'Neighbour orders I pay him £123 for table - he says I ruined it by cleaning it'

19 October 2023 , 12:08

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The neighbour is demanding $150 to fully replace the table (stock photo) (Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)

A man has been left baffled after his neighbour demanded £123 for 'ruining' his outdoor table by cleaning it incorrectly. He explained how he attended a cookout hosted by his neighbour - and decided to help out by cleaning up after their meals.

He wiped down the table using some cleaning equipment provided by his neighbour’s wife - but the neighbour then claimed this discoloured his outdoor table to the point of no return. Taking to DC Urban Moms and Dads, he said: “For reference, it’s one of those folding tables that is typically used outside at a game or a farmers market. The brand is Lifetime. He is saying that I discoloured it by using a bleach wipe on it. While at his cookout, I did use a bleach wipe (provided by his wife) to clean bird poop off the table.”

The neighbour has demanded the $150 (£123) in order to fully replace the table. The man added: “I don’t believe the damage he is alleging and I also don’t believe that it will cost him $150 to replace it. He texted me this morning to tell me about the damage and that he is expecting $150.

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“What should I say/do in this case? Can I offer to go pick up a new table? I know these tables are $60 at most.” One commenter seemed to sum it up well, with most people agreeing with his take that the situation was ridiculous. He wrote: “Yeah, no way. "I'm sorry, Fred, but I cleaned the table with a wipe your wife provided. You'll need to work this out with her."

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However another commenter said: “I'm seeing them anywhere from $60-$189 depending on the model. I paid $40 for my 6' one 5 years ago so that's a surprising price increase. Listen, you have to live near this person. You are stuck and anyone who is hung up on a real or imagined bleach wipe incident is not going to let this go. You can move or you can give him $150 and consider it the cost of getting him to go away. If you don't, imagine how much money your future self would be willing to pay to stop the conversations with this guy.

''I was in a similar situation long ago when a person claimed that my dog had caused him to tear his jacket. He was a stranger who mixed up addresses and came up to our house to pick something up and then recoiled into a rosebush when our (scary-looking) dog barked at him. He had our address and knew what our dog looked like, so I realized there was an imbalance of power. I was happy to pay $75 for his dumb jacket to know that he would never bother us again and our scary-looking but benign dog would be safe from a malicious call to animal control.”

Emilia Randall