Money Problem: ‘A dry cleaners ruined my sofa and won’t replace it. What are my rights?’

Every week in our Money blog, we answer questions about your financial problems or consumer disputes. This week, a reader asked what rights they had after her sofa was ruined by a dry cleaners.

Reader Maureen asked: “I have had half my sofa covers cleaned by Johnsons, the cleaners. They have been ruined as the Belgian linen was hand washed and the care instructions not followed.

“This happened in July. I have been in communication with customer services who finally agreed that half a sofa could not be reupholstered – and, verbally, said they’d cover the whole suite.

“Last week I received an email from management now reneging on the offer and instead offering a small amount of money that will deem my sofa unfit to use as it won’t cover either a reupholster or new sofa. Where do I stand?”

Our cost of living specialist Megan Harwood-Baynes replied…

You sent me further details of your complaint, including photographs and your correspondence with Johnsons (the bits that have been in writing).

I can see in your email correspondence with Johnsons that they will not pay what you say is required to reupholster the whole sofa. They say their liability to you extends only to the actual covers that were submitted for cleaning.

The original sofa cost you £2,400 eight years ago, and you also have a quote for completely reupholstering it, which comes to £2,560. You (rightly) argue that it’s not really possible to reupholster half a sofa.

Regarding the verbal offer you say was made, Helen Dewdney, a consumer expert at The Complaining Cow, says she always tells people to put everything in writing because there is no evidence when you make phone calls – so bear this in mind going forward.

As for your rights now, your issue falls under the Consumer Rights Act 2005, she says.

“If services are not undertaken with reasonable skill and care and your items get damaged or lost then you have the right to claim compensation,” Helen says.

This can include claiming for the cost of replacing a damaged or lost item, although there may be a reduction for wear and tear of the original item.

Johnsons has already offered some compensation to you (£800). They claim that the age of the sofa means it “holds no residual value” but offered 25% of the original price, an additional £200 as a gesture of goodwill, and a refund of the original cleaning charge.

However, you are not happy with this because you say it is not enough to either fix or replace your “ruined sofa”.

I reached out to Johnsons, and they did not reply, but you told me that two days after I emailed them, they almost doubled the amount of compensation on offer (to £1,500).

You went back to them with a counter-offer of £1,700, they agreed, and you are now finally able to bring the saga to a close (and get your sofa fixed).

Had they not agreed, you could have considered these next steps…

Membership of the Textile Services Association is available to laundries, dry cleaners, textile renters and their suppliers, Helen says.

“If the company you are using is a member, then the TSA offers a conciliation service. You may be asked to prove your claim and, on a loser-pays basis, use the association’s testing service. It also offers an arbitration service if the matter still cannot be resolved.”

However, if the firm is not a member of the TSA – and it looks like Johnsons is not – then you have the option of taking the matter to the small claims court – or equivalents in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

“If a company provides no information whatsoever regarding what you should do if you have a complaint, this is a red flag,” Helen says.

“If a company does not recognise that mistakes happen and outlines what it will do if a problem occurs, it cares little for customer service or reputation.”

This feature is not intended as financial advice – the aim is to give an overview of the things you should think about. Submit your dilemma or consumer dispute via:

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