ComplaintsforGeneral Linen Service, LLC

• Initial Complaint

  01/30/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I signed on with general linen in December of 2020 and they would provide me with massage sheets for my massage business each week. I had to sign a contract which I did online but was unaware that in small print it was for five years and my representative at the time did not mention that as he just said that if you need to cancel you may just need to write a request but as long as it has been a year everything should be fine. Now with the cost of everything going up and a decline in business I have to make cutbacks and I no longer need their services and I called them on January 18 to request that I terminate service. I had to wait and speak to my new representative who is Justin who then basically informed me that I signed a 5 year contract with them and I could terminate but I would have to buy out half the remaining time of my contract which I definitely can’t afford and he would be willing to try to make it more affordable for me but basically I was locked into this contract. I have never heard of such a thing and now that I have fully read the fine print of the contract, I find it intimidating and misleading. I asked him what would I do if my business closed and I can’t do my job anymore and he had nothing to say except that he sympathized for me but I had to understand the general linen side of it and that they need to protect themselves because the linen service is the first to go. He also added that if I want out of the contract I need to send a certified letter to them 60 days prior to the end of the contract otherwise it will automatically renew the contract for another 5 years. I just want to stop the service as I no longer need it but I don’t feel I need to buy them out of any contract. I expected to give a reasonable notice like 2 weeks or maybe even a month.

  

  Business response

  02/03/2023

  To Whom It May Concern,

  I've included the contract for account # ***** ***** ***** ******* *******. Due to the up front investment in the products used to service our clients made by General Linen, we require a contract as most other linen providers do as a standard work practice. The contract attached was signed by ***** with the rates, length of 260 consecutive weeks, and terms clearly stated on the page ***** acknowledges she has signed and acknowledged. Justin B*********, is the district manager that oversees the account and has spoken to ***** directly as it pertains to her contract and the terms and has been working with her to alleviate some pricing concerns. Justin also did explain that she is able to terminate the agreement at any time, but there is a cost to making that change which has also been explained to the client per the terms of the agreement. Please let me know if you need anything further. 

  Thank you

  Customer response

  02/08/2023

  
  Complaint: ********
  
  I do not accept the business's response as a resolution to my complaint because: 
  
  

  To whom It May Concern:

  In response to General Linen, I did sign a contract but was mislead by the representative at the time who was David C***** and not Justin.  This contract only protects the business and not the customer, which is not right. I only recently spoke to Justin for the first time when I requested to discontinue service. 

  1^st, besides having a contract that is not ethical, I am not pleased with the service.  You have to sign a contract to start with them before you even know how there service is and for it be for 5 years doesn’t sound like good business practice. What do you do if you do not like the service?  In the past, I have had times where they did not bring me what they were supposed to and still charged me for it.  I complained  a while back but did not get anywhere with them so gave up.

  Recently, on January 6^th,2023 their delivery was missing the contour sheets and one package of the blankets and once again still charged me the same price.  I am also tired of white sheets and blankets which is all they have.  Also, since they did not bring me the contour sheets, my table was not eye appealing to clients, which I do not like because I had to use my own sheets which are colored so I have a colored contour sheet with a flat white sheet.

  Then the following week on January 13^th, they try to make up for the missing contour sheets from the week before and bring me two packages, but they were all the wrong size and made for at least a full size bed or  a queen size because they all draped on the floor.  They were awful and I couldn't use them.  Still had to pay same price.  At this point, I knew I also couldn’t keep them on so decided to let it go and instead tell them to discontinue service. 

  I don’t feel I should have to stay in a contract where I am not pleased with the service besides not being able to afford it due to the decline in business and other expenses increasing such as utilities.   I am just a small town massage therapist working out of my home and I have a very small business.  I don’t feel it fare that a business like General Linen would make me to stick to such an unethical contract, which I was misled into in the first place and only got into because of COVID, which now has subsided.

  In addition, another complaint I have are their blankets, which are usually wrinkled.  And there again, not eye appealing to my client and not good for business and I took a picture of one this week that was awful. 

  So I am requesting again that General Linen release me from this contract and without having to buy them out because I will not do that.

  Sincerely,
  
  ***** *****

  

  Business response

  02/13/2023

  While I understand the client does not accept the resolution, it has been covered with her that she will not be released from her contract until an amicable resolution has been met. As part of this meeting the terms of the buyout of the remaining time on the agreement that she herself signed will be discussed. Her district manager Justin B********* spoke with her over the phone and discussed the cost associated with exiting the agreement. The client refused to meet with Justin in person to go over options and next steps.

  The client will need to meet with the group and discuss next steps in the process before a legally binding document is voided as per the terms of her agreement without penalty. This is a standard business practice for rental companies that provide a service that requires an up front investment. Until the client meets with the group to go over these options, they will not be released from the contract they signed. 

   

  Customer response

  02/16/2023

  
  Complaint: ********
  
  I do not accept the business's response as a resolution to my complaint because: 

  First, Justin has never mentioned or offered to meet with him in person to go over this nor has he even attempted to contact me.  In fact, no one from General Linen has tried to contact me to go over any of this, so for them to say this now and that I need to meet with “the group” to discuss steps…., I do not accept this.  Why did they say any of this in their first response?  Why did they not sit down with me in the first place in the beginning when I signed the contract to discuss specifics of the contract so I was aware exactly of what I was signing instead of filling out the contract themselves and have me sign online and mislead me especially about the 5 years.  I think it is obvious they do not sit with anyone in the beginning and make them aware they are committing to a five year contract because no one would sign.  Would they sign their 5 year contract as a customer??? I highly doubt they would.   This is not standard business! You have to sign a contract before you even start using them so we don’t even know if we like the service or not….I settled using them for the main reason of COVID and I dislike the service.

  For physical reasons I need to cut back on my business which has slowed down anyways due to the economy and slowly I will be going out of business so I can not afford them, besides being dissatisfied with the service.  As stated before, the blankets are wrinkled and are not acceptable by massage standards, and for the weeks that they don’t bring the items that they are supposed to is a breach of contract already not to mention they still charge the same amount and do not compensate for it. 
  

  Furthermore, I did not fill out the contract in the beginning, my General Linen representative at the time did because they put “LLC” - and I am not an LLC- I am just a small town massage therapist working on her own!!

  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***** *****

  

  Business response

  02/20/2023

  David C****** is no longer employed at General Linen Service, he sold the account and was the person who initially worked with ***** in this process. My goal in meeting with ***** is to remedy this matter in a timely manner after getting additional information from her and discuss next steps in closing the account. I will be coordinating a meeting to get this accomplished and her issue resolved.

  Thank you 

  Customer response

  03/02/2023

  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.  Someone from the business did contact me and we did meet and did resolve the issue.  Thank you!
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***** *****

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