dirty laundry: deal reached

So remember the laundry I brought in on May 5 and got it all back filthy?  Well, all is finally resolved.

It seems the problem was caused when a ventilation pipe that connects with the dryer backed up and all the accumulated dust inside the pipe exploded onto my clothes, instead of being re-circulated into the air.

I had the misfortune of being the one whose 21 pieces of laundry literally got dumped on. 

After two weeks, all but 7 pieces had been cleaned to a level I found acceptable. Michelle, the owner, asks if she can try again with the remaining 7 pieces. I say yes.

Two more weeks pass, and as promised, Michelle calls me today. 

We meet, an hour later, and her husband (whom I've never met) is with her. 

"Unfortunately," she tells me, "the remaining pieces can not be cleaned to the degree I find acceptable." 

I had itemized the cost to replace these remaining items, and it now totals $829.

The husband does the speaking. He begins, as she did several weeks ago, with many apologies.

But then, he veers into comments like....

We are a small business....

And you know how hard we tried to get all the laundry cleaned...

And things were particularly hard during COVID...

And this is a very unusual thing. In fact, in all my years of doing business this is the first time we've even seen a problem like this...

And we stayed open during the pandemic so we could service the neighborhood...

And we did go back and tried cleaning your items many many times...

I am listening, but all of this, while true, is irrelevant. 

And then finally, the husband asks, "Would you be willing to negotiate?"

"Yes, of course," I answer. "I'd much prefer that we settle this and not have to go to small claims court."

'Okay, good," he responds.

I wait, and no one says anything.

Finally I say, "What are you offering?"

I expect him to answer with some ridiculously low number. But he doesn't.

Instead, he surprises me and says, "$600."

I believe his offer is fair and reasonable. 

So with no hesitation I say, "I accept."

We don't shake hands (ya know, that COVID thing), but he does write me a check.

They thank me for my patience. I thank them for their efforts and reasonableness.

I might even have my next load of laundry done there.

After all, they did say, and I believe them, that they have never seen anything like this before. And they are next store which is very convenient.

It feels good to be done with this. 

And even better to have settled with friendly feelings on both sides.