Discussion of the issue of liability for craftsmen.

The Shaykh : Regarding the liability of craftsmen, scholars have differed. If a craftsman damages an item while working on it, is he liable or not? They give many examples of this. For instance, if you hand a garment to a tailor and he cuts it shorter than you wanted, or if you hand a white garment to a dyer to dye it a certain color and he burns it, and so on. Similarly, if you hand a watch to someone to clean it, and while cleaning it, the screwdriver slips from his hand and breaks a wheel, a gear, or something similar, is this craftsman liable or not? Scholars have differed on this. The reason for the difference is that this matter is unavoidable for the craftsman, and holding him liable would cause him harm. The second group says: If we say the craftsman is not liable, it will lead to negligence and potentially to widespread damage to the owners of the goods entrusted to them, and so on. Therefore, to close this door, these scholars said that the correct, or more correct, view is that craftsmen are liable. However, in a case like ours, where there is a clear hadith, there is no room for independent reasoning or disagreement, as it is said: "There is no independent reasoning where there is an explicit text." They also used to say: "If a report (athar) comes, reasoning is void; and if the river of Allah comes, the river of Maqil is void."
Abu Layla : We need to listen to the tape of Abu Ra'id, our tailor; because sometimes they ruin some of our goods, so, if Allah wills, we will give him a copy.

The questioner : Our Shaykh, could you repeat the hadith that was reported regarding craftsmen?

The Shaykh : It is not a hadith, but rather the opinion of the jurists.

The questioner : And the report (athar) in this matter?

The Shaykh : There is no report (athar).

The questioner : And what is your opinion, Shaykh?

The Shaykh : It is independent reasoning (ijtihad). We say as the others said, and as we used to do in our profession. If someone brought a watch to be cleaned and we made a mistake, we would return the watch to him as it was.

The questioner : Meaning you are liable.

The Shaykh: Yes.

The questioner : Meaning you agree with the opinion of liability regarding the work of craftsmen.

The Shaykh : Yes, may Allah have mercy on my father. I learned the trade from him. Sometimes, as I gave an example earlier, he would be holding a fine screwdriver and unscrewing a screw that was stuck in its nut, metal on metal, and he would be pressing hard. The screwdriver would slip and hit another part of the watch, or he would be holding the screwdriver and it would slip and hit what is called the pendulum, damaging or ruining it. He would say, may Allah have mercy on him and forgive us and him, "Brother, if someone hits me now, I will laugh," may Allah have mercy on him.

The questioner : Meaning a teacher.

The Shaykh : Yes, a teacher.