DISPUTE OVER RADIO SET

Taranaki Daily News, 14 July 1933, Page 11

DISPUTE OVER RADIO SET

CLAIM FOR RECOVERY OF DEPOSIT.

CASE IN NEW PLYMOUTH COURT.

A claim for the recovery of £ll, the amount of the deposit agreed upon in the sale of a radio set, made by J. B. Mac Ewan and Co. Ltd. against Mrs. M. J. Clarke occupied the attention of Mr. W. H. Woodward, S.M., in the New Plymouth Magistrate’s Court throughout the greater part of yesterday. At the conclusion of the evidence for the company an offer previously made by the manager of the electrical department to release Mrs. Clarke from the contract under certain conditions was again made and the case was adjourned a week to allow of consideration of the offer. The case as outlined for the company by Mr. C. H. Croker was that Mrs. Clarke, when shown a set by C. H. Ashbridge, a salesman, signed a hire purchase agreement for a set on which a deposit of £ll was to be paid. Two days later she decided she preferred another make of set sold by the company and signed another agreement for the other set. Later she had in the house a set sold by another firm altogether and Mac Ewan’s was advised by the Clarkes to take the set away, as on account of Mrs. Clarke’s health she could not stand the noise. The company’s agent said he could not take the set back in view of the contract but the husband, George Clarke, said he understood the agreement had not been read over to Mrs. Clarke and he was not aware she signed the contract.

Evidence of the sale and the signing of the contracts was given by Ashbridge. When cross-examining Ashbridge Mr. R. H. Quilliam, who appeared for Mrs. Clarke, said in answer to the magistrate that the defence would be that the contract was obtained by fraud and that the mind of Mrs. Clarke did not go with the contract. He elicited from Ashbridge that when he made, out the contract Mrs. Clarke was looking over his shoulder. He could not say how much of the terms of the contract she read or what she knew of the terms. She glanced at the contract for two or three minutes before she signed it. It was entirely incorrect that he got Mrs. Clarke to sign the second contract by representing that it had to do only with the aerial. Evidence of a conversation between •Clarke and Ashbridge was given by C. P. Lobb, a salesman who was also present.

J. W. L. Pur-cell, another member of the company, said he was with Holden, the electrical manager, when he interviewed Clarke on June 13. Holden told Clarke that if Clarke would sign an agreement not to purchase a set from any other firm within a year the company would cancel the contract, but Clarke would not do that. Clarke said he wanted a set but his wife did not. S,. J... Holden, in charge of the electrical department, said it was decided to release Mrs. Clarke from the. contract on condition she bought no'other set in 12 months. The firm was prepared to do this because it was represented that Mrs. Clarke was too ill to have a wireless set in the house and would not want any set sold by any other firm, His firm had never sued under any contract during the nine years he had. been attached to it, but it had frequently released people from their contracts. During the interview on June 13. the Clarkes alleged trickery , on the part o£ Ashbridge. In reply to a question from the magistrate Holden said the company was still prepared to forego the contract on the same conditions as before, subject to the question of costs, and an adjournment was granted for consideration of this offer.