Service Tech Liability

[JKPAO]

Wookie, are these things you discover in the course of a dive, or mostly because a diver grabs his / her newly serviced regs from the shop on the way to the plane / boat?

I wouldn't put my gear in the open water without testing it first, but am finding I am in the minority.

I with you! I like to jump in the pool with new or serviced regs just to bubble check.
I also carry an extra set of regs, so i may be in the minority on that one.
See you topside! John

 

[superstar]

I was diving on a friends livaboard dive boat and one of the other divers used my spare reg. If that diver died am I responsible. Is the captain of the boat responsible because he asked me if I had a spare reg to loan out.

 

[Wookie]

I was diving on a friends livaboard dive boat and one of the other divers used my spare reg. If that diver died am I responsible. Is the captain of the boat responsible because he asked me if I had a spare reg to loan out.

I have asked folks to do that in the past also. I have a much tighter relationship with my insurance company now. I would never speak as to who is responsible or liable for what, but I would never ask a friend to loan out a regulator to a customer.

 

[JahJahwarrior]

Anyone here form an LLC or S Corp to defer personal liability?

Anyone here have friends fill out a waiver saying something like "you acknowledge that the equipment i touch or loan you is gauranteed to kill you, and that you refuse to sue me for any ill effects you suffer from my death bringing service or equipment" ?

Anyone here stay broke on purpose to avoid liability via the "sue-the-deep-pockets" rule?

Anyone here just trust the good nature of people?


On the flip side, are regulator repair techs under any sort of liability for NOT helping out if they suspect a problem? For example, you notice a regulator freeflowing or leaking, and say nothing, even though you are trained to repair those regulators and know that is a sign of a problem. Can you be sued for failing to step up as a professional?

Lastly, why do shops send out regulators that are freeflowing or leaking from the body? I'm not a professional but I don't consider a regulator rebuild done until it's not leaking... are they just not even looking or noticing??

 

[muddiver]

Wookie, I agree, you probably tweak it a little to work a bit better or tighten, replace a few o-rings, etc.

I have given Lds the work to rebuild reg sets, to my suprise, each one has failed. Even to my atomic, I get it back and it still leaked out of first stage, I opened it and changed o-rings, still leaked. could it be fixed not sure, I Know for sure I put at least 250 dives on it in 99, 141 dives in 2000, and 213, in 2001. Took in for recall, and it leaked dove maybe 50, on it 2002.

I tried the atomic, as they were the scuba pro employees that started it.
Ok you see a heck of a lot of dives and never touched.
Took it in 2008 and now it still leaks as I said not sure if I could fix. Problem, probably wore out. they only put new kit in and its now still not working. Same time took in seaquest reg, and they rebuilt and said after rebuild they found out housing is cracked. So it is like my USdivers, beachuet, so internal parts are still good.

I have had this type of service go on my whole life. Tried again this last decade.

I Buy scubapro regs from brett at leisurepro, and will never take them in for service ever. only a nice proper rinse. After 500 dives I get Another, I have many sets, and all work great when never serviced.

That tells me how the odds are. I tell divers here to buy new and spend money on new instead of rebuild, its cheaper and guarateed to work.

I waste time, gas money, a burnt dive(actually learned to bring backup, but still) and a feeling of not happy with the tech that built. So I can be happy in a dive shop when I go in to just buy new.

I Have worked on more gear on my surface intervels going to next sight, on my dive holiday in warm water diving, too Know completely what Wookie is saying, what I see is the norm.

And for the ones that suggest you need a good tech, aint worth a few bucks more for a new reg, waiting at home, or delivered when home.

I haven't a clue of why there are not many gear failures in accidents, except they fail before you dive, and thats why I help fix before a dive.

Happy Diving

Wow! I wish I had your kind of wealth. Then I too could have a garage full of dive crap. Or a garage big enough to store all my extra dive crap.

 

[Zung]

I was diving on a friends livaboard dive boat and one of the other divers used my spare reg. If that diver died am I responsible. Is the captain of the boat responsible because he asked me if I had a spare reg to loan out.

Yes, could be, even over here.

A sad story, but true: a Swiss PADI instructor took 2 students in a cave in the South of France, and came out alone. His insurance company advised him to sue the captain of the boat, also owner of the diver center, because PADI was not recognized in France, so the captain should not have let him dive without supervision.

He won, and the captain lost the boat, the dive center, and the right to do that job ever again.

But there was a bit of moral in the story: the instructor made headline in all Swiss news papers. I don't think he could teach ever again either.

 

[sea_ledford]

Lastly, why do shops send out regulators that are freeflowing or leaking from the body? I'm not a professional but I don't consider a regulator rebuild done until it's not leaking... are they just not even looking or noticing??

I think part of it is an age/hearing thing. The older the tech, the less likely they will hear a reg leaking. Unless they do a bubble check. Like they are supposed to...

Best use for those 6cuft bottles is slapping a reg on one and dunking it in a 5 gallon bucket. Sure beats trying to hold an 80 upside down over the bucket and try to see where the leak is comming from!

 

[Thalassamania]

I with you! I like to jump in the pool with new or serviced regs just to bubble check.
I also carry an extra set of regs, so i may be in the minority on that one.
See you topside! John

Since I moved to Hawaii, I never take a reg into the pool without first checking it out in the ocean, but then the ocean is much, much, more accessible than a pool.

 

[Couv]

I think part of it is an age/hearing thing. The older the tech, the less likely they will hear a reg leaking. Unless they do a bubble check. Like they are supposed to...

Best use for those 6cuft bottles is slapping a reg on one and dunking it in a 5 gallon bucket. Sure beats trying to hold an 80 upside down over the bucket and try to see where the leak is comming from!

A leak check can be accomplished very easily by brushing on soapy water all over a pressurized regulator.

.....but then again, going through a little more effort to do it properly in the sea is the ultimate.

Since I moved to Hawaii, I never take a reg into the pool without first checking it out in the ocean, but then the ocean is much, much, more accessible than a pool.

Lucky @#$%^ !

 

[ItsBruce]

Since I moved to Hawaii, I never take a reg into the pool without first checking it out in the ocean, but then the ocean is much, much, more accessible than a pool.

I do believe someone is bragging. I certainly do.