HOW TO HIRE · PERSONAL & LIFESTYLE

How to hire a dry cleaner in the UK
The checks, the questions and the paperwork.

Dry cleaners need no licence to clean your clothes in the UK. Here is what the order should list, who pays for loss or damage, and what to ask a collection service.

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THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring a dry cleaner in five steps

  1. Get an itemised orderEvery garment listed at collection or when the bag is opened, with stains and damage noted.
  2. Point out stains and fabricsTell the dry cleaner what the stain is and what the garment is made of.
  3. Read the care labels yourselfAnd show them; some garments should not be dry cleaned.
  4. Ask the compensation limitWhat the service pays if a garment is lost or ruined.
  5. Check every item on returnBefore you sign for it or put it away.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

No register applies

Dry cleaning, with or without collection, is not a licensed service for consumers in any UK nation, and there is no register of dry cleaners to check. The checks are the itemised order, the terms on loss and damage, and references.

Read the collection service's terms before the first bag goes.

Reasonable care and skill (Consumer Rights Act 2015)

A dry cleaner trading as a business must carry out the work on your garments with reasonable care and skill (section 49). If it falls short, section 55 lets you require the work to be done again at their cost within a reasonable time; if that cannot fix it, you can ask for a price reduction.

Keep the ticket or order confirmation and raise problems as soon as you see them. legislation.gov.uk →

Your items in their care — insurance

No register sets insurance for a dry cleaner. Ask whether their cover includes customers' garments, in the shop and in the van while they hold them or carry them, and what they pay out if something is lost or ruined.

Ask for the policy terms or the compensation limit in writing before handing over anything valuable.

Trader status and cancellation

Booked online or by phone, a dry cleaning collection is a distance contract, and the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 give 14 days to cancel a service — though once you ask for the work to start, you pay for what has been done.

Read the cancellation terms in the booking confirmation.

VAT

Dry cleaning and the collection that goes with it are standard-rated at 20%. A dry cleaner whose turnover passes £90,000 must register, charge VAT on the order and show the total VAT on the order receipt.

Check the order receipt for the dry cleaner's VAT number and for VAT shown apart from the garment prices. gov.uk →

“Will the dry cleaner list every garment when it is collected or unpacked?”

A good answer: Yes, an itemised order sent to you, with any stains or damage noted.

“What is your compensation if a garment is lost or ruined in dry cleaning?”

A good answer: A clear policy and a limit, in writing.

“Can you treat this stain, and is there a risk?”

A good answer: An honest answer, with a warning before anything risky.

“Which items cost extra to dry clean?”

A good answer: A price list: suits, coats, silk, leather, evening wear.

“What is the minimum order, and is collection free above it?”

A good answer: A figure and any delivery charge below it.

“When will my dry cleaning be returned?”

A good answer: A date or time slot, and the express option priced.

“What happens if I am not in for the delivery?”

A good answer: A safe-place or redelivery policy, with any charge.

Getting the quote right

  • Every garment itemised, with its price
  • Collection and delivery charges, and the minimum order
  • Stain treatment or repairs priced separately
  • Express turnaround as a separate charge
  • The compensation policy for loss or damage
  • Who actually attends: the dry cleaner's own driver or a courier, and whether the cleaning is done in-house or by another works, employed or subcontracted
  • The dry cleaner's VAT number on the order, with VAT shown for the garments and the collection apart

Walk away if

  • No itemised list of what was collected
  • No written policy on loss or damage
  • Garments returned without the care label
  • Stains treated with no warning of risk
  • Missing items with no tracking
  • Charges added after the order was confirmed
LOW
£15
TYPICAL
£30
HIGH
£50

What a dry cleaner costs: £15–£50 per order

Dry cleaning collection is priced per garment, with a minimum order for free collection and extra charges for specialist items and express return. Dry Cleaning Pickup & Delivery price guide →

Guide prices compiled by the Locufy team from published Irish and UK provider price lists and 2026/27 cost guides. Updated 2026.

