When I ordered my trailer full of sand, I was given the options of 32 meters, 35 meters or 38 meters. I of course chose 32 meters knowing that the amount of sand would be the same either way and hoping that with my low order I would have a better chance of it all fitting on the truck.
I told them that I would pay for what was delivered and was assured that I would receive that correct amount because Manuel would never cheat me. I told him that while I appreciated him saying that, my albañil would be measuring everything anyway.
So when the sand arrived Lico measured everything out. The driver told me that they had brought me 35 meters of sand, but would only charge me for the 32. Red Flag number one. Nobody gives anything for free.
It came out that the length of the trailer is 12 meters. The interior width is 2.28 meters and the height in the center of the trailer was .85. That comes out to 23.256 cubic meters. That's almost Q1000 worth of sand that did not arrive. I told the driver no problem, that I'd just pay for the sand he brought and that he didn't have to make another trip. I was then told that he had loaded up 32 meters (wait, I thought it was 35...) but that some blows off the top during the trip. I told him that he should buy a tarp because it is not acceptable for a third of my sand to blow off the truck. "No, you don't understand, it doesn't blow off the top, it compresses with the vibrations of the road." He then explained that you have to add 10 cm to the top for compression because that's what everybody does.
It doesn't matter that adding that 10 cm only increases my total cubic meters to 24.276, I told him that I don't pay for air. I had never encountered this before and it didn't matter to me if he steals from everybody else, I only pay for what I get. Then he said that my albañil doesn't know how to measure and that the truck is actually 12.6 meters long and that gives me my 32 meters when I add the 10 cm. Well, that's still only 27.29 cubic meters, but I acted very chapin and took great offense that he would dare criticize my worker's measuring skills, plus I had just bought him a new tape measure.
After a little more talking I told him to unload all of the sand and that Lico would remeasure once on the ground because unloading the sand by shovel would take care of the compression problem. After all that we came up with the same amount of sand-23.25 cubic meters.
This had still not been resolved when the owner finally arrived. He wanted the rest of his money, even though he still hasn't delivered my block. I prepaid Q9,000 out of Q15,000 and the block is worth Q8,500 of that. I told him that I would pay him on Monday if he really did deliver the block, after I had counted all the block, and discounted the sand he didn't bring. There were lots of "Fijese" thrown about and more explanation about how my worker couldn't measure, the truck is actually longer than it really is and sand settles 10 cm, no matter how high it is stacked.
Of course, I didn't pay any more money, because I knew ahead of time that he would be asking me for it and I left my money at home. That way I could truthfully say that I didn't have any money with me...fijese.
Now I have to decide whether I stop buying from him altogether (the logical Gringo's first choice) or whether he has learned that the Gringo in San Pancho is tacaño (cheap) and not tonto (dumb), therefore bringing me the correct amount of materials from here on out.
Ugh. I guess the rules of geometry are different in Guatemala.
ReplyDeleteIf it were me, I would try to buy a second time from him. He probably had to act all offended to save himself the embarrassment of admitting that you were cheated. But perhaps he has learned his lesson. If you buy from someone else then you probably have to go through the same charade with them.
Also, don't forget about the power of becoming a regular "cliente". If you can become a regular customer, that has dividends and advantages for you. I had to learn from my Guatemalan husband about the advantages of becoming a "cliente". In the market, he always bought his clothes from the same guy. In the town, he always got his refaccion from the same lady. And even here in the states, he goes back to the same stores, again and again, developing that relationship. We now get discounts at the bike shop, the coffee shop, and a local restaurant.
You might as well try going back. If he cheats two more times, go elsewhere. ;) I've found they usually try again the second time, but by the third time, they've realized that you really are that stubborn and it's not worth their time to hassle with you.
ReplyDeleteSonia has a very good point about being a regular cliente . . . we have many "people" in the market and it works well.