BC man sues after travel buddy sells RV they bought together
Two men who agreed to buy a trailer together battled in the BC Civil Resolution Tribunal after one sold the trailer and kept all the money he made from it.
Three years ago, Gregory Cosway and Shane Green bought a $6,500 1975 Airstream Sovereign trailer together and later agreed to sell it and split the proceeds evenly.
However, Cosway said last year, Green listed the trailer to be sold at $21,000. He shared with the CRT an undated Facebook advertisement that showed Green’s listing for the trailer, which had said it was sold.
Green responded by showing a cheque in his name for $16,700 to prove the trailer was sold at a lower price.
It’s undisputed that Green did not give Cosway any of the money made in the sale.
In response, Cosway filed a small claim.
Green explained that while the two purchased the trailer together, he renovated it, incurred other related expenses, and claimed Cosway did not. Cosway disagrees with the amount of expenses Green incurred as he also did not provide any evidence.
In response, the tribunal member said they didn’t find Green had proved that he incurred these expenses he was claiming and that “the value of his renovation work is inconsistent.”
Green said he worked for 80 hours renovating the trailer at $75 per hour, for a total of $6,000. However, according to an invoice for $20,000 from Bowser Building Contractors (BBC), it listed $500 was for materials and $19,500 was for labour, the CRT decision reads.
“The invoice … says, ‘all renovation work to Airstream’ and then lists welding, flooring, bolting, cleaning, new bed, and new cabinets. The invoice does not state an hourly rate or the amount of labour required,” the tribunal member said.
“Green does not explain the significant discrepancy between the $6,000 valuation in his submissions and the $20,000 invoice.”
The tribunal member pointed out BBC has the same as Green’s address on the dispute notice, “so I infer that BBC is Mr. Green’s company.”
Green claimed Cosway owed him nearly $4,000 for renovations he allegedly completed on Cosway’s mother’s house. “He says he does not owe Mr. Cosway anything and that Mr. Cosway owes him money. Mr. Green did not file a counterclaim, so I infer he claims $3,900 as a set-off,” the tribunal decision reads. However, the tribunal member said Green’s claim about this has nothing to do with this dispute.
According to the decision, the tribunal member ordered Green to pay Cosway $5,207.09 for damages, pre-judgment interest under the Court Order Interest Act and CRT fees.
“Given the parties’ positions, the lack of detail on the $20,000 invoice, and Mr. Green’s failure to explain the significant inconsistency in his evidence, I find the value of Mr. Green’s renovation work was $6,000. The evidence before me indicates that the parties agreed to split the trailer’s expenses and sale proceeds evenly. Having found Mr. Green sold the trailer for $16,700 and the value of the renovations was $6,000, this leaves a difference of $10,700, 50% of which is $5,350,” they said. “However, since Mr. Cosway’s claim is for $5,000, and since $5,000 is also the CRT’s small claims monetary limit, I find Mr. Cosway is entitled to $5,000 in damages.”