You Make the Call: Dry Cleaning Edition

[PLOL]

Some background on the company:
Occasionally I'll use this app (which I won't name right now) to do my laundry when I'm too lazy to do it myself (I have to go down to the basement) and I don't want to schlep my laundry to the dry cleaners. This service picks up my laundry on demand at my apartment, brings it to one of their vendors, charges my card on file, and then delivers it back to my apartment. They're a young start-up company in Chicago, and they've always given me great customer service and done a great job with my clothes, so I like giving them my business. When I first started using them they were just starting out, and the CEO of the company would be the one picking up and dropping off my clothes half the time. Since then, they've expanded to something like 15 drivers. Their pricing started out as $15 for the first 10 lbs, and $1.25/lb after that for wash & fold. They've since raised their prices to $17.50 for first 10 lbs and $1.50/lb after that, which is high but not outrageous (especially for the area).

What happened:
I scheduled a pick-up with them, and wrote in the comment section that I wanted everything washed/folded except for one pair of jeans that I had, which I wanted dry cleaned. I confirmed this with the guy who picked up my stuff, who was very friendly as usual. I figured I probably gave them 18-20 lbs of laundry, plus my jeans, so I was expecting my total to be around $35. That morning I got a receipt sent to my e-mail. I open up the e-mail and see this:


What?? While I am flush with WillieMcFML's money, I was not expecting anything close to an $80 dry cleaning bill. I immediately sent an e-mail asking what was up with my bill. It indicated a bunch of things got dry cleaned, when I clearly specified only 1 item. This was their response:

Good Afternoon Alex,

While processing your items, our vendor determined that dry cleaning was the safest method to clean certain pants / shorts without risking damage to them. Please be assured that our vendors always follow the tags on clothes when determined how to proceed with cleaning. Because of the misunderstanding, I have added $15 in credits into your account. Please let me know if I can be of any further assistance as I'm here to help.

It's true that many of the items that I put in the wash/fold bag are technically not supposed to go through a dryer, but I still do it all the time and haven't had major problems (except for a little shrinkage). But how could they dry clean 10 items without asking for my permission?


You Make The Call:
So what should be the company's responsibility, and what would you do here? It's probably not the company's fault that the vendor ran up my bill, but ultimately they're the face of the company and responsible for what happens. I did get $80 worth of dry cleaning done, so should I just accept the $15 credit and be done with it? Or do you make a big stink and demand something more. What is the proper solution to the situation?


The Result:
Coming soon....

[tyde]

would never read any of this

ever

next please

[lol wow]

mort when was the last time you needed to dry clean anything like 04

[tyde]

mort when was the last time you needed to dry clean anything like 04

pretty close

[lol wow]

of course it was close james cuz we got it like that

[PLOL]

would never read any of this

ever

next please

We can't all make riveting "I'm living in poverty" cry for help threads.

[shortbuspoker]

would never read any of this

ever

next please

the world will be such a better place when you finally die

[Crowe Diddly]

Can you post the terms of service? Is there anything in there about following the directions on the tags or any shit like that?

[simpdog]

have you complained before about things coming back damaged?

[JUSTIFIEDhomicide]

I'd ask for thirty and state the fact that you're a repeat customer who isn't going anywhere. If you know the CEO by first name you can demand what you actually thought you should be charged and I think you'd gt 4$-ish? back, but you gotta counter offer that. Especially since you've been getting those same clothes washed by them in the past I'd assume.

[WillieMcFML]

sorry you can't always run like god

cry more

[PLOL]

have you complained before about things coming back damaged?

No, I've never complained before because I've never had any problems. I've probably used them half a dozen times this year.

[lol wow]

what kind of car did you drive there

[PLOL]

what kind of car did you drive there

They drive to you and pick up your clothes and drop them off at your house/work. I don't drive or own a car.

[tony bagadonuts]

Vendor schmendor, the company has to take responsibility for the actions of their employees, whether they are employed directly or the work is pieced out.

You're due a credit for the difference between the fee for laundering and the fee charged for dry cleaning. The company can then collect from their vendor for fucking up if they so choose, but you deserve to be made whole.

They should have offered that up right away IMO.

[tony bagadonuts]

This is a great service tho

[tony bagadonuts]

I'm mos def going to see if it's offered in the NW.

[lol wow]

how do you not have a car fluff and fold service is amazing and youre not showing up dropping off piles of jizz covered clothes really bro

[lol wow]

i literally just paid 175 to have 9 bags of laundry done and im gonna donate most of them

[PLOL]

Results:
I was not happy with the $15 credit solution, obviously. This was my response:

That is not acceptable. If there were items that could not be washed, they should have been returned uncleaned. How can you/your vendor do something that wasn't instructed without contacting me to see if it was okay? Had I been asked if dry cleaning over 10 items was okay, I would have said that it was not as I am not planning on spending $80 on dry cleaning. I understand some of the items are technically not supposed to be washed, but I do it all the time (including with you guys) and have not had issues with doing so. Please escalate this issue to your supervisor.

And this was how they responded:

Alex,

We apologize that the vendor did not follow your instructions, as it is their policy to follow the labels on clothing. I have spoken with our Director of Operations, Andrew, and he is going to refund you the price difference for the pants and shorts. I will send you a notice once this has been completed. Thank you for your understanding.

So in the end they handled things correctly. I actually would have accepted a little bit less than a full refund, because if those 10 items had gone through the normal wash/dry process my bill would have been higher because it would've added more wait to the total.