We went back to the store and encountered a very rude manager who told us all sales were final. It wasn’t the first time we had purchased furniture from that store. In fact, our last mattress we bought there and we were highly satisfied. Is there any recourse that we can take? Regards. — No Name, via mail.
ANSWER: The Maine Attorney General’s Consumer Mediation Service receives thousands of questions such as yours per year. Upon request, that office will send you individual chapters from the Consumer Law Guide. They also state that while their Consumer Mediation Service is ready to help you resolve your consumer complaints, they do not provide legal advice on specific disputes. Neither does Sun Spots.
You didn’t state that the mattress is defective, just that you find it uncomfortable. You may have more options if it is defective. You can contact the Maine AG at 207-626-8800. Mention whether or not you were told verbally or if you read store signs at the time of the sale that all sales were final and no mattress returns allowed.
DEAR SUN SPOTS: We are looking for upholsterers in the Androscoggin County area. Always looking forward to Sun Spots’ information. — Sun Spots Fan via email.
ANSWER: Sun Spots looked at a column published in January in which upholsterers were listed. Here are ones from the Androscoggin County area or nearby: Hill’s Upholstery 346 Lewiston Road, Topsham, 207-725-2485; Leo’s Custom Auto Upholstery, 300 Cressey Road, Monmouth, Lbeaudin50@yahoo.com, 207-782-3822; Mary’s Upholstery, Route 196 in Topsham, 207-353-7638, recovers living room sets, chairs, boat cushions, snowmobile seats, etc.; Alan Osborn, a third-generation upholsterer, wide service area and Rosemarie Osborn, roz@megalink.net, 207-388-2007. Perhaps our readers can supply additional sources.
DEAR SUN SPOTS: Thank you so much for all the good information you provide for this community. It seems the mail is taking longer to get to places here in Maine and also forwarding is taking up to two weeks. Some people are saying the once next day for local is gone and it is taking up to three days. Can you find out why? Thank you. — No Name, No Town.
ANSWER: Sun Spots found many sources that have reported on this and chose to share this information from The Washington Post: “The U.S. mail is slowing down. In January [2015], the Postal Service eliminated overnight delivery for local first-class letters that used to arrive the next day. Anywhere from 20 percent to half of the rest of the first-class mail sent every day now takes an extra day of delivery time. … The first round of plant closings did not delay delivery times dramatically, since those plants were situated relatively close together. But the second, more recent round of closings is reverberating more, as trucks drive longer distances to more distant plants to pick up and deliver mail before it goes to local post offices.”
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