Sofa delivery goes terribly wrong after getting wedged into a stairwell

“Pivot!” One of the most quoted episodes of “Friends” became one homeowner’s nightmare this month. In the episode, Ross, Rachel and then Chandler are attempting to get a couch up long flights of stairs and keep getting it wedged in the spaces, all while Ross keeps screaming, “Pivot!”

The delivery men in one Birmingham, England, man’s house also failed to pivot, leaving him in quite a pickle.

How did the UK man’s sofa get stuck?

In Birmingham, United Kingdom, Luke Ansel ordered a sofa and claims the delivery employees left the sofa he ordered wedged onto the stairs and into the wall after multiple attempts to get it up the stairs, Birmingham World reported.

Ansel said the sofa cost more than £2,000 ($2,173.32 U.S.), and he had recently purchased and moved into the house with his partner after getting married. He showed the delivery men where he wanted it and asked if it was possible because it was a tight space to get it to the right room, and he said that they assured him they were capable of getting it there.

“I just said ‘oh well you’re the experts’ — they are a delivery company after all so I just left them to it,” Ansel told Birmingham World. “They brought it in, they struggled to get it over the bannister and eventually got it in. But then it got jammed, they couldn’t get it up or down.”

He ordered the sofa from Designers and said the incident left the plasterwork and wood railing and paneling highly damaged.

Initially, the delivery men had to leave for another delivery, but the company told the BBC it will cover the costs for the repairs and will bring a new sofa to Ansel.

It also said the employees were “very upset and apologetic for any hurt and inconvenience caused,” per the BBC.

Some tips to make sure a furniture delivery goes smoothly

While the sofa incident was an accident, it doesn’t hurt to be prepared for when you get a delivery. Here are some of the tips Suburban Furniture shares to make sure it goes smoothly.

1. Measure the space.
2. Be home when the delivery comes.
3. Make sure there’s a clear path to the space.
4. Secure your pets on a leash, in a separate room or somewhere out of the way.