[Russ Chadd]

Just about to jump in the bath last night and the phone rings.... look at the clock and its 9:40!!
Pick up the phone and its this guy looking to get his carpets cleaned ideally the next day (today) tells me its a 3 bedroom house which is being let the following day so it needs to be done asap.
Once i had given the guy who sounded like a dodggy used car salesman he then proceeded with his details including mobile number, then came the questions about my setup which set alarm bells ringing..

All the sort of questions a normal punter would not normally ask...

Equipment type, van type etc..

Smelling a rat once the conversation had ended i tried the mobile number and hey.. it wasnt valid.

Get a phone call with a withheld number from the same guy at 8.00 am telling me the tenants wanted to move into the property today so not to worry about coming!

Anyone else suffer with bogus bookings just to see what your rates are and what equipment you use?

[from edge2edge]

Unlucky Russ re the time anyway as i suppose we all get people putting out feelers.I had some knumpty bxxxxxxxd ring me at 0730 for a 1 bed flat quote(this morning)............no apology for the time at all....its the downside of being in business i suppose...................Alan(swindon)

[Russ Chadd]

Yep.. i think it was the fact that this particular idiot chose to call me at nearly 10 pm for a chat about a job that never existed which annoyed me... should of just kindly told him to call back in business hours...

[Simon@arenaclean]

Careful when being questioned about kit etc, lets not forget our address is readily available, too much info could make us a target for theives.

[Shaun_Ashmore]

Loose lip sinks ships but what else can you do?

Shaun

[Jim_77]

If my phone rings either before I've had my breakfast, or after I've had my dinner, they get the voicemail.  I think sometimes people expect to be ringing a phone sitting on a desk in an empty office, so they are actually ringing up intending to leave a message anyway.


Russ, think about it mate... you had the last laugh really.  He hasn't really gained much, and you can have a good laugh at his expense because all the time he was on the phone you were stark boll*ck naked

[Doctor Carpet (Ret'd)]

Loose lip sinks ships but what else can you do?

Shaun

"Walls have ears"

Really! So that's what their putting in their sausages nowadays.

Rog

[Russ Chadd]

Yep.. i could sense something wasnt right when i answered the phone.. i mean what decent respectable person calls about having a carpet cleaned at nearly 10pm?
He sounded a little too cocky for my liking... still he better not come around here sniffing around my van unless he fancies a wonder wand up his rear...

I thought it was a local competitor fishing for answers on price... may even be a member on this forum...? who knows    

Yer Jim.. i was totally naked when i answered the phone... hahaha and he never knew!!

[Jim_77]

Good work

charge him £1.50/minute next time he calls!

[peter maybury]

I do get a lot of out of hours calls as I advertise 24 hour call out for flood and pest control. I will not answer calls from withheld numbers and if they do not leave a message, I do not lose any sleep about the business I may or may not have lost.

Peter
www.carpetcleanercardiff.com

[Russ Chadd]

Hey peter.. what you charge me to remove this pest?? hehe

[Paul Heath]

"Yer Jim.. i was totally naked when i answered the phone... hahaha and he never knew!!"

Shame it was'nt "Facetime"..

[Jim_77]

wouldve been schlong time!

[Russ Chadd]

Haha.. i had the bath already... and a good book to read.. bloody interruptions!!   

[Shaun_Ashmore]

I've been on the toilet booking in jobs before well it's a dirty job but someone has to do it!

If I'm near the phone then I'll answer it regardless of time, I find in the last 5 or so years people are more 24 hr people even the silver surfers, if the miss us can talk all night on the phone then so can I !

Shaun

[clinton]

Had phone calls sunday morning etc and as jim said people expect someone to be waiting by the phone for calls..

[Russ Chadd]

Sunday morning calls i could live with... but calling late in the evening is unacceptable unless it states on my website that i provide a 24 hour service... it does clearly read 8am - 8pm.
Like i said... i think it was a rival local firm just seeing how desperate i was to take a booking late in the evening!

[Ian Gourlay]

Somtimes Customer has phoned a rival  who primes them

Or listened to Joe Polish Questions to ask a carpet Cleaner help lines

[Jim_77]

You have cursed me by posting this

My phone rang at 7.30 this morning just before my alarm clock went off, hence I cancelled the call.  Message beep for a voicemail.

Snoozed for 10 mins, got up and started the usual morning routine, bathroom etc... phone rings again from same number, another voicemail.  Sod off, thinks me.

Downstairs, say hello to the dog, put the kettle on and I hear the phone going again.  JESUS what is your problem woman!!  So I listen to her third voicemail message within the hour, and it's not even half past 8 yet.  Old customer, bit of a pushy old battleaxe type of woman, just asks me to call her and sounding more irate every message she left.

Grumbling to myself, try ringing her back and the bleedin phone is engaged!  Left it, walked the dog, got ready, just start driving to my first job and she rings me when I'm halfway round a roundabout in busy traffic... rings AGAIN about 30 seconds later and leaves the snottiest voicemail message ever!!

I felt like turning round, driving to her house and tearing her a new a-hole but instead calmed down a bit, got to my job and eventually managed to speak to her.  Turns out she's left the kitchen tap on full blast and forgot about it, flooded the kitchen and the hall carpet is wet!

Tried telling her it was a job for her insurance but she was having none of it, the kind who is the expert even when she's not.  Eventually got round there at lunch time, lifted carpet which showed damage gone much further than she thought and managed to convince her to add up the cost of my time, a carpet fitter's time plus new underlay.. what if the carpet delaminates... look the subfloor is wet.... chipboard kitchen units, they might be twice their thickness tomorrow...

Eventually manage to get through to her that her insurance excess was going to be potentially cheaper than paying for every new problem that occurs over the next few weeks.

Thanks for wasting my time and stressing me out on a Friday   Good job she's a big money customer on the carpet cleaning, the bill might go up a bit this year.