Kelly7 said:
The dry cleaners took me to the "laundry". I am taking them to small claims in california. They ruined a $150.00 comforter set.Due to their attitude, how do I sue for $4999.00 instead of just $150.00? They said they contract out the cleaning and deny all responsibility.
My response:
You can only sue for the "fair market value" of the comforter, not what you paid for it. You will have the burden of showing and proving the fair market value to the judge. That also means that you can't sue for $5,000.00 either - - this was a contract matter, and you can't get "punitive damages" or "exemplary damages" in a contract matter, except in very, very narrow circumstances. You don't have those circumstances. "Bad attitudes" are not compensable.
They can deny all the responsibility they want. It won't work in court.
When they contract out their cleaning jobs, they assume responsibility for their contractor's workmanship. There's such a thing as Priniciple / Agent law. They cannot shirk their responsibilities to you, as a result. They are the ones that took in the job, and so they remain responsible to you for that workmanship - - even if it's someone else's.
Good luck to you.
IAAL
