Bermudians are being ripped off by unscrupulous sales staff who sell them inferior carpets at top rate prices.

That is the claim of Bermuda's only certified Inspector of Carpets, who wants a law introduced to protect local residents.

Flawed carpets, known in the industry as "seconds'', are being passed off as high quality, said Mrs. Lucie Gibbons this week.

"There's definitely a problem locally,'' said Mrs. Gibbons who, with her husband, Robert, owns and runs Gibbons Decorating.

"Any carpet retailer who's honest enough will admit that this practise goes on here.'' Manufacturing defects on carpets are often impossible for the naked eye to detect, said Mrs. Gibbons.

For example, oil which is spilled on a carpet during the manufacturing process will often not show until a few years after someone buys it.

Another problem is the sale of carpets which are abnormally thin. "I've seen carpets sold locally that are as thin as a piece of cardboard,'' she said.

"There are problems sometimes just stretching an inferior carpet in case it falls apart. Most of the time, the owner is not at home when a carpet is laid so they will not be aware of these problems.'' In the United States, the number `2' will appear on a sales invoice for a second quality carpet.

"I will always show the invoice to my clients to prove that the carpet I'm selling is first rate,'' said Mrs. Gibbons.

The recession has exacerbated the problem as companies have sought to save on costs in the face of dwindling sales, she added.

Although not all carpet retailers in Bermuda are guilty of misleading their customers, Mrs. Gibbons said she suspected widespread deception in the carpet industry as whole.

She points to a 1991 survey by the US carpet industry's newsletter, Crosstalk, which stated: "The overriding conclusion is that we are part of a very sleazy industry whose salespeople rank only one or two steps above used car salesmen.'' Mrs. Gibbons claims to have spent $30,000 over the past six years on educating herself about carpets, at home and abroad, and on buying quality-testing tools.

In October, 1990, she became a Senior Carpet Inspector certified by the Floor Covering Institute of Technical Services, of Georgia, in the US.

Bermuda homeowners faced particular difficulties in choosing the right carpet because of high humidity levels, she said.

She produced several samples of carpets whose colour had faded or, in some cases, completely changed within a short period of time.

Mrs. Gibbons said solution-dyed nylon carpets were best-suited for Bermuda's climate.

Wool is "very durable'' but was not suitable for Bermuda because "it's a natural fibre which, if it gets wet, lets off a very bad smell''.

She warned locals to be wary of the sales person who tried to pass off a carpet with a no-mat/no-crush warranty.

"It's not worth the paper it's written on,'' said Mrs. Gibbons. "There's no such thing as no mat/no crush. All carpet will mat and crush.'' Her company, Gibbons Decorating, provides wallpapering, painting and carpeting products and labour services.

Four years ago, Gibbons Decorating moved from its offices to the Gibbons' home in Warwick in a bid to cut costs so it could offer better prices.

In a further bid to reduce prices, the company is now combining orders from several customers in order to obtain cheaper prices from suppliers in the US.

"In some cases, we are undercutting our competitors by as much as 100 percent,'' said Mrs. Gibbons.

Ms Susan Dawson-Smallwood and Mr. Dudley Thomas.

BEWARE OF UNSCRUPULOUS CARPET DEALERS -- Mrs. Lucie Gibbons shows swatches of some "safe carpets''.