someone left item in my house for more then a year do I pay it back or what?

Question

A friend left a punching bag in my house for more then year. He called me after the year and he said he wanted his bag, so i told him i would get get him another one of equal value. He never called after that until 4months he shows at my door asking for it. Wa he still intidle to any money for it if he abandoned it and never made an real itent to get the bag after i told him ok, even after a year had passed.

Answer 1

Abandonment laws define the necessary duration differently from one state to the next. In some places, anything left behind for 7 days is automatically considered abandoned. In others, it could take a few months. But anybody who leaves his belongings on your property for more than a year, regardless of where you are, is out of luck. After that amount of time, the punching bag is clearly yours. Even if you did promise to give it back to him (or another one like it), you would be entitled to charge him storage rent for it.

Answer 2

It really depends on the laws regarding lost or abandoned property in your state. If you want to keep this guy as a friend, work some thing out. If not, do some research and let him take you to court. This can't be more than a small claims matter.

I would normally advise you seek the advise of a local attorney, but I don't think it is worth the money (of course I don't know how much a punching bag costs).

good luck

I saw one of the other posts saying you had to pay due to promissory estoppel. This is and equitable argument and normally would not apply to a case like this. Oral contracts are not binding.

Answer 3

No, it was abandoned, after 90 days you had every right to dispose of it!

Answer 4

Unfortunately, because you said you would replace it, you are bound to replace it legally. If you don't, he could force you to pay the value of it OR replace it through a theory called Promissory Estoppel.

Answer 5

NO