Larry is the sole owner and employee of Complete Time Repair

Larry is the sole owner and employee of Complete Time Repair, Inc., a business specializing in the repair of a wide variety of timekeeping devices. Irving is a collector of antique cuckoo clocks. Irving drops by Larry’s office and asks whether he can fix an antique black forest cuckoo clock that has a broken spring. Larry says that he has repaired many similar cuckoo clock springs in the past and tells Irving his cost is $500 for the service. A week later, Larry finds Irving’s cuckoo clock in his mailbox with a note that says “good luck, Irving.” Larry has a busy schedule, and would like to start work immediately, but decides to wait until he obtains a signed contract from Irving. Discuss the possible costs and benefits of Larry’s decision.

Solution

An antique clock would cost a lot of money so it is better for Larry to wait for an official confirmation from Irving to start repairing the clock. Larry is already busy with his schedule so his calendar is full with a lot of work to be completed so he can take the risk of waiting for Irving to get back to him with a written agreement. Larry cannot the risk of repairing the clock as it can go wrong as also while repairing and if that is the case then Larry will be held responsible for the damage.

Larry waiting for Irving also shows his professionalism and it can increase his credibility in front of Irving. Irving will be impressed and might become his regular customer going onwards. By waiting Larry is not losing any money as he is already busy with other work. So he can take the official confirmation from Irving and then start working on the clock.