KNOW WHAT TO LOOK FOR? NOW FIND ONE

Dry cleaners near you, with the badges that matter shown

ID checked, trader status and one score from every review — on the card, before you message anyone. Nearest first. No account needed to look.

Or post the job free and let them come to you.

  1. CollectionBag collected at the agreed time.
  2. Inspection and orderEach item listed, stains and damage noted, prices confirmed.
  3. CleaningEach garment cleaned to its care label; stains treated as agreed.
  4. FinishingPressed, hung or folded, checked.
  5. DeliveryReturned in the time slot, ready to check against the order.

Itemised order
The list of every garment and its price.
Care label
The garment's cleaning instructions.
Pre-spotting
Treating a stain before cleaning.
Minimum order
The spend needed for free collection.
Express
Faster turnaround at extra cost.
Compensation limit
The most the service pays for a lost or ruined item.

AFTER

When the job is done

Check every item on returnAgainst the itemised order, in good light.
Report problems at onceIn writing, with photos, while the garment is as returned.
Keep the order and receiptEvidence if you need to claim.
Rate the bookingRate the cleaned garments and the collection once you have checked it. A score under four stars lets you ask the dry cleaner to put it right before the review goes live.

STEP 1Start with a written complaintMessage the dry cleaner about the cleaning with photos or dates. The 2015 Consumer Rights Act lets you ask a trader to redo work that lacked reasonable care and skill, or to reduce the price when redoing it will not help.
STEP 2Use the make-it-right step on LocufyRate the dry cleaner under four stars and you are asked whether to send the problem to them first; we follow it through. Then the review goes up.
STEP 3The consumer helplineFor dry cleaners there is no regulator to escalate to. The free helplines — Citizens Advice on 0808 223 1133 in England and Wales, Advice Direct Scotland on 0808 800 9060, or Consumerline on 0300 123 6262 in Northern Ireland — advise on the cleaning and can refer a trader to Trading Standards.
STEP 4Money still in disputeA claim against a dry cleaner for a refund or the cost of putting things right can go to small claims: up to £10,000 on the county court small claims track in England and Wales, up to £5,000 under simple procedure in Scotland, and up to £5,000 in the small claims court in Northern Ireland.

Hiring a dry cleaner: questions people ask

Running a dry cleaning collection service needs no licence that you could check, anywhere in the UK.

A trader must use reasonable care and skill under the Consumer Rights Act 2015. You can ask for the work to be redone, or a price reduction; for a ruined garment, raise a claim in writing.

Usually within 14 days under the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, but you pay for work already done if you asked it to start.

£15 to £50 an order, typically around £30. Suits, coats and specialist items cost more. Per-garment prices and minimum orders are compared in the dry cleaning collection price guide; your town above finds collection services near you.

Yes — what caused it and when. It changes how the dry cleaner treats it.

Raise it in writing against the itemised order. Small claims is the last step.

MORE GUIDES

More hiring guides in personal & lifestyle

How to hire: Laundry ServiceHow to hire: Ironing ServiceHow to hire: Clothing AlterationsHow to hire: Tailor / SeamstressHow to hire: Shoe RepairHow to hire: Errand RunnerHow to hire: Concierge ServiceHow to hire: Personal AssistantAll 701 hiring guides →

Dry cleaners near you

Dry cleaners in LondonDry cleaners in ManchesterDry cleaners in BirminghamDry cleaners in GlasgowDry cleaners in BelfastAll dry cleaners on Locufy →

Sources — checked October 2026

  1. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49 — reasonable care and skill
  2. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 55 — repeat performance
  3. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 30 — cancellation period
  4. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 36 — services started in the cancellation period
  5. Citizens Advice — more help with a consumer issue
  6. mygov.scot — consumer rights (Advice Direct Scotland)
  7. nidirect — about Consumerline
  8. gov.uk — make a court claim for money: court fees
  9. mygov.scot — make a court claim for money
  10. nidirect — small claims process
  11. VAT rates — VAT rates for goods and services: standard rate 20% on most goods and services
  12. GOV.UK — Register for VAT: when to register