Butlers Restoration Drycleaning, Inc.

I have two issues with this company.

First- My family had a catastrophic house fire on September 19, 2012. Our contractor engaged this company with the understanding that we would deal with them directly. They were to collect soft goods during our pack-out for cleaning.

One item they collected was a certificate, flag and presentation box. This was awarded me for work and support to the US Military, and, signed by the commanding officer and the presenting officer, certifying that the enclosed flag was the one flown over USAF Baghdad Headquarters (formerly Saddam's Castle) on September 11, 2011 (10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks). I explained to the young men collecting my soft goods that the item was my proudest possession. They assured me that good care would be taken.

My home finally became livable in July of 2012, and in early August I requested my soft goods back.

On delivery, I was told that they would not turn the truck off until I paid them in advance and signed off on the order. I complied, and when the brought the boxes in, I identified a wrinkled flag- no certificate, no box. I called the company, and the woman that answered the phone assured me that they would look for it, and get back to me as soon as it was located. As I never received a call back from them, I called several times to keep this on their "radar". On only one call did I connect with the general manager, who was extremely rude. During this time I was told that they wouldn't have taken anything that was not soft goods. (On the return, there were two boxes with nothing but candles and old greeting cards-I was not charged, but they were indeed collected by the company). Other excuses included that the men that picked my order up no longer worked there, and that I had left my goods for a year and a half (it was actually 8 months), and what did I expect? Of course, neither excuse is valid. Ultimately, I played into their strategy and gave up. The sad part of this issue is not only that they discarded my proudest possession, but that no one at the company had the decency to even apologize.

Second issue: As we became settled, we began to realize that some very expensive "soft goods" untouched by the fire had vanished. These items included an Amish quilt made in 1847, a comforter worth over $1000.00, and more. I do not mean to intimate any theft on the part of this company. However, at best these prominently displayed items were overlooked, and at worst they went missing while in the company's care. I was charged for items that I never received. Either thing is unacceptable.

As I previously mentioned, it is their company policy to pay up front and sign off on the order before they will release your property, so there is little point in trying to recoup any losses. If I would have known their policy up front, I never would have let them onto my property.

I encourage anyone who suffers a fire to catalogue ANYTHING taken from your home by any company. When it comes to this particular outfit....caveat emptor....let the buyer beware.