Joanna Scicluna submitted a wedding dress and a bag with her wedding dress train to Snowhite Laundry for dry cleaning. These were picked up from her house by the laundry's delivery man. The bride's train and the small bag were lost. Many letters were exchanged between the bride and Alex Aloiso, managing director of Snowhite Laundry. Last December Mrs Scicluna sent this letter to Mr Aloisio:
'I am certain that when your delivery man collected the items from my house, the bag I gave him contained the wedding dress, the train and a small bag, which was part of the ensemble. I cannot share the responsibility for the loss of the train and bag. Since I assumed my belongings would be safe with your company, it did not occur to me at the time to ask your delivery man to make a note of the train and bag on the collection ticket.
'However, partial reimbursement of the lost items is inadequate. I cannot accept anything short of a full refund and am reluctant to escalate and publish the incident.
'I appreciate your efforts in trying to solve the matter and thank you for your kind co-operation.' (Joanna Scicluna)
In the absence of a reply from Snowhite Laundry, Mrs Scicluna sent another letter in January:
'A month ago I informed you that I was refusing your company's offer to partially reimburse the expense of the wedding dress train and bag that have inexplicably disappeared after they were given to Snowhite Laundry for dry cleaning. I haven't even received an acknowledgment. This leaves me no other option but to publicise the mishap.
'I am sending copies of both letters to Adrian Muscat Inglott to put him in the picture. The reason I sent my wedding dress to Snowhite is that I had found a person who was interested in buying it.
'I explained my case to Mr Aloisio, who was helpful. I understand he cannot be everywhere at all times and that he has to take his employees' word on day-to-day incidents.
'This incident has lost me a sale and caused me embarrassment. As I explained to Mr Aloisio, my first preference is to get the train and bag back. Failing that, only a full refund would do. I cannot sell the wedding dress and tell the buyer she would have to provide the train herself.
'I am still hopeful that you will find a solution and would find it hard to recommend your establishment to friends and family if you did not.' (Joanna Scicluna)
In January, I asked Mr Aloisio for his comments:
'Once again, I will explain to you and Mr Muscat Inglott what we had discussed on the telephone about the unfortunate incident of your wedding train/veil and handbag. I would have preferred to settle the matter directly between us, but you chose to involve third parties, and this is your consumer right.
'Let me start by saying that we treat customer complaints very seriously and all matters are followed up accordingly by our managerial staff. Thankfully, such instances are few and far between. However, when they do arise they are treated with the utmost respect.
'As stated in your first letter, and also confirmed by our driver, you had told him that you had a wedding dress for dry cleaning. Accordingly, he prepared the delivery note (No. 228809, dated 22/11/07) and handed you a copy with the corresponding details. At no point, was there the mention of a wedding train or handbag. Ideally, the delivery man should have opened the bag in your presence, as we could have saved a lot of time and effort. However, on your part, you should have checked to ensure that your copy of delivery note matched the garments handed to the delivery man.
'When bundles arrive to the factory they are handed by the delivery man to an incoming clerk, who opens one bundle at a time, firstly to ensure that the quantities and description on the delivery note match the physical quantities received; and secondly to mark each garment with a sequential serial number.
'Apart from a tracking exercise, this also serves as a controlling measure, whereby any extra items received and/or missing items are highlighted prior to the washing process. When such instances are noted, the respective customer is notified accordingly.
'We have had cases with other clients where, for example, an extra tie, extra socks, and other objects have been found in bundles, over and above to what was written on the delivery note. Again, in such instances, the respective customer is notified prior to washing, and the delivery note is amended accordingly.
'In your particular case, the garment in the bag matched the description on the delivery note - one wedding dress. In fact, on inspection, the delivery note was adjusted by the clerk to give the description of a bridesmaid dress, rather than a wedding dress, due to its shorter length and design.
'Rest assured, the delivery note would have been further adjusted had there been a train and a handbag included in the bundle, as the price of cleaning a bridesmaid dress is cheaper than cleaning a wedding dress and accessories.
'On discussing the matter with the incoming clerk, it was further confirmed that the bag contained only a single wedding dress. As you can imagine, at that time of year, we do not normally have many wedding dresses. On that particular day there was only one other wedding dress, and no issues were noted.
'Our family business has been trading since 1955, and fortunately we benefit from a favourable reputation. We treat customers' garments with due attention and care and whenever in fault, we have been more than ready to provide compensation.
'Our internal processes are set up in such a way as to ensure there is an adequate level of segregation of duties and sufficient control measures in place. Apart from this, the information relating to your case has been corroborated with individual staff members, working in different areas, and the conclusion was the same - only one wedding dress was received and cleaned - as described on the original delivery note.
'We have also made a thorough inspection of our dry cleaning department on three separate occasions to ensure that we do not have an extra wedding train or handbag. Again, few wedding dresses are received at this time of year, so such items would stick out immediately. Garments such as a shirt or a pair of trousers, which are more common, would be more difficult to trace.
'Based on our investigations, as well as our experience, we feel we are not at fault for missing the wedding train and handbag, as such items were never received by our laundry. We cannot pay for something for which we have no record of receiving. Similarly, one cannot simply take things for granted without physically verifying the facts.
'I have my doubts as to whether you are 100 per cent sure that the wedding train and handbag were placed in the same bag as the dress. Perhaps these garments were left at the reception hall, or have been misplaced at your house. One cannot assume these things but one needs to be 100 per cent sure.
'Mrs Scicluna, you are fully aware that I have co-operated with you and your husband over the matter, and I am ready to discuss the issue in further detail if need be. At the end of the day, it is our customers who make our company, and I do not want you to feel mistreated or under-compensated.
'Although the evidence concludes that our laundry is not to blame, I am still ready to offer you a 50 per cent compensation for the wedding train and handbag in good faith. However, total reinbursement you are asking for is unreasonable and unfair, considering the circumstances.'
(Alex Aloisio)
Last February, Mrs Scicluna wrote to Mr Muscat Inglott:
'Irrespective of the plausible scenarios given by Mr Aloisio, I am certain that I included the train and accessories in the bag I gave Snowhite Laundry, because I know I packed the items the previous night. (And, to pre-empt another possible theory, I wasn't tired enough not to know what I was putting in the bag.)
'I am enclosing a picture (and a printout of the picture for Mr Aloisio) taken by a friend of ours a few moments after we came out of the chapel. There is no way the dress can be mistaken for a bridesmaid's dress. That the train is not a small item, which could have created a doubt as to whether or not it had been included in the bag, can also be confirmed.
'I am reluctant to turn this incident into a ping-pong match, as Mr Aloisio and I could carry on contradicting each other ad infinitum. I do not see any point in pursuing this matter further. If Snowhite Laundry will not accept responsibility for their mistakes, then so be it. This is definitely the first and last time I give the company my custom. This incident has taught me a valuable lesson about trust and responsibility, and I will be sharing my experience with all my friends, acquaintances and whoever cares to listen.' (Joanna Scicluna)
Mrs Scicluna persisted that she definitely gave Snow White Laundry her wedding dress, the train and a small bag.
At this stage we have given both parties a fair opportunity to publicly submit their views. I am even willing to set up a meeting. If they are interested and willing, they can contact me at avmuscatinglott@hotmail.com.