Recently, I had a shop and I selected the location based on the address given. The area has good and bad parts to the neighborhood. I chose the location, which was a night gas station audit, based on the address given to me by the MSC. I was very careful selecting where I was shopping at night because in certain parts of town activity and people get questionable and scary. When I went to go to the actual location for the shop, I found out they completely gave me an incorrect address. The address given was in safe land, the actual location with an address not even related to the one given was in an extremely high crime, gang banger area. After looking for the location in safe land, I called the station and got directions when I found out where they were actually sending me. I am almost 100% positive they had to have an incorrect address on file that in some point (last period) was corrected by a shopper. This is not a new project so there would be no reason for them to not have the correct address.

So my thoughts are, can an MSC be held liable if something bad happened to me because I took the job on based on the address given? I know I didn't have to do the job, but then don't get paid. The location actually had a police officer there getting gas while I finished up my shop. I would never have even gone into this part of town at night, but ended up there because of the MSC.

Thoughts anyone????

you would have to prove they intentionally gave a wrong address so that you would take the shop, knowing it was in a high crime area. Being able to prove that would be no easy task, and even then, you could of not went to it once you realized where it was.

However, I find msc's lacking when it comes to correct addresses. For locations I do multiple times I keep my own list of addresses especially in FL where they will have one street named for instance Palm Parkway, but variation called Palm Parkway NW, SW, E, W, NE, SE and that can put you many miles apart from where you are suppose to be, and in traffic set you back a half hour or more.

I can't tell you how many times they will get the address wrong because of the street name difference.

One of the reason's when I route and use google maps to do so, I will click the "what's at this location" button to make sure what I'm looking for is actually at the address they gave.

Were you even suppose to do the shop once the address was found to be incorrect? Most/many of my shops say not to do it if it isn't in the correct location or has moved even around the block and that you are to let them know first.

But in answer to your question...pretty sure the MSC would not be held liable for anything you as an independent contractor chose to do.

Liz

I think Liz is correct: I don't believe there is any liability for a MSC here because we are ICs and choose to perform or not perform an assignment.

You're not an employee with worker's comp to fall back on. Your option was to not do the shop. Instructions I have had say to take a picture of the area showing no station or closed station, and a picture of the sign at the cross streets to prove you were there. I've never had any shop say I should chase the target to its new location. They probably don't pay full fee but they should at least reimburse you a reasonable amount for the trip.

I had a wrong phone number for one I did.... and I meant to tell them but forgot. (Area code had changed, I looked the station up on the internet)

If they give you the address of 1200 palm parkway NW and the station is at 1200 palm parkway NE which is several miles away, and you tell them it wasn't there.....see who gets the higher paying shops from the msc that never hit the job boards : )

Every wrong address I have been provided by an MSC is for a gas station assignment. I always double-check these now before I leave for a route. Some of these gas stations are nowhere near the highways or rural towns that the MSC has specified.

The best way to check gas station addresses is to use the gasbuddy app on smartphones You can use their website to do it as well but it doesn't have the gps search there.