"Geoffrey Barnes" wrote
There are four different costs involved here. Our A&P charged us $100 for
the travel time back and forth. The parts and labor to fix the 182 amounted
to $70. Mark (the non-club member who flew everyone down there) would like
to be reimbursed for his fuel costs, which are around $175. And the 182's
flight home racked up about $270 in rental fees, about $225 of which would
normally be sent directly to the aircraft owners.

Everyone here is worrying about legality, but I'll give you some
practical advice.

The $70 parts and labor are clearly billable to the owners. They
won't complain.

The $100 travel time is questionable. Bill it to the owners, and they
might be OK with it - or they might complain that a local mechanic
could be used. A lot depends on their relationship with the mechanic
used and their relationship with the mechanics local to where the
plane was left.

Do you want a policy of needing to consult with owners every time
there has to be an off-field repair? Or maybe a restriction on how
far from home the aircraft can go? Because that's what you're going
to get if you bill them for this without their consent. Ask them if
they feel it's fair, if not eat it.

The $175 for Mark's fuel is likely not even close to what his real
operating cost was. No, he's not legally entitled to it - it does
legally put him in violation of Part 135. It's also how things are
done - deal with it. You can easily not pay him - and that will be
the last time ANYONE on the field will do you that kind of favor.
Trust me - word will get around among the owners. Imagine how much
travel time billing from the mechanic there would have been for
driving out there.

Once you accept that Mark has to be paid, you also have to realize
that it's a cost of getting the plane fixed (meaning getting the
mechanic there) and a cost of getting the plane home (which would not
have occurred had the plane not been broken). So who pays? You can
easily argue that the owners should pay, but then the question becomes
this - what would it have cost to have the local mechanic do it? What
would it have cost to drive there and get it?

The $270 in rental fees on the way home is a thorny issue. Paul has a
reasonable case - he would have flown the aircraft home if it wasn't
broken. Make him pay it, and you're going to encourage members to fly
unairworthy aircraft home, or not to take long trips. Once your club
gets a reputation as a place where long trips are a problem, your
membership will change - and not for the better. Make Luke pay the
full amount, and you can bet he (and any other club member) isn't
going to be real interested in changing his plans to help out.

The real solution here is this - FIRST, figure out what you want the
policy to be. THEN, assign the costs in such a way as to be
consistent with the policy. Be prepared to either **** people off or
eat the cost.

Michael