the Price of Dry Cleaning Suits and Business Attire

I dropped off two coarse silk shirts to be laundered at a local dry-cleaner. One had some small discolorations that I needed removed.

This cleaners has a location in Kennebunk, but does their cleaning somewhere in Portland. At the time I dropped off the shirt, I was told it was around 4 dollars per shirt, but they weren't able to say for sure since they were sending it out.

When I went to pick it up, I was told I owed something like 15 dollars per shirt. Apparently they had not properly marked it, and the dry cleaner had performed some additional services I didn't ask for. The discolored shirt still had the discolorations as well. Eventually, I was charged the original estimated price of 8 dollars.

I was not at all satisfied. A number of dry-cleaners will have one cleaning site and several locations that take drop offs, and I think that's where I went wrong. The attendants there aren't involved in cleaning in any way, so they don't really understand what's happening down the line. Moreover, they didn't mark the discolorations with little pieces of tape so the cleaner would see them. That meant one of my shirts still had stains.

They messed up the prices, and the didn't do a very good job on the shirts either.

Take your clothes somewhere that cleans them onsite. Get a firm price before you agree to drop off your clothes. If they say they cannot be certain of the price because they don't know how much stain removal will be required, ask them to at least agree on a price ceiling. The last thing you want to do is give them your nice clothes and have them asking a king's ransom to get them back. If you are charged a lot more than you were told, you have every right to demand your clothes back. Be persistent, and if needed, go to the state attorney general or your local police.