Pune: What do you do if your laundryman 'spoils' the clothes that you sent for dry cleaning? Pick up a fight and stop giving him the clothes henceforth. But an employee of Syndicate bank who earlier worked as manager in Market Yard branch refused to take this deficiency in service lying down. Having paid Rs 55 for getting his trouser dry cleaned and found that it was discoloured and patchy after treatment, he dragged the laundry man to consumer forum and after a six month battle, was awarded five times the amount paid besides Rs 1000 towards physical and mental harassment besides Rs 500 towards legal costs.
It was on September 2013, when the complainant Giridharlal Gupta who resided in Syndicate Officer's Flat at Karve Road sent a grey coloured trouser for dry cleaning to Deluxe Dyers, Dry cleaners and Special Washers at Swapna Nagar. However on September 25 when took the delivery of the trouser he noticed that there were discolouration and white patches on the trousers and it was not usable. The laundryman suggested dyeing the trousers but Gupta didn't agree and demanded to be reimbursed. When the laundryman refused, the opponent filed a case in consumer forum asking for Rs 4800 for cost of trouser and Rs 300 for mental agony. Here the laundryman argued that the trouser was already faded at the time of receiving it and that trouser's colour didn't match with coat since it was an old one. The laundryman claimed the complaint was filed to extract money from him.
However the forum headed by president V P Utpat and members Kshitija Kulkarni and Mohan Patankar observed that the receipt issued by opponent makes no mention that the garment when returned to complainant was not decolourised.
And here is why you should read the terms and conditions carefully.
"Since the opponent in written statement said that if compensation is awarded, it should be according to clause 8 of terms and conditions. Clause 8 reveals opponent undertakes to pay five times washing or dry cleaning charges," observed forum. Hence the forum ordered the laundry man to pay five times the amount i..e Rs 275 besides compensation of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 as costs.
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