Excessive prices

AK Styria warns against carpet cleaning profiteering

Consumer protection activists from the Chamber of Labor are warning against a man called "L. Kierpacz", who is currently offering to clean carpets, stone and paved surfaces in Styria. He is said to be charging exorbitant prices.

Flyers, which are also enclosed with newspapers, are currently offering carpet cleaning services in Styria. Behind this is a man called "L. Kierpacz". The Styrian Chamber of Labor now expressly warns against these offers.

Repair work on supposedly expensive items
According to the consumer advocates, the approach is always the same: he convinces consumers that their usually worthless carpets are high-quality products and then offers to clean them. If the customers accept the offer, they are later charged not only for the cleaning, but also for massively overpriced repair work on the "valuable" carpet.

In one case, for example, a cheap machine-woven carpet was described by the man as a piece that was supposedly worth 6,500 euros - the bill for the surprised owner ended up being correspondingly high. The man also tried to lure customers with supposedly inexpensive outdoor cleaning services, which later turned out to be extremely expensive.

Better to go to a specialist shop
AK consumer protector Bettina Schrittwieser advises: "If, for example, a carpet needs to be cleaned, you should enquire at a specialist store and not respond to flyers or even unsolicited home visits." In addition, consumers should always ask for a quote so that they can compare prices between different providers. "Don't sign anything straight away. Especially when it comes to large sums of money, there must be time to scrutinize an offer."