Laundry Service Takes Tornado Survivors To The Cleaners
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ROWLETT (CBSDFW.COM) – A tornado ripped through their home, destroying it. And now, a Rowlett couple was hit with a hefty bill after they took all that was left of their clothing to a drycleaner.
"It's terrible, this is our home, this is all we had," said Roxanne Pritchard about the home she shared with her husband Randy.
One of the few items spared after the violent storm swept through, was Pritchard's clothing. She painstakingly picked up her clothes two days after Christmas in the pouring rain. She threw all she could salvage into crates and bags. Overwhelmed by losing almost everything, Pritchard decided to pay someone to help her wash and fold her things. She chose Dry Clean Super Center in Rowlett.
"She mentioned insurance, and I said, 'no this is between you and me. I'm your customer'," said Pritchard about the dry cleaner's owner.
The owner asked Pritchard to write down the details of her request on an order slip.
Pritchard said she was clear that she only wanted dress shirts dry cleaned. She wanted everything else washed and folded – that's it.
The dry cleaner didn't have their prices posted and Pritchard didn't ask how much the entire order would cost.
The bill for everything was $2,050.00.
She was charged $1,850 for the dry cleaned items and $200 for the wash and fold service.
"I was sick to my stomach. The first thing I showed her was my t-shirt... 'did you need to dry clean a t-shirt'?" asked Pritchard.
The owner of the dry cleaner said Pritchard only wanted a pile of towels and jeans washed and folded and everything else dry cleaned.
When asked by CBS11 Consumer Justice reporter Cristin Severance why some items like t-shirts and jean shirts were dry cleaned, the owner said because it was in the pile for dry cleaning.
The owner said her staff worked New Year's Eve and New Year's Day to complete Pritchard's order.
She said they did what Prichard asked her to do, but has since offered to reduce the bill.
The owner came down to $1,350 for everything and the Pritchard's agreed to the resolution.
CBS11 was there when Randy Pritchard paid and picked up the clothes.
"I thank you guys, it wouldn't have worked out without you. It's small but all the small things add up to the big ones," he said.
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