Kokua Line

By June Watanabe

Tuesday, March 24, 1998

Claims court could settle
dry cleaning damage

I took a new dress to a discount cleaner, and now I know why it offers cheap service! The dress came back with the lever of the zipper broken. I returned it, and they sent it back to the factory, and it came back to me pinned with a safety pin. I said this wasn't acceptable, and they said they would fix the zipper. But when I picked it up, I couldn't zip it up because of the lining, and the zipper was put on with a hook. I again said it was not acceptable, but the manager said that was the best they could do. They said they could give me five free cleanings and keep the garment, or I could take the $70 dress back and be reimbursed the $6.12 for the cleaning. I took the reimbursement.

Beyond that, my concern is that they require you to pay in advance before they will do the service. Is there a law that says they can make you pay in advance? What can I do now?

There is no law one way or another that says when you should pay for a service. "Merchants can ask for payment in advance," said Jo Ann Uchida, executive director of the state Office of Consumer Protection. "It's just a question of whether you want to do business with that merchant."

If you pay in advance, it would be a good idea to pay by credit card, she said, because "in that way, you can exercise your rights under the Fair Credit Billing Act to refuse the charges on your account if you feel there is a problem, after the fact."

In general, however, Uchida notes that dry cleaning complaints are difficult to deal with because so many involve specific issues of fact about quality and about what actually was done and whose fault it was.

Sometimes, when there is damage to a garment, Uchida's office has arranged to have the garment sent to a mainland lab for analysis. That lab will send it back with findings and recommendations, she said.

But in your case, in which the zipper is the problem, "That's different," she said. Your recourse is Small Claims Court, but the time and effort may not be worth it.

You can also file a complaint with Uchida's office, "but unless we can find a pattern or practice of substandard performance, it's real difficult for us to make a case."

Still, Uchida encourages consumers to make a complaint so that her office at least can catalog complaints. "If there are an unusual number of complaints, even if it involves quality, we will take a look at that merchant and see if we can work with that merchant to see if we can improve his business practices," she said.

People purchase covers for license plates, which supposedly will deflect beams from police laser guns. Some of those covers have yellowed with time and obscure the plates. Do police ever tag people for this?

The law says you cannot obscure license plates and officers "do tag for covers that obscure license plates," said Honolulu Police Department spokeswoman Jean Motoyama.

Beyond that, she says it doesn't make sense for people to buy those covers if the only reason is to deflect laser beams from officers trying to catch speeders.

"We don't shoot the license plate," Motoyama said. "We shoot any part of the car."

Mahalo

To fireman Mike Masutani, who came over to assist when my brother collapsed at Daiei on Kaheka Street. He also called the ambulance. My brother is all right now.

Mahalo

To Rhonda, in a purple truck. At 3:50 p.m. Feb. 12, on H-3 freeway off-ramp going to Honolulu, she stopped to help us change a flat tire. God bless her for her kind heart. -- Claire