[tonyoliver]

Don’t often recommend something but
Nightmare customers and bad payers  page on Facebook is well worth a read !!

It’s not just us who get messed around cancelled and treated like scum  it’s a whole load of other trades too

As it’s the new year I’ll share a couple from last year
I’ll pay you online  tonight and never hear from them again
Bad and slow payers 
Apart from the well pay you tomorrow online and there gone the next visit home empty  shaft you just to save their deposit

Don’t knock if I am not in !!

The cat doesn’t need you to call any more 
I said the cat said it was happy for me to continue
You talk to the cat ?
Yes
Oh carry on then
Wtf !!!
 
Cancelled three times after texting then say we haven’t seen you for six months and we got someone else
Well can I have my outstanding payments oh no we gave it to the next guy
Get it from him

First clean  filthy really dirty  really really dirty throw away the brush dirty
No payment
Text from the tenant  Go to  Croydon council it’s their house  they’ll pay you
It gets worse every year
People are getting meaner and meaner
One win though
Got pulled over in the street Big house private road big driveway
Can you do this  particular window first
Yes no problem awkward reach  third floor on a roof
Before I started
The woman rushes out and gives me £10  and said my husband doesn’t like the brush thingy  he’ll get the trad guy back

  be off with you 

Who says that ?
Bizarrely
I hadn’t turned on the water  they
Just went through the drama and pretence to get the one window the trad guy couldn’t reach

Feel free to post about your crazy custards

Win some lose a lot

Good hunting in 2026 everyone

[dazmond]

I don't get nightmare customers anymore......certainly nothing like you mate! You must work in some rough/poor areas!🤣

[AuRavelling79]

I don't get nightmare customers anymore......certainly nothing like you mate! You must work in some rough/poor areas!🤣

It's not the rough/poor areas that have a monopoly on nightmare customers.

[dazmond]

I don't get nightmare customers anymore......certainly nothing like you mate! You must work in some rough/poor areas!🤣

It's not the rough/poor areas that have a monopoly on nightmare customers.

From my experience it is......

I used to work some poor/rough areas when I started and I had far more problems with non payers than the affluent areas I work now.

[Scottish Cleaning Service]

I have found a good way to deal with folk who always delay the payment, I tell them if they go DD then I will continue.

[Stoots]

Ive had dozens and dozens of bad customers over the years to get where i am today.

But like Daz says a lot of the time you can tell, quite a few times ive been doing a new one walked in the garden and thought shes not gonna pay and half the time im right. Quite a few doss holes round here unfortunately.

Bad payers come from anywhere as do messers but sometimes you just know and youve only yourself to blame.

[AuRavelling79]

The key is to set your stall out at the start.

Mine is ...

No cancellations.
No late payments.
No weather or holiday dependent skipping.

If they break those rules without a blisteringly good reason - dumped.

Don't care whether they live in a council house or a mansion.

[Roy Harding]

I had a woman I used to clean who owed me, come up about 8yrs later and asked if I could clean her windows. I told her she still owed and she paid me and said I will see you soon. Yeah right  I dont forget.

[cgh window cleaning]

I think it’s people in general lately.A lot of people lack basic manners.

I’m commercial people can’t even be bothered to get back to you after you’ve been out done a site visit and quoted a job and followed it up a week later these days.I’ll email people to book jobs in or chase a payment and 50% won’t even reply.

There’s some good customers out there but they’re getting harder to find.

[Klean07]

I deal with the * we're ok this month brigade* by dumping them . Then the ones that drag their feet with payment I'll text them to say that I'm calling round later to get payment. They usually pay straight away. Then there is the ones that try it on like a regular one I did before Xmas. She was out but her hubby opened the back gate for me then along with his teenage sons watched me clean the back windows. Payment was still outstanding over Xmas so I sent her a message for which she replied did I clean her back windows because hubby said I was only there for 10 minutes. She paid but now she's dumped!

[Spruce]

I deal with the * we're ok this month brigade* by dumping them . Then the ones that drag their feet with payment I'll text them to say that I'm calling round later to get payment. They usually pay straight away. Then there is the ones that try it on like a regular one I did before Xmas. She was out but her hubby opened the back gate for me then along with his teenage sons watched me clean the back windows. Payment was still outstanding over Xmas so I sent her a message for which she replied did I clean her back windows because hubby said I was only there for 10 minutes. She paid but now she's dumped!

The trouble is she will bad mouth you as unreliable to neighbours and friends.  "You just can't get anyone reliable and honest these days. They are all the same. He obviously didn't clean the back windows as he was only here for 5 minutes."  They never see themselves as the problem.

[Scottish Cleaning Service]

I've come to realise I'm like a social worker most of the time. Trying to reduce the chatting now and have a quick excuse up my sleeve to move on. In the end its up to us to run our business and we don't need the hassle. Going digital is a good excuse to force customers to go DD or you say I can't continue because I need digital paper trail.

[Stoots]

I've come to realise I'm like a social worker most of the time. Trying to reduce the chatting now and have a quick excuse up my sleeve to move on. In the end its up to us to run our business and we don't need the hassle. Going digital is a good excuse to force customers to go DD or you say I can't continue because I need digital paper trail.

Im an anti-social worker. Always set my stall out from the begining to be left alone, never accepted a cup of tea once, say hello if i have to of course but very rarely get involved  in any dialogue further than the weather.

[AuRavelling79]

I deal with the * we're ok this month brigade* by dumping them . Then the ones that drag their feet with payment I'll text them to say that I'm calling round later to get payment. They usually pay straight away. Then there is the ones that try it on like a regular one I did before Xmas. She was out but her hubby opened the back gate for me then along with his teenage sons watched me clean the back windows. Payment was still outstanding over Xmas so I sent her a message for which she replied did I clean her back windows because hubby said I was only there for 10 minutes. She paid but now she's dumped!

The trouble is she will bad mouth you as unreliable to neighbours and friends.  "You just can't get anyone reliable and honest these days. They are all the same. He obviously didn't clean the back windows as he was only here for 5 minutes."  They never see themselves as the problem.

I wouldn't care in the slightest if one of my 'dumpees' badmouths me to any of my other customers because they know I am reliable and don't miss out windows.