Help please

[featured_spectre]

I have a laptop sitting on my desk, given too me by a teacher who left last week. This laptop was brand new, in pristine condition when she recieved it, but when I got it back, the screen had a crack, a line of dead pixels on the screen, and the laptop is generally dying a death.

 

This member of staff was on the "dangerous users" list (members of staff who have broken more than 2 pieces of equipment within 6 months) as such, along with her signing a piece of paper (stating date laptop recieved, condition, model, make, serial etc) she was sent an email (which was subsequently deleted by her as she claimed she thought it was junk), in which the email stated that she took on all financial responsibility for the laptop, and any damages she would have to pay the insurance excess etc (this is standard practice for our "dangerous users", and most come to accept it as part and parcel of getting new equipment).

 

Now herein lies a problem, my PC crashed badly since sending the email and I had to restore from a back up, which was dated previous to me sending the email, so I have no copy stored on my machine. She deleted it from her emails, so she has no copy on her machine or archives etc.

 

I have asked our webmail provider if they can send me any copies of emails sent to that address by me since christmas (not many as I rarely emailed said person with the exception of helpdesk enquiries etc), however their backups only go as far as easter, so I am now in a rock and a hardplace. How can I prove this teacher accepted the responsibility if all the evidence of such agreement is gone

 

Many thanks

 

Nephilim

[Hightower]

Struggling with it I believe. We have hard copies of all these sorts of things, pinned to our cork board in the office.

[LosOjos]

If it's standard practice that dangerous users are held to this policy and she has signed the dangerous users register, and she has admitted to having deleted the email you sent, I personally would ask her for the money and hope she's honest enough to pay. It's only really a problem if she disputes it, in which case, it's hard for you to do anything without proof that she was warned...

[gizmo2005]

if the head knows that this is a general prceedure then this shouldnt be a hard thing. you mention earlier that she signed something stating that she had received the laptop and i take it this was in paper format and also that you have a list of dangerous users as well, im sure that if you provide this to the head then things should be ok.

 

just a quick question was it just the one email tha you sent to this client of did other memebers ( dangerous users ) have a new laptop as well. You may have copied more than one person into the email but they have no problems with the email.

[featured_spectre]

She admitted to deleting emails from me all the time (i believe to cover her back) and this one being no exception, and she has said "she doesnt recall this specific email".

 

She is also disputing that the laptop was in the exact same condition as when she recieved it, despite my boss witnessing me starting it up for the first time (I always have a witness to this sort of thing so it is my own back covered and they cannot say that I did the damage to try to extort money from them)

Edited September 13, 2010 by featured_spectre

[featured_spectre]

oh and it was a singular email as each email was tailored to each dangerous user (not a generic one) as some were "more dangerous" than others.

 

The list is sitting in my office on the corkboard and her name is clearly on it, the head accepts this, and knows I do send out the emails (as the head is also on this list!!), however as the member of staff has deleted it and I have no back up record of it, I am really stuck

[gizmo2005]

think your going to have to pay for this one yourself and just write it off, but cover yourself even more next time by keeping a file saved in the server and also copy the head or someone els into the email, sorry cnt help you mate.

[Edu-IT]

Since she's left, it's a bit difficult. I think unless the school is willing to enforce collection of the money then you're stuck.