Opinion ID: 1584810
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: difference in value damages

Text: Under § 75-2-714, Miss. Code Ann. (1972), the measure of damages for a breach of warranty is the difference between the value of the goods at the time they were accepted and the value of the goods if there had been no breach. See Fedders Corp. v. Boatright, 493 So.2d 301, 309 (Miss. 1986). In the case sub judice, the jury was given a difference in value instruction. Puckett alleges that the record is silent as to the value of either the 910 or the 518 as delivered, thereby giving no basis for comparison. Edwards contends that the value of the 910 was zero, and that the value of the 518 was $30,000.00. The 910 transaction was cancelled when it became obvious that it could not be repaired. Although Puckett kept Edwards' down payment on account, there is no evidence that Edwards could not get it back to apply to the purchase of a different make of equipment. Edwards chose to purchase the 518. In Fedders, regarding a question of difference in value of damages, this Court stated that if the goods could not be repaired and were worthless, the buyer would have been entitled to a refund of the purchase price. However, if the goods could have been repaired so as to function properly, the damages would have been the costs of repairs. 493 So.2d at 309. In the 910 transaction, Edwards never paid a single payment on the equipment, and was credited for his down payment. This would show that Puckett complied with § 75-2-714, by refunding the purchase price if the goods are deemed worthless. With respect to the 518 transaction, the value assigned to it at trial was the value ascertained at the time of trial by Edwards' expert witness, not at the time of acceptance four years earlier. Therefore, Edwards did not provide an adequate measure of damages for the 518 transaction. The trial court erred in instructing the jury on difference in value damages.