Opinion ID: 2638938
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: License Plates and Auto Parts

Text: [¶51] Diamond B Services claimed that it was entitled to offset Mr. Rohde's wages with the amount it paid for the license plates for his personal pickup and for automobile parts he charged on the company's account and used to repair his personal vehicle and the vehicles of his friends and family. It maintains that these payments amounted to cash advances under Section 6(b)(viii). [¶52] Mr. Rohde's license plates were due for renewal at the end of December 2002. Since Diamond B Services had not paid him in quite some time, Mr. Rohde borrowed money from his father to pay for his license plates. When he told Randy Burry that he was going to go into Cheyenne to purchase his license plates, Randy Burry told him that Mrs. Burry was going to Cheyenne anyway and she would get the license plates for Mr. Rohde's truck. Mr. Rohde offered to pay for the license plates with the money he had borrowed from his father, but the Burrys declined his offer. [¶53] In addition, Mr. Rohde routinely charged parts for his work on accounts Diamond B Services carried with various auto parts dealers. He also occasionally charged parts which he used to repair his personal vehicle or the vehicles of his family and friends. Mr. Rohde testified that he had permission to charge the parts, and, when he offered to reimburse the company for those costs, he was refused. [¶54] The hearing officer determined that Diamond B Services was not entitled to an offset for the amount it paid for Mr. Rohde's license plates and the auto parts because they were not cash advances. Diamond B Services did not give cash to Mr. Rohde when it supplied him with license plates and automobile parts. Furthermore, there was substantial evidence that Diamond B Services did not expect to be reimbursed for the cost of the license plates or the automobile parts; consequently, those payments obviously were not advances.