Here's one I did after deciding to drop a PITA customer:-
Mrs XXXX
XX Southwood Drive
Coombe Dingle
Bristol
BSXX
4th June 2010
Dear Mrs. XXXX,
I am replying to your letter of the 2nd of June and responding to the points you have made.
Firstly my recollection of events is rather different to yours and I will start specifically with the day in question but also go back to the previous month’s visit to clean your windows too.
When I made my comments about you not fitting the profile of the customer I wish to keep I meant that I wish to keep regular, reliable customers who, when wanting changes to the regular agreed work give reasonable notice and do not “drop it” on me at the point of arrival; also those that appreciate that the only way for me to make a sensible living from my work is to have it scheduled efficiently so that I can fill my day to its maximum workload without unnecessary changes. It is challenging enough to schedule around pre-planned changes and unpredictable weather without the attendant domino effect of making changes on the spot.
I think upon reflection that you will realise that your interpretation of “profile”, expressed in your letter, is not a true representation of my meaning.
Moving onto our conversation on Wednesday; what I said, but obviously didn’t make clear to you was that I would only charge £4 for the previous month “... as I only cleaned the front four windows and that the bulk of the work is at the back with the conservatory.”
The “clean” this time would have been £18 and the roof £20, totalling £42 including the £4 from last time. Rather less than the £48 quoted in your letter. Also as the conservatory had not been done for two months then extra dust, hairs and mud associated with your dogs would have been included in this price.
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To your being “stunned” at the quoted £20 for the roof; conservatory roofs do not respond to a “quick brush over” if they have not been cleaned for many months as there is the usual detritus of birds’ droppings and moss along with algae and the results of what has been an exceptionally dusty few months, perhaps associated with the ongoing volcanic activity. (Maybe you have noticed that your car has needed cleaning more often?) This entails using a different brush with stiffer bristles and cleaning fluids and attendant extra time.
However, my deciding to terminate my cleaning for you has its roots in events starting last month. You were not home and so I started cleaning the front of your property and you arrived – not seeming particularly pleased to see me – and asked me to not clean the back and to do a more thorough clean of the conservatory including some of the insides “next week”. I adjusted my schedule for this. I then received a phone call saying to leave it until the next month which I did. When I arrived, the parameters were changed yet again by you and now I was asked to do the outside of the conservatory roof only – along with my regular cleaning.
To then have you baulk at £20 to clean the conservatory roof which by its very nature will include the gutter outsides as well was, frankly, the final straw. I hope this gives a more comprehensive answer as to why I acted as I did.
Finally, please find enclosed your cheque to me for which I thank you but your debt is only £4.00 which as I said at the time I am happy to write off.
Thank you for your comments about my work and I wish you all the best for the future.
Yours sincerely,
Malcolm Gold
M. Gold Window Cleaning
