Post taken down. Thank you all for your help.
I am leaving the photos up because this is what is left of my County saddles that Ron Friedson ruined. I will let the photos speak for themselves.
Bolts with double nuts are how stirrup bars are attached to one of the saddles. They stick out on the underside of the saddle.
I’m really sorry that happened. Can you report him to the State Attorney General’s Office? About 25 years ago, I bought what was supposed to be a Crosby Hunterdon w a wide tree from him. It clearly wasn’t and I was able to send it back. Again, I’m really sorry for you.
I wonder if a lawyer could help you. You have so much documentation that clearly demonstrates the mistake is in his camp. I would think in VA you could find a good equine lawyer. I would pester him non-stop.
Ah yes, he used to run the Tack Room in Westport, CT. I also bought a saddle from him many years ago and regretted it. My guess is that if you have a lawyer send a demand letter, it might get you results.
Yes, you would need a CT lawyer. I don’t live there any more but I could ask around. At this point a simple demand letter might get his attention. I suspect it’s not the first time he’s dealt with an unhappy customer.
His website makes promises he doesn’t keep!
I will go out of my way to assure you are 100% happy. I am always available and will answer the phone personally when you call. You will never have to deal with an automated response.
I do business old school. If you have a problem with your saddle a year down the road I will be there to help.
I still have some friends there. But in the meantime, here’s a Google Search for Consumer protection lawyers:
https://lawyers.findlaw.com/lawyer/firm/consumer-protection/westport/connecticut
Thankfully posting photos does not require a URL on this forum.
Instructions copy and pasted from the technical help forum thread.
Why do you need a CT lawyer? Maybe I’m misunderstanding the chronology. Where did he come do the fitting and where did you live when you hired him to do the work?
If this whole transaction was done while you lived in VA then likely the law would allow you to sue in VA and you would not need a CT barred lawyer. You’re the plaintiff, this is a breach of contract type case, he made contacts to you in VA. Why would a lawyer think you don’t have venue/jurisdiction there. Do you have a contract with him? Does it have a forum provision?
I posted this in another thread about saddle issues and it’s really been on my mind as a solution to these problems. Have you checked to see if your state’s or federal lemon law would cover you? You’ve sent it back to be fixed multiple times, you got proof from professionals it want done right. Seems like it may ge an option?
I’m not seeing a reason why you need a CT lawyer and why you can’t sue in VA where you are. He knowingly did business with you in VA. Why did the lawyer you talked to think you needed a CT lawyer?
Have you considered filing a claim with the Connecticut Small Claims Court? They hear cases with value up to $5k and you don’t need a lawyer. In fact most of the forms you need are online.
I had a dispute with my daughter’s landlord when she was in college and all it took was the demand letter to get him to pony up the money he owed her and her roommates ($1900).
As state laws may vary in terms of consumer protection laws, a local consumer lawyer will be best suited to understanding how your state’s specific laws will affect your legal options, hence the suggestion for a Connecticut lawyer. You do not need a lawyer with equine experience as this is a consumer protection issue – Friedson did not perform the work he was contracted to do…
The issue with lawyers is that the fees add up quickly. That’s why I suggested a demand letter above, but you might be able to do that yourself through small claims court. For landlord disputes, they had form letters.
You have enough money at state to make it worthwhile pursuing, but you could easily spend $1K+ in legal fees.
This could be the easiest solution for you, OP. If he no shows you’ll get a default judgment and then may need a little help executing on that. But the process for getting the judgment should be pretty easy and straightforward.
You would need to come to CT for the hearing, but that’s still less expensive than hiring an attorney.
You have plenty of evidence. The tricky part will be presenting the documentation in a way that the judge understands the damage that was done to your saddles. I think the fact that you can get a statement from the Master Saddler will work in your favor.
So is he with Prestige or Pegasus or both???
I suspect she can file in small claims court in VA. She is the plaintiff. I’m not understanding why anyone thinks she needs to go to CT where the defendant is.
The saddle fitter was willing to do business with you knowing you were in VA. His business reached to that state to do business with you. I don’t understand why you don’t have venue and personal justification in VA. Unless there’s some major fact here I’m not aware of.
Why did she say that?
Maybe she thought it would be easier to collect if the judgement was from CT so you don’t have to domesticate it?
You need to file in the state where the business is located because of the venue rule. The court system where you live might not have jurisdiction in the state where the company does business. You need to show up for the hearing although there may be some exceptions for hardship.
https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/free-books/small-claims-book/chapter9-2.html
He has been the rep for many saddle brands. Back in the day, he had his own brand called Cynron. He has also sold Kieffer and Prestige. His website is www.allsaddles.com and he used to offer a lot of different brands.
He did business with her in VA. Arguably the transaction occurred there. With a business that is doing business country-wide, as this business appears to, a customer should not need to go to the locus of the business to sue. She’ll need to check the rules of her forum state but assuming she wants to sue in civil court (not small claims) it sounds like she has a good argument for suing in VA.
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