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?”
Reader Maureen sent us a photo of the ruined sofa
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:
- WhatsApp us here
- Email news@skynews.com with the subject line “Money blog”
Business
JPMorgan Chase unveils plans to build new £10bn ‘landmark tower’ in London – double the size of The Shard
Plans have been announced for a new “landmark tower” in London with double the floor space of Britain’s tallest building, The Shard.
JPMorgan Chase unveiled details of the proposed office block after banks escaped having their taxes raised in the budget earlier this week.
The US multinational bank said the new building in Canary Wharf, in the east of the capital, would have a floor space of three million square feet. The Shard, in London Bridge, covers 1.3 million square feet.
However, the final design of the tower, including its height, is still being finalised.
A spokesperson for the firm told Sky News that they hoped to have clarity “soon” on how tall the building would be and the number of storeys. But it is expected to be one of the biggest office blocks in Europe.
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JPMorgan Chase boss Jamie Dimon reportedly signed off on the plans late last week.
It came after Sir Keir Starmer’s business envoy Varun Chandra flew out to New York to personally “offer assurances about the government’s business-friendly policies,” the Financial Times reported on Friday.
The Shard is the tallest building in western Europe. Pic: Reuters
The company also warned in a press release that its plans were “subject to a continuing positive business environment in the UK”, as well as planning permission from local authorities.
JPMorgan Chase said the project could contribute up to £9.9bn to the UK economy over six years, including by generating 7,800 jobs, many of them in the construction industry.
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The tower would house up to 12,000 people and serve as JPMorgan Chase’s main UK headquarters and its most significant presence in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
The firm, which employs 23,000 people in the UK, said the tower would be “one of the largest and most sophisticated in Europe”.
The building is being designed by British architects Foster and Partners, known for landmarks projects including the new Wembley Stadium and London’s Millennium Bridge.
Mr Dimon said: “London has been a trading and financial hub for more than a thousand years, and maintaining it as a vibrant place for finance and business is critical to the health of the UK economy.
“This building will represent our lasting commitment to the city, the UK, our clients and our people.”
Mr Dimon added: “The UK government’s priority of economic growth has been a critical factor in helping us make this decision.”
Chancellor Rachel Reeves said she was “thrilled” about the announcement, while Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan said it represented a “huge vote of confidence in the capital’s future”.
Business
‘Sticking to Labour manifesto pledge costs millions of workers’, Resolution Foundation says
Sticking to Labour’s manifesto pledge and freezing income tax thresholds rather than raising income tax has hurt low- and middle-income earners, an influential thinktank has said.
Millions of these workers “would have been better off with their tax rates rising than their thresholds being frozen”, according to the Resolution Foundation’s chief executive, Ruth Curtice.
“Ironically, sticking to her manifesto tax pledge has cost millions of low-to-middle earners”, she said.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced in her budget speech that the point at which people start paying higher rates of tax has been held. It means earners are set to be dragged into higher tax bands as they get pay rises.
The chancellor felt unable to raise income tax as the Labour Party pledged not to raise taxes on working people in its election manifesto.
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Budget: What does the public think?
But many are saying that pledge was broken regardless, as the tax burden has increased by £26bn in this budget.
When asked by Sky News whether Ms Reeves would accept she broke the manifesto pledge, she said:
“I do recognise that yesterday I have asked working people to contribute a bit more by freezing those thresholds for a further three years from 2028.”
“I do recognise that that will mean that working people pay a bit more, but I’ve kept that contribution to an absolute minimum”.
Welcome news
The Resolution Foundation thinktank, which aims to raise living standards, welcomed measures designed to support people with the cost of living, such as the removal of the two-child benefit cap, which limited the number of children families could claim benefits for.
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The announced reduction in energy bills through the removal of as yet unspecified levies was similarly welcomed.
The chancellor said bills would become £150 cheaper a year, but the foundation said typical energy bills will fall by around £130 annually for the next three years, “though support then fades away”.
More to come
This budget won’t be the last of it, Ms Curtice said, as economic growth forecasts have been downgraded by independent forecasters the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), and growth is a “hurdle that remains to be cleared”.
“Until that challenge is taken on, we can expect plenty more bracing budgets,” she added.
It comes despite Ms Reeves saying as far back as last year, there would be no more tax increases.
Ultimately, though, the foundation said, “The great drumbeat of doom that preceded the chancellor’s big day turned out to be over the top: the forecasts came in better than many had feared.”
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