Before it goes in the wash
What we check,
and what we
decline.
A commercial wash hides damage inside a cage. So the check happens on arrival, in front of your driver, and it goes on the docket. This is what is recorded and where we stop.
Counted in, on paper
Every load is counted by item type against the collection docket while the van is still there. A count that is not written down is not a count, and a dispute about a missing sheet eight weeks later is unfixable without one.
Existing damage recorded
Thinning hems, perished elastic, split seams, torn edging, missing buttons and faded panels are noted per piece. The note decides what is a wash problem and what was already on its way out.
Stains flagged, not promised
Ink, bleach, rust, oil, sunscreen and anything heat-set by an iron are permanent often enough that we will not sell a removal. They are flagged on the docket, treated where the fibre allows, and reported back either way.
What we decline
Linen contaminated with blood, body fluids or chemicals; loads with sharps, glass or surgical waste in them; wet or mouldy loads; and commercial loads with household items mixed through them. A refusal is written on the docket with the reason.
What happens instead
A contaminated or sharps load goes back unused and unbilled, or is referred to a laundry set up and permitted to handle it. Mixed domestic and commercial articles are separated and billed as two loads, and you are told before the second one runs.
Colour, shrinkage and new stock
New or heavily dyed stock is washed separately the first time, because that is when it runs. Shrinkage on a first wash is a property of the fibre, not a fault in the wash, and we say so before the first load rather than after the third.
The return count, and the 48-hour clock
Every return is counted against the collection docket as it is unloaded, and that count travels back with the delivery. A short or wrong count is raised in writing within 48 hours of the return: inside that window the docket decides, after it the docket is the record and the variance is closed. A shortfall raised eight weeks later cannot be priced against anything, which is the whole reason the window exists.
What we pay for, and what we do not
Where an item is lost or damaged in our care, liability is capped at the lower of the depreciated value of the piece and the multiple of its cleaning charge agreed in the schedule, and a settlement is final. An item already noted on the docket as thinning, faded, split or missing a button is not a wash claim; neither is colour loss on heavily dyed new stock in its first wash, shrinkage on a first wash, or damage caused by something left in a pocket. A piece settled at the cap is written off rather than returned, because a written-off item cannot come back into circulation.
Reconciled monthly, not argued yearly
The running count is reconciled every month against a physical spot-check of the linen room, and the difference is reported to you rather than held until renewal. A write-off rate above the rate agreed in the schedule, measured per year on stock in circulation, triggers a route and handling review with you. Par levels come from your covers or occupancy, not from last month’s order: three par where the turnaround is 24 hours, more where part of the wash runs on site.