[dai]

I have a customer on a marina that owns two adjoining houses, I do them both at £9 a go.
He didn't send a cheque last month, so this time the bill was £36 for two cleans on both houses.
I received a cheque today for £18, he says that he no longer has an interest in one of the houses and to make arrangement for payment with the new owners.
I haven't a clue who the new owners are, he didn't inform me of any change in our arrangement, surely the onus is on him to see I get paid.
I am thinking of writing to him to remind him of this, and to refuse to clean either property again until I get paid the £18 that I'm owed.
I had another customer today that has done a flit owing me £20, I'm fed up with getting taken for a ride.

How would you guys deal with the first guy? I don't want to lose another customer but I think he's taking the p as well.

[seandyer2003]

he could of told you he nolonger needed it cleaning just as quick as he refused to pay...i hate that, i defo wouldnt want to keep doing it after that, id ask for payment......cant you canvass or something to offset the loss in custys??

[ftp]

Sleep on it don't do anything rash (like i do). By the morning you'll probably just let it go.
I've been stung a few times now and i'd rather be stress free to be honest.

[Slash]

Buy some eggs!

[ftp]

Some bangers might go astray tonight?

[ftp]

  and take a shovel 

[chris@c.m.s]

I'd speak to the new owner explain the situation  I wouldnt ask for payment for the previous clean but I would try and gain their custom, either way I'd dump the existing customer, just makes it sweeter somehow if your still cleaning for the neighbour.     

[dai]

I'd speak to the new owner explain the situation  I wouldnt ask for payment for the previous clean but I would try and gain their custom, either way I'd dump the existing customer, just makes it sweeter somehow if your still cleaning for the neighbour.     

Thanks for that guys, seeing this guy isn't easy, he's hardly ever there, whats more the house is 25 miles away.
That's a great idea about seeing the new people and dumping him, brilliant. If he has to get someone else to clean his windows it's going to cost him, it's a 3 storie town house, and the guy would have to come just to clean his.
 Here is a letter I have drafted, but I will sleep on it.

Dear Mr xxx, Thank you for your cheque for £18.00.
I am disappointed that you did not send the £36 owing.
Our arrangement was that I cleaned the windows at number 14 and 15.
If you wanted to change this, I should have been informed.
I was not to know that you no longer had an interest in number 14.
If you had sent a cheque for last month’s clean, you could have informed me about the change, you didn’t do this, you let me go back this month and clean the windows again, I did this because I always trusted that you would pay me, this is just not fair.
You suggest that I seek payment from the present occupiers; I don’t know these people and have never made an arrangement with them.

The onus was on you to inform me of the change in our arrangement,
This you neglected to do.
I’m sorry but under these circumstances I will not clean either 14 or 15 again until this matter is resolved.

Yours sincerely

[johnny_h]

if hes got an outside tap do the next clean with tap water 

[Trotsky]

The letter wont do any good (and you know it!)
If he was going to pay he would have!

I only have one standard for all my faithful customers "The very Best"

If on the other hand this happens to me i do my "That'll do" standard
until either...
A ... I feel even
B ... I lose his custom
That way I win!

As for the the one who flew the nest... that's life!

[simon knight]

I have a customer on a marina that owns two adjoining houses, I do them both at £9 a go.
He didn't send a cheque last month, so this time the bill was £36 for two cleans on both houses.
I received a cheque today for £18, he says that he no longer has an interest in one of the houses and to make arrangement for payment with the new owners.
I haven't a clue who the new owners are, he didn't inform me of any change in our arrangement, surely the onus is on him to see I get paid.
I am thinking of writing to him to remind him of this, and to refuse to clean either property again until I get paid the £18 that I'm owed.
I had another customer today that has done a flit owing me £20, I'm fed up with getting taken for a ride.



How would you guys deal with the first guy? I don't want to lose another customer but I think he's taking the p as well.

Re the 1st guy: Dump him...you can't do business with a dishonest/sly person (and he is...you know it!)..that's fact!

Re 2nd guy: There's scum out there...accept it and move on.

Times are getting harder for us w/c's but if you let people take the Michael it makes a hard job insufferable.

[wightsurf]

Jsu stick to the agreement but don't clean it  for the next two months and bill him
I take it that there not in the house often.

[simon knight]

Jsu stick to the agreement but don't clean it  for the next two months and bill him
I take it that there not in the house often.

Yep! I'd go along with that

I ain't been in this game half (probably not a quarter) of the time you've done it Dai but in the 4ish years I have I've learnt one thing about consumers:

90% are 100% self.

[Elginn]

If you don't want to loose him Dia then have a quite word in his ear, it sounds to me he may have fell out with some sort of partner who may have been in parntership with him on 2 properties.
if you go in guns blazing the chances are you'll loose this one as well.

If its no big deal then write the £18 off

I have a policy that if a for sale sign goes up, I no longer do the property, unless I know I can really trust the customer, I've had to many go up for sale and they do a moonlight on me, so the policy came in after being taken for a ride once to often.

Good luck with what ever you decide.

[Chris Galloway]

Jsu stick to the agreement but don't clean it  for the next two months and bill him
I take it that there not in the house often.

I dont agree with that, unless you want to look the un honest one. Dont run your business tit for tat.

Either bite the bullet and request full monies, advise only pre payment or set up a direct debit will now be accepted due to his mis communication.

End the service with him (25 miles.. id want more than £9!!).

Or just accept it, and move on.

[wightsurf]

The thing i hate most is that nearly all window cleaners think that they can be taken for a ride.The fact is if they agree to a monthly clean they have enter a contract like it or not. If i have this problem i will not think twice of recovering the money ,do you think BT would let it slip.NO, so why should us window cleaners. People don't give you money take them to small claims court if they have payed by checks in the past it's easy to prove.
I know many dont like the thought of doing small claims but why many small firms use it for this very reason.My friend who's a driven instructor uses it alot to recover money not payed by people he is teaching,of which he has recoverd 100% plus cost.
And for those interested here a brief word from this site.

www.gillhams.com/articles/325.cfm
In order to form a contract, the parties must agree on what either party will do under the terms of the contract; they must have the intention to form contractual relations; and there must be consideration. It is immaterial whether the contract is verbal, in writing, or partially verbal and partially written, although common sense says that recording the agreement in writing creates a document that may be referred to for its terms in the event of a dispute between the parties. Obviously, this is particularly important when disputes arise in respect of the agreement, whether the dispute arises in respect to the work to be performed or sums to be paid under the agreement. Both verbal contracts and written contracts are equally legally binding contracts, subject to the existence of the usual requirements for formation of a contract.

[Chris Galloway]

verbal contracts legally binding, hmm maybe, but it dont stick with me, you say one thing, they say another.. who's right?

Best to get it on paper, ask your custie to sign up to an agreement, there you have it in black and white, and both of you know and what to expect.

[wightsurf]

This is the thing Chris.
even if you have a brief detail of the work and how often on a domestic, how many will follow up none payments with two final notices and a court summons of which youcan now do online .
Even proof of payments by checks is good enough to go through the small claims.
About time people stood up to these kind of custies. I think window cleaners are scared of the rep they might get,but if you ask me it's the wrong way round people will think you run a honest bussines and not mess you around.

[peter holley]

£9 for a three storey town house ...is it worth the fuss, i would just let him go... if he asks why, just explain you are getting rid of all small properties under £10.

it is annoying , i know but rather than being cross which takes alot of energy, put this energy into doing something positive like a leaflet drop...keep positively plugging away at your buisness and move on

[Alex Gardiner]

Dump him, keep stress free, move on to the next client.