What is your Liability on Customer Provided Items

Robert Young's picture

Question... for embroiderers if a client brings in 12 jackets and you mess one up (your or your machine's fault) do you replace it? Does it matter if it is a $20 jacket or a $2000 one? For Digitizers, if you misspell a word on a design and your client messes up a shirt, do you replace it? What if they ran 400 shirts?

I know some will say it depends on the client and how badly you want to maintain the relationship, but there still must be a limit, no?

Modern Embroidery Designer
volant-tech.com
volantfineart.com

We once digitized a design for a HK customer ... we did not follow their color chart ( usually we do ) ... after they embroidered 60 jackets they found that,so they tore the embroidery apart from all the jackets and re-worked on them --- the customer told me this after about 2 months occasionally.
--- I think if the customer asked about reasonalbe compasation,we would accept --- such as not to invoice him for the digitizing charge or pay him for the labor charge etc as we do not want to lose them.

:) embroidered patches,embroidery digitizing,and more ... momols.com

Worn Id's picture

We tell the customer BEFORE they bring in their own items, that we are NOT responcible if there is a problem. That we can not replace them, since we did not purchase them.
Most everyone is OK with that, a few ppl have just given us an extra, incase there is a problem and if not we just don't use it OR if they tell us to sew it out regardless.
I have an older adn very tempremental machince and I have turned down a couple jobs because it was a leather jacket I did NOT want to accidentally destroy becasue my machine was being stupid!!

I agree a spelling error would fall on the Embroider, they should catch something like that and then bring it to the Digitizers attention to be corrected.

Just my thoughts... since you asked. :)

Laurie

WORN IDENTI-TEES
wornid@yahoo.com

Best way I have found is if they want wordage, THEY write it out, same on names. If you mispell what they wrote then you should be responsible. I always double check what they wrote, and if someone else is in the shop they can check it too.
Sometimes the customer mispells, then they are responsible so you do not need to pay for the garment. Try to get them to sign off on everything. I once spelled a word wrong and they never noticed until a month later.LOL.
When I digitize a design, scan it and send the scan of the sewout, I make them sign off on it.
Mistakes happen we are all human!

I would make a form and use it for cases like this. If a needle breaks etc, wrong color thread and any other thing that could go wrong. Have them sign so you cover you a--
This way straight up front they are prepared for any mishaps.

SunEmbroidery's picture

I rarely accept customer supplied items but when I do I state that I'm not responsible for damaged items. Often when customers supply items like jackets they are trying to cut costs so I don't believe they should be paid for damaged goods when care is taken because they took a risk when they decided to supply their own goods.

I require names to be typed rather than written because handwriting can be interpreted differently.