computer played a role too. I try to be careful around electronics (they are rarely near drinks) but we have a lot of spills on other items because of carelessly placed drinks. I'd see about renter's insurance too.

I believe it is definitely a shared responsiblity! Accidents happen to everyone...and that is what it seems to have been..an accident! They kids are at an age where they aren't going to think anything through. Having a glass of water near a computer of any kind is not allowed in my home. However, since we are talking about college age kids there is probably always going to be an open container of some sort close by and with that being said they should be prepared for the consequinces! (sp?) At any rate you might check with your homeowners agent and file a liability claim to pay for the damages. It's worth a try!

I'm with your son... he caused the accident.

HOWEVER:

Best case scenario: The macbook will only be a couple hundred to fix

Worst Case Scenario (macbook totaled): RENTER'S INSURANCE usually covers damage to personal property inside an apartment. I know I was always required to have renter's insurance when I was living in apts. It was part of the lease. I either had it, or I was breaking the lease.

At a whopping $5 a month, it was a no brainer. And it specifically covered ANYTHING that was in my apartment. Didn't matter if I owned it or not. If something expensive was in my apt and got stolen or ruined, my insurance would pay. My insurance had a $250 deductible, which is pretty common. Won't pay for cell phones, gaming systems, or other easily damaged dodads (which are typically under $250), but for a wardrobe of clothes, or a knifed couch, or a soaked computer? Paid out in a heartbeat.

So have your son talk to the laptop owner to find out what the repair costs are of if it has to be totally replaced, and if it needs to be replaced then also the person on the lease, and figure out what his deductible is, and have him pay that.

Um..in my book not at fault at all...we all know that you don't use a computer by drinks if you do you risk an accident. it is the person who chose to place that laptop next to a cup of water, or who knowingly left the laptop next to a glass of water that was placed ont he table.

Putting water near a computer is stupid. Accidents happen. Shared responsibility. If your son wants to help, 1/2.

I would get a repair/replacement quote from a seller and then ask your son what he is able and prepared to do to meet this cost. I don't believe the Macbook owner deserves a new computer because of his own reckless behavior, there needs to be a depreciation of value. However, this is a chance to really teach the importance of respecting your son's own (as well as other peoples) property. Sometimes the greatest lessons in life come with a cost, be glad this cost is only financial. Good luck!

My question would be - Who's glass of water was it and why the frickity frack were they drinking it near a $1500 apparently irreplaceable laptop? Bumps happen, yes I understand that and know the bumper should take some responsibility for having a corporeal body, but in my humble opinion the dipstick who filled the cup of liquid and set it near the computer is the real culprit. Everyone in my house knows not to bring food or drink near the computers and if they do, will suffer the wrath of mom.

However, in the case of a laptop it may not be the drinker's responsibility. If the table was communally being used as a food area for a group of people, then the laptop user should NOT have moved it into that general vicinity. If the laptop normally lives on that table and someone moved drinks to the laptop, then it's the fault of the person who filled the cup and left it there.

We use desktops in this house and don't own a laptop so it's easy to keep food and drink away from our rigs, but with a mobile item like that, <b>the responsibility lies with the person who moves the laptop around because ultimately they are responsible for what happens to it while they are using it.</b>

If they move it outside and it rains. Their fault. If they move it to the bathroom and it falls into the tub that someone else is using, their fault. If they move it to the dinner table and a glass topples on it, their fault. If they move it to the kitchen while food prep is occurring and grease splatters on the screen, their fault. Etc etc etc etc... Your son didn't move the laptop near potential danger so your son is not responsible. He may FEEL responsible because yea, if he was never born and didn't have a body to bump into anything, the glass would not have fallen. But seriously? If he didn't fill the glass and he didn't move the laptop near the glass, how is it his fault?

/EDIT - Stupid auto correct.

I think that your son is responsible. You can remove all of the financial editorial information from the scenario--as it has nothing to do with "fault" in this case.
Hopefully, insurance will cover repair.
Your son should take it to an apple store & get an estimate.
IF the owner and user are worth their weight in salt, they will help with the cost.
And YES--lots of stuff that costs a lot of money cannot withstand O. spill! My 8 year old knows that!

Sorry to say that I vote that your son is responsible...and if the user wants to pitch in out of the goodness of his heart, then yay! Your son could even ask if he is willing to pitch in, but if not...

I'm assuming the user of the MacBook was sitting on the floor by the coffee table, holding it in his lap, while using it. If that is the case, then your son is the one who is responsible for repair or replacement of the MacBook since he is the one who knocked the water onto it. The fact that the user is better off financially has nothing to do with who is at fault. If I throw a frisbee, hit a millionaire and knock his eye out, I am still responsible for his medical bills even though he is far better off financially than I am because I was the proximate cause of the accident.

The user is off the hook completely because he did not cause the accident and the owner assumed a risk when he allowed another person to use his device.

Hopefully the user will feel badly about how things turned out and offer to pay a portion but he isn't obligated to do so.

If your son offers to pay for half the value of MacBook, the owner will probably be happy. Some is better than none.

Owner of computer is responsible.

hopefully it can be fixed and not need to be replaced.

I would say that its 1/2 your son and 1/2 the person borrowing it. Together they need to make the owner of it whole even though it was an accident.

Hopefully the owner had insurance on it to lower the cost or even renters insurance should cover a portion of it. If niether one is the case then it has to come out of pocket.

Laptops do not belong on the floor.
Laptops do not belong anywhere near liquid without lids.
Laptops belong in your lap or on a table, away from dogs and feet.
The owner of the laptop and the un-wise user need to find a kind soul to repair the laptop cheaply as possible.
You need to be thankful you have such a caring son <3

~Off to save the world now,
A.

I vote that your son is responsible. No bump, no problem. Perhaps his parents can make him a loan. Another thing - I'm not a Mac person, but I also vote to replace what is damaged (i.e., not buy a new Mac Book, but a used one just like the one that was damaged). Another thing - does the apartment resident have renter's insurance? Interesting to read all the Mamas trying to be litigators!