A fire started by an Oasis watercooler destroyed our company and cost us our jobs, and Chubb Insurance is refusing to pay because the owner was risking his life rescuing a cat and six kittens and not some data tapes from the burning office building!
   When I took that cat into the office to have her kittens, I knew she must have been somebody's pet, with a name and a home and a family. Then all of a sudden that same family throws her out miles from her home in sub-freezing weather. She must have been thinking, "What could I POSSIBLY have done to make them so mad at me?"
      I don't really consider myself any kind of hero, but I couldn't just let them all burn to death, could I?    I don't know about anybody else, but I personally couldn't live with that.    When I sent our initial claim to Oasis, Chubb and Coca-Cola Bottling, Norm Murphy at Oasis told me the defective cord on the water cooler had started the fire, and therefore they were not responsible.    I argued that noone had rented the cord. It was their water cooler that had been rented, and that's what had started the fire.
      Then the article hit the papers, and a miracle happened! Chubb found an easy way to weasel out of not paying for what Oasis' machine destroyed, and Oasis jumped right on the bandwagon.    According to Glen Day, Vice President of Chubb Insurance, since I had the time to rescue those kittens, I had a duty to 'mitigate my damages' by rescuing the company's files, and "forget about those cats".
      When I posted a web site about this type of sleazy behavior and it began to get attention, I was deluged with threats, lies, and intimidation techniques that felt like something out of a spy novel.    When I finally got enough money together to file suit, Chubb and Oasis responded the very day before my first hearing with a massive harassment lawsuit filed in Federal Court in Columbus, Ohio.    Since then, they've threatened several of my witnesses with inclusion in that suit should they continue to support me.    They've threatened three consecutive service providers with inclusion in that suit for hosting this site, and threatened two major and several minor newspapers and journals with lawsuits should they report the story.    They've served me with illegal subpoenas, and threatened me with jail if I did not show up, when I could not afford to even go, much less have a lawyer present.    When they finally agreed to let me be deposed in Tulsa, I showed up and there was noone there to take the deposition.
   I've heard from several other insurance company representatives that do value honor and decency more highly than money.    According to one, "Yes, if you rescue the family pet from a burning building, we could legally avoid paying for the family television.    But, no one except Chubb would ever even think of offering that as a defense."
      This litany of lies and stonewalling goes on, and on, and on...
      The points I'd like everyone to understand are these:
      Chubb Insurance did not develope the reputation for this kind of sleazy behavior overnight, and will continue to practice it as long as it is profitable.    If your home or business should catch fire, make sure your insurance is not with Chubb.    Might be best to check it now.
      I don't believe all Oasis watercoolers are defective.    They simply got a small batch of bad cords, from a supplier who is now bankrupt, and are unwilling to admit that they made a mistake.    If the school your children attend uses these Oasis machines, make sure you register some sort of complaint.    Most of these are rentals, and it's pretty easy to just send it back and get another one now.    If your child is hurt or, God forbid, killed by one of these Oasis Watercoolers, you won't want to hear, "Unfortunately, we don't insure children."    It takes very little to check, and even less to replace it, and could save you so much grief.    Let's face it, all we lost was our jobs and business.    I'd hate to see someone else lose a child.
      Yes, I'd do the same thing again, even if I knew we were going to lose our jobs.    I know now how that mother cat must have felt before I showed up that night, while the fire was spreading through her 'home', endangering the lives of her kittens: Frustrated, Helpless, Terrified and Hopeless.
      EPD is asking everyone interested to please help us spread the word about this disgusting behavior. Boycott Oasis Watercoolers, don't insure with Chubb Insurance, and above all:
Make SURE there is not an Oasis Watercooler in your home, or where your children go to school.
. . . and, no matter what your inclinations, please do not send us any money!    All we want is your e-mail and vocal support!
   Electronic Product Development, Inc.
Read the article published in the   Pryor Daily Times    The cat and the man in the hat
    ...and the follow-up letter published in the Pryor Daily Times     Real Heroes were Firefighters, Police
        What it's like in a burning office... ...with your pockets full of kittens
          A multi-million dollar lawsuit by Oasis to harass and intimidate EPD for speaking out!
            ...and the rest of the story: Kittens saved, Jobs lost while Oasis and Chubb stonewall
Oasis and Chubb's response to our requests for payment? Disgusting:
Norm Murphy, Oasis Manufacturing:    "Didn't you have time to get both? Data and cats? We only pay for actual damages."
   e-mail   Norm Murphy   or call 800-950-3226
Glen Day, VP, Chubb Insurance:    "You made the decision to rescue those cats instead of your company's data files. Unfortunately, we don't insure cats."
Donna Lovre, Chubb Public Relations Manager    "I am sorry but I still don't understand what the issue is."
   e-mail   Donna Lovre   or call 800-362-4822

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Models, Actresses, MIS Managers, Truck Drivers, Insurance Adjusters, even Oasis employees also object to these sleazy tactics!    Visit these 'copycat' sites to see what they have to say.
   A list of Oasis' competitors , and other water product suppliers.  
   The story in a nutshell: EPD asked Oasis and Chubb to pay for what their water cooler destroyed: our company and jobs;   Chubb told me they had a legal right not to pay, and Oasis told us they would not, because I rescued kittens instead of our files;   EPD sued Oasis for the cost of replacing our company;   Oasis sued EPD and I to shut us up.   When other people began complaining about that, Oasis is now suing them to shut them up!  
   Thank you all very, very much, and I hope all of your new years are better than ours.    I also hope your business dealings involve people with a better corporate conscience than those we've encountered.
Electronic Product Development, Inc.
   10 South Mill St.
   Pryor Creek, OK 74361.
   918-825-9394    FAX:   918-825-9395

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