AITAH for selling a desk chair I thought was no longer wanted

A Redditor shares a situation where he moved into a new flat and agreed to hold onto a desk chair for a few days for the previous tenant. After weeks of no communication and the chair owner failing to pick it up as promised, the Redditor sold the chair.

Months later, the previous tenant reached out to claim it, but the Redditor explained the chair was gone due to the lack of contact. The former tenant is now upset and demanding repayment. Read the original story below…

‘ AITAH for selling a desk chair I thought was no longer wanted’

I recently moved into a new flat. The guy moving out told me he isn’t moving in to his new place for a few days and doesn’t have any place to store his desk chair (nothing fancy, I’d guess around 50 dollars) in the meantime. So naturally I told him he can leave it here for a few days and come get it when he’s all moved in.

Two weeks later he hadn’t talked to me again, so I sent him a message to remind him the chair is still here. He said he will come pick it up the following morning. He didn’t show up, he didn’t even send a message to say he isn’t coming/ try to reschedule.

About 2 months later I sold the chair. The other day (4 months since I moved in, and after over 3 months of no contact from the chair owner) he sent me a message asking when he can come pick it up.

I told him the chair is gone, since he hadn’t talked to me for a long time I assumed he doesn’t want it any more. The guy got mad and blamed me of stealing the chair and demanded I repay him (obviously Im not gonna do that).. Any way, AITAH?

These are the responses from Reddit users:

[Reddit User] −  NTA. \ About 2 months later I sold the chair. The other day (4 months since I moved in, and after over 3 months of no contact from the chair owner) he sent me a message asking when he can come pick it up.

I told him the chair is gone, since he hadn’t talked to me for a long time I assumed he doesn’t want it any more. The guy got mad and blamed me of stealing the chair and demanded I repay him (obviously Im not gonna do that). The chair was abandoned and you sold it.

humanasset −  NTA. HE abandoned the chair, went no contact, demonstrated no interest in the chair, nor respected your time, space, communication, or good will. The chair was yours to toss, or do whatever with.

Tell him tough cookies, block number and move on, OP. Not your problem anymore. Unless you’re leaving out details, I don’t see a world where his actions made sense or require restitution. He gave up any claim the moment he failed to show up and ghosted you.

Kaverrr −  NTA. But you should probably have sent him a message before selling it: “Hi. The deal was to keep the chair for a few days. It has been months now. My apartment is not your storage unit. You have until “specific date” to pick up the chair otherwise I will consider it abandoned and sell it”.

BlindUmpBob −  NTA. To those saying you should have warned him to pick up by x date, you already made arrangements for pickup and he blew it off. How much effort are you expected to expend to get him to pick it up?

You could have certainly said no, it goes when you move out or else I get rid of it. I’m a landlord, and have a lot of experience regarding belongings left behind. Once your lease became effective, any items left become your property in my state.

Nikkian42 −  Tell him you’ll pay him the value of the chair $50, less the cost of storing it, $25 per month. NTA.

Gr1ck −  NTA to me, though seems the law (in both the US and UK) says you had to give notice with deadline prior to selling. However you could have charged storage, which would have amounted to more than $50. This guy sounds like a grade-A l**er, to expect to be able to leave a chair for months while not replying to you.

catladyclub −  Anything you leave in a place after you move out is not yours any more. It is considered abandoned property. You were more than generous giving him the time you did. NTA

VelvetViolet72 −  NTA. You gave him plenty of chances to grab it, and after months of silence, it’s fair to assume he didn’t care anymore. That’s on him, not you.

jimmyjames2003 −  NTA. That chair was abandoned, you don’t have to store it for him, especially since you tried to work it out with him.

surrala −  NTA Flip it around on him and tell him he owes you however many months of storage fees.

Do you think the Redditor was right to sell the chair after months of no contact, or should they have waited longer for the owner to come and pick it up? How would you handle a situation where an item is left in your care for an extended period? Share your thoughts below!