[rhys11]

hi every one

i popped a note through a house yesterday saying can they leave the back gate unlocked and could they txt me there land line number because when i rang them the night befor i got a (number not in use message) so  to i cleaned there windows and locked the back gate and left the bill for £15 + could they leave me there phone number.then i just had a phone call saying the people that were living there have moved out and they were the new people in the house. i said did you want a window cleaner and she said no. i said why was the back gate left open and she said her hubby must of not locked it, but yesterday it was locked when i put the note through.

i feel like i have just been ripped and at the moment well ped off

what can i do?? have i lost the money ??

any help please
 

[Pole2pole]

Welcome to the wonderful world of window cleaning. It might be the first time but it won't be the last. 14 years into this game and i still open myself up to p*sstakers now and then. Just learn from it and try and lower the possibilty of it happening again. I think the lesson i have really learnt in this game is to get money up front from first cleans. They can be the biggest p takers of the lot. Just after a one of clean for nothing. 

[Elginn]

Pop around unannounced and see if it really is new people. if it is you lost out, if not ask for your money.

[rhys11]

AHRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

[East coast window cleaning Services]

It happens write it off and move on

[Wayne Thomas]

If your gut feeling is telling you something is wrong, then it probably is.
If a dodgy new-ish customer doesn't answer the phone for gate access, then leave the clean for a day or two until you can actually speak to someone on the other end of the phone.
Trust your gut instincts and minimise the risk of being ripped off.

[Pole2pole]

so true wayne. so true...........How often does GUT instinct prove to be right in this game?

[windowwashers]

so true wayne. so true...........How often does GUT instinct prove to be right in this game?

alot 

[Londoner]

With more houses being rented on short term lets round here the possibilities are greater for this sort of thing happening.
At least when a house is sold there is a board outside for a couple of months usually.
I haven't had this happen but I have had just about every other combination of silly stories you could imagine.
The one I have had several times is when you get a new customer, usually they stop you in the street, looking for a regular cleaner etc. So you do them, then the next time you drive past a board has gone up.

Be grateful you only got knocked for £15. If you were a builder/plumber etc it could have been thousands.

[bumper]

Same as when they come out and say can you start doing my windows oh yes then you go round again to clean them  and its up for sale they taking the p

[bumper]

iss

[mark dew]

iss

 

[dai]

I regularly get turned over by these quick move tenants. I am far too trusting, giving non payers 3 cleans before I stop cleaning.
The popularity of buy to let has proved to be a real pain in the neck. You don't always know that the place is now occupied by tenants, and not new owners.
I clean windows for a debt collector, he always wants to make a brew and have a chat. One month he hasn't got any cash, no problem pay next time. Next time he's not in so I do them again.
Later when I call back, he's short again but promises to leave the money under a box at the back.
Next day the money wasn't there. I go round this time and he apologises saying he was called away on an urgent job. I do the windows again and called for the £30 he now owes me. You guessed it he's a bit short again and ask es me to call later. I have been five times and still not been payed. This guy has heard every excuse in the book from his debt collecting, and now he's shooting me the same lines of crap.
My gut instinct was screaming at me, this guy is full of 5hit, and I ignored it. I fell for the  patter of a con man. Now things are going to be a lot less pleasant. Dai

[rhys11]

I regularly get turned over by these quick move tenants. I am far too trusting, giving non payers 3 cleans before I stop cleaning.
The popularity of buy to let has proved to be a real pain in the neck. You don't always know that the place is now occupied by tenants, and not new owners.
I clean windows for a debt collector, he always wants to make a brew and have a chat. One month he hasn't got any cash, no problem pay next time. Next time he's not in so I do them again.
Later when I call back, he's short again but promises to leave the money under a box at the back.
Next day the money wasn't there. I go round this time and he apologises saying he was called away on an urgent job. I do the windows again and called for the £30 he now owes me. You guessed it he's a bit short again and ask es me to call later. I have been five times and still not been payed. This guy has heard every excuse in the book from his debt collecting, and now he's shooting me the same lines of crap.
My gut instinct was screaming at me, this guy is full of 5hit, and I ignored it. I fell for the  patter of a con man. Now things are going to be a lot less pleasant. Dai

i know mate it makes me so mad

[Blackbushe Windows]

It's hard - we've all had it!

[Wayne Thomas]

That's the good thing about SAE with a short note about payment being received before next clean due.
I always ask new customers if they have a cheque book, so apart from 2 customers all pay me by cheque, standing order or cash at door occassionally.
No excuse for not paying.
If not paid by second time then I don't clean a third time. Better to lose 2 payments than 3 from a tennant thinking they were a homeowner. Reduce the risk of being conned.
Trust your gut instinct

[Blackbushe Windows]

Agree with Wayne, would only clean twice without payment - but only for customers I know and are reliable.