Woman charges cyclist £3 after filling water bottle - then tips it out when he can't pay

What a horrid mean thing to do.

I can only think she got stuck behind some cyclists on a very important drive to the garden centre earlier in the day or something.

I'm quite curious as to how she settled on £3. I can only think she's been doing this for sometime and has determined the market rate. Either that or the chap was wearing Rapha

From a legal perspective, it is possible that an implied contract was formed for the sale/ purchase of the relevant quantity of water at the point at which the bidon was handed over.

As no price had been agreed, the law would imply a term that the price was to be a reasonable price.

The woman would be entitled to exercise a lien over (keep possession of) the water, and, possibly, the bidon, until a reasonable price was paid, or at least tendered.

However, prima facie, title/ property in the water would have passed to the cyclist when the bottle was filled. (Plainly, no retention of title or "Romalpa" clause was agreed.)

The exercise of the lien did not entitle the woman to pour out the water which was, at that point, the cyclist's property.

By pouring it out, she was probably guilty of the tort of conversion, entitling the cyclist to sue for the market value of the water.

However, the woman would have been able to counterclaim for the price which remained unpaid. As a "reasonable price" and the market value of the water would probably be the same, absent special circumstances such a rapid change in the water markets between the handing over and/or filling of the bidon and the pouring out of the water, the two claims would probably cancel each other out.

That'll be £500 for the advice, please.

Ah, good old friendly Yorkshire folk.

London Prices have worked their way up north

I remember same situation in Finland, the guy who was working in garden, pointed to his house, and said - "go there it open"...

It's sad that someone wouldn't spare water for another person. This site looks like an interesting initiative to promote the use of tapwater:

http://www.tapwater.org/refilling-stations

That's pretty depressing to be honest. We're virtually all guilty of using treated drinking water to flush our loos or clean the car, so sparing bottle full to help someone in need should be the least we're prepared to do. The bitterness inside that woman's head must be shocking.

Ridiculous. What a bitch. For the sake of a minute of your time and some free corporation pop I don't see why you'd behave like that.

When I rode to Holme Moss last year to see the TdF I knew I'd need to pick up some water on the return leg. As I set off back towards Glossop I passed a dad and his daughter with a table set up at the bottom of their drive with a big barrel of water and some of those folding plastic camping bottle things just offering water to anyone that was passing. They weren't asking for donations or anything. And when I've ridden Liverpool-Chester-Liverpool I've passed houses offering free cake. That's more like it.

Perhaps she's peed off with complete strangers stopping to get their bottles filled. My Mrs would tell you to ride on.

Top tip:
Find a church. There's almost always a tap in the churchyard for the gardener to use.

Maybe she used to work for Nestle?

Hahahaha!

Living in Sheffield, I can imagine one of the locals doing this. Probably a tongue-in-cheek joke to be fair. Yorkshire humour is quite direct.

"Whaaa dint ya bring enuf watter wit ya, anyhow? bluddy saaaclists!"

n.b not a serious suggestion.

Water is obviously at a premium in Yorkshire. To demonstrate the generosity of the cycling community, perhaps her address could be published. Anybody passing could then stop & take a leak in her garden to help water her blooms etc !

First reaction to this was WTF, but this is quite funny in actual fact.
If true as described, the interuppted gardening woman must have had some serious front to do that !

A lesson learnt methinks - think twice asking yorkshire lasses for owt! And take two bidons

A bit steep for 'council pop' maybe it was Evian?