Re: liability and CNC

Here is my experience from a couple of decades in nc connsulting till I
burned out.

No matter how hungry you are:

a. Don't take on a job where the customer pays you in advance unless
you know exactly how to do that job and what it will cost to do it. I
stayed out of trouble often by following this rule. To preserve my
reputation I did work for $0.25/hour when I didn't follow this rule.

b. You can't bellyache that you didn't realize what it would cost after
the fact. Only large firms can do that. You offer time and material
billing when you are working as most of us are, in the great unknown. You
can back out if you have to. So can the customer.

c. Incorporate your business and religiously do what is necessary to
maintain your corporate shield. This shield is always permeable, but it
raises costs to the point that it isn't worth penetrating.

d. fill out the appropriate form (I believe it is an ICC Form 1), to
maintain personal ownership of any expensive assets you may need. This
won't work either, but it again raises the cost of attacking you.

e. Don't risk your family's house on a business that can not be
protected from litigenous predators. Remember, that house belongs to your
spouse and your children as well as to you. In California, you can
homesetead it, ie; protect the first $40,000 of equity in the event of
bancruptcy, but this prevents you from using it as collateral, which is good.

f. Put a lawyer on retainer. It is much cheaper than calling one when
you are already in deep do-do. This gets you a long term, interested
ally. Pay attention to him. Don't hire a lawyer, or accountant, or other
professional and then ignore his advice because you don't like it.

g. Follow Hans's advice. Have the disclaimers printed automatically
whenever you invoice or quote.

h. Most important. If you get any feelings that a customer or,
hopefully, a potential customer is dishonest with ANYONE,(not just you)
litigenous, or not someone you would want as a neighbor, don't do business
with him.

When you are desperate for work, it is hard to follow these rules.
Failure to follow them will make you hungrier and more desperate.

>From: hansw <hansw@...>
>
>A disclaimer does go a long way. I make my clients sign my disclaimers and

I feel that it covers me.

>
>Hans Wedemeyer
>
>
>Dan Falck wrote:
>> I'm interested in what the small retrofitters are doing to protect
>> themselves. Everyone should build the best, safest product possible-
>> that's a given. But stuff happens. Software could go nuts. Things fail.
>> I have a freind, who does conveyor work for factories. He just does the
>> installation as a subcontractor. He has a $2 million insurance policy-
>> which is probably too small, but it's what he can afford. Another guy that
>> I know has a $2 million policy- he does environmental consulting. That's
>> probably not enough for the stuff that he's into.
>> Thanks,
>> Dan
>>