[Sarah S & P Cleaning]

Hi,
I have been having a nightmare with trying to get paid each month from a company we do a contract for,
We started work for them on the 1st of June and sent out a contract to them to read and sign which to this date are still chasing up as it has never been returned.
From the 1st of June we worked the full calendar month and then issued an invoice for payment to be recieved within 28 days which is our terms with all our clients, by the time we have recieved a cheque and cleared it it would be getting on for 35 days which we accept as the norm.
NOT with this company we recieved our first cheque on the 11th August which didnt clear till the 18th August which brings payment to 79 days from start of the contract to get our first pay, it carrys on each month as we are now realising call after call of which they say one thing and do another, yes weve sent a cheque, no we havent, it never ends with them.
Today we will be giving 28 days notice as its getting unbearable and also the call centre which we clean is getting quieter all the time so maybe its time to jump ship before it sinks.
What would you do ?
Sarah
S & P Cleaning Services
P.S The company is Weatherseal
( Avoid with a barge pole unless you work for free )

[Neil Mc Anulty]

Honestly
Get out, youll spend more time chasing your money and therefore eating into your profit. You would be aswell spending that time marketing customers that will pay.

Cheers
Neil

[leuthedog]

Why did you start a cleaning contract without a signed/confirmed contract?

My advice would be NEVER start anything unless you have something in writing, such as your contract.  I believe they have no legal obligation to pay you since nothing has been agreed, nor signed, this could spell further problems for you in the future.

I agree with nr_neil and pull out - and learn from this mistake.

[Mr BSF]

Change the way you do your contracts, invoice on the start day with 35 day terms, also: always insist on a signed contract b4 a start date, if you state this in the covering letter they will sign & return it.

Regards

BSF

[Sarah S & P Cleaning]

Hi,
Thanks guys you are right i shouldnt have started any work for them before contracts were returned but at the time we new people who were the bosses there, they were desperate for us as the place was a mess and we were called in at the last minute.
Just goes to show you cant trust anyone.
Thing is im worried that if i pull out now we wont get any payments at all.
Do you think maybe i try to sort out a contract with them again and if no luck then i pull out?
Help
x

[shelton]

Set up a meeting with the initial decision maker.

State the problems clearly & concisely, then make the call on what you do based on their response.

If you choose to continue, make sure this person knows you will be visiting dealing with them if things revert.  They'll soon get fed up with that.

[Sarah S & P Cleaning]

Hi,
Im going to ring him tommorrow and i think itmay help if i arrange a meeting, their head office is quite far away but possibly worth it.
Thanks, will let you know what happens. x

[leuthedog]

I agree with shelton - set up a meeting and discuss the issues you have - and state how unhappy you are. You placed your trust in them in order to help them out. You have gained a contract due to this but this is not a position you should be in due to the lack of commitment.

If they continue to give you the same excuses you have heard before I would suggest you pull out - it is better to lose a little than a lot.

Good luck! 

[Sarah S & P Cleaning]

Hello,
Guess what guys i have tried speaking to the man in charge all week and have been told numerous times that a cheques been sent, i have just also found out that the place is making cutbacks and i feel that our income is part of that cutback.
I have just rung them back and left a message that i am giving notice as of now and they will be recieving this in writing as soon as possible.
I just hope and pray we will recieve somekind of payment.
X

[*Chris Browne]

I think looking back at what you say, that the writing was on the wall for some time, late payements, cutbacks in staff, being fobbed off with excuses, pull out at soon as possible, then if no payement is sent then go to the small claims court, its easy to do and you can do it online.

Chris

[andrew chrysler]

Snag is... if you say you are quitting, they have even less motivation to pay you.

Get a court summons in quick. You can do it on line at

www.courtservice.gov.uk

It's usually better to simply put a customer on "stop"... tell them that you won't clean next week unless there's a cheque waiting for you.

Faced with mucky toilets and office, they might write a cheque just to get you back.

[leuthedog]

I'm going to have to disagree with the previous two messages - I doubt, even if you take this to a small claims court, you'll get any money at all. The fact is you started a contract without anything signed that states you have an agreement with them to do the contract. The company could state that any payment offered or sent was  more a goodwill gesture for the work you had previously done.

Obviously I hope that I am wrong.....never to be taken any notice of again.....but I fear you are onto a losing batle.

My suggestion would be to simply pull any equipment/stock you have on site and not return - I wouldn't even give them notice. Move on and learn from this dreadful situation.

Always get that contract signed and, just because you may happen to know those higher up, doesn't prevent these awful circumstances from rearing out at you.

Anyway, enough of the lecture, please let us know how you get on.

[Fox]

Sarah

You do not need a signed contract to take these people to court.  As long as you have a quotation and time sheets from the cleaners stating that they carried out the work then you will be able to claim.

What you won't be able to do without a contract is claim loss of earnings through having to stop the cleaning because of lack of payment.

I have taken clients to the small claims before with nothing but time sheets and won, as they see it you carried out the service, the time sheets prove this so you should be paid for it.

I think you made a mistake giving them notice, I would have dealt with it differently, even to the extent of turning up on site and demanding to talk with someone if they kept fobbing me off.

Get your claim into the court asap, I hope it works out for you.

Fox

[Sarah S & P Cleaning]

Hi
Thanks for all the advice, i had no reply to the message i left them about giving notice so i have stopped all work on site, nothings been done today and from now on ( 7 day contract )
the place if i know them well enough should be a tip already but the way i feel at the moment thats their problem and thanks for the claims court details i will be trying to claim what im owed its only fair and if i get nowhere then im no worse off than i am now.
x x x

[Robert Parry]

Just a couple of pints on this thread, if I may, firstly I think it only good practice to obtain a credit report on any new customer, this would mean that you have at least some idea of what you are getting into, regarding payment waiting time etc, this does not have to be an expensive process, and will protect you against the vast majority of problems, be sure to run regular credit checks on all of your existing customers at least annually!

Secondly, never, ever, start a contract without getting them to sign your service agreement, making sure, that you win the battle of the forms, this basically means that they accept your terms & conditions over their own, assuming that your contract is governed by the laws of England/Wales?Scotland etc, this should protect you in case of a breach of contract.

In order to be seen as a professional, it is necessary to act like one, most clients will be pleasently surprised by this sort of attitude, as a lot of clients/prospects think that cleaning companies, especially the smaller ones are not very well run, and quality is a pipe dream for most.

This is my opinion only, and the above is not intended to cause offence to anyone, regards.

[cavanagh_matthew@y]

hey sarah
is that company in the essex area as ive heard abt that company if it its

[Sarah S & P Cleaning]

Hi,
They have call centres all over England so its very possible
x