[Gordonnis]

Yesterday i took a job over the phone from a large insulation firm after a customer complained about foot prints on the stairs and landing The company said make sure you turn up on time,so i arrived 10 mins early and was told your 10 min early so  wait outside till your appointment time.   when he came back to the door 10mins later and invited me in to look at the job ,told him no problem i wouldset up and get started   , he then says who is going to clean the hall, told him to phone the company as it was a laminated floor and i priced for the stairs and landing, 5 minutes later he came back and said leave the hall as the company wont pay .next i asked for some water, the reply was who paying for it i said i would only need 2 buckets  away he went to the phone again  came back 5 min later and said ok    well you know what i was going to ask next  can  i plug my machine in to the electric  i have never seen a mans face turn so red as stormed off to the phone again  came  back 5 min later and told me carry on. started cleaning the landing and he comes upstairs tells me to stop as the landing looks a differant colour to the bedrooms and that he was getting on the phone again    came back 5 min later and told me to carry on as the company would not pay for the bedrooms so as i was set up  i said do you want meto do the bedrooms the reply was yes if free as i would not of had this job if he had not had his roof insulated     finished the job  packed up  and just geting in the van when he comes out and says got any business cards MATE, would have said no but he could see them on my dash board   i have now put his number in my  phone with his  name  DO NOT REPLY

[Steve Barnett (Carpet Care Plus)]

I think I would have got in the van and buggered off the minute he asked who was going to pay for the 2 buckets of water - sounds a right pillock !

[Steve Chapman]

 
I had a customer some years ago that said as i was 10 minutes early could i wait outside while her

husband finished his breakfast as he didnt like any disturbances!

when she shut the door i just got in the van and drove off!

she phoned me minutes later and i told i dont wait outside in the cold for any one!  she begged me to

come back as they were desperate to get the carpets done. Think they were selling the house.

When i went back she couldnt be nicer, i think it shocked her that i just left, some i think just like to get

the upper hand, better to show that your not going to be messed around. Makes them realize also that

your a professional business!

regards
steve

[graeme marchbank]

Brilliant, could not agree more, some people are up their own arses

Thats made my day

Graeme

[Phillip Mold]

Gordonnis - was the insulation company based in Newcastle by any chance?

[M.Acorn]

Boo what a mare !
Have only had a couple of nightmare custy`s
One really old lady,who sat and gave me instructions on how to do my job the entire duration of the clean ! Placing back everything in exactly the right spot ! She had collected a huge amount of tat !
And called me back the day after as i had left a 1 inch long mark on her 1970`s lino,with my hoover as i wheeled it in,had to get on my hands and knees to see it 

I walked away from one Portugese custy who was a complete mare !
Oh and a thai bloke who decided to decorate using bright red gloss paint,everything was covered,had done light switches ,woodwork ,kitchen doors,cupboards etc ! didn`t use any dust sheets,and everything was covered,wanted to know if i could get it off his carpets ! which were really scabby cheap polly !
You just have to laugh about it or it gets you down !

[Gordonnis]

the company is based in sunderland

[Aquakleen Restoration Services]

Luckily a$$ holes like this are few and far between...cant say ive ever had anyone that bad in 5 years of trading but some right plonkers definitely! I am now in the position to walk away if i dont like peiples attitudes for whatever reason!! When I first started up I took some right $hit from people!

[bennymon]

as soon as he mentioned the buckets of water i also would have gone

[Doug Holloway]

Hi Guys

It is always difficult when you start out as almost any job is better than none.

One of the priveleges of being more established is that you can tell idiots(polite) like that, goodbye.

Cheers

Doug

[Joe H]

Its a shame when customers are like that

but from his point of view .... hes probably had a hard time to get the firm that made the mess to do something about it, and from his viewpoint YOU were part of that. He related YOU being THEM.

He was out of order nevertheless.

[Bob Robertson]

I do a lot of work like this for Scottish Gas and Virgin Media, what you have got to realise is that their homes have been treated badly by a workman and when you turn up they are upset. That is when you have to use good customer relation skills and have them eating out of your palm by the time you leave. There is a lot of work generated by installation firms and if you walk away, you could be walking away from potential work,small acorns.

Bob

[clinton]

Bob

Your right there about lage companys treating peoples homes this way

If i had been made to wait i would also have driven off

As doug said when you have a good workload you can turn these anoying clients down

[daysdeepclean]

I had an awkward customer last year, I had everything set up and started cleaning, the gentleman of the house said

" I want peace and quiet so you're going to have to move your machine to the other end of the (massive) house"

"I don't think so sir!" I replied,

"I beg your pardon!"

"Well, the machine's full of hot solution which doesn't tend to get on with the electrics when they are introduced. When I try and move it accross your gravelled surface that is what will happen!"

"Ah" he says "Fair enough"

Maybe I was being rude, but I'd put up with enough poo in the navy and won't bow down to these snobs who tend to be the rudest people I come accross!

[Bob Robertson]

Clinton

Its all about looking at the bigger picture. I know when i get a job like this I am going to be dealing with an upset customer and that's fine, its business. We should all be able to deal with difficult customers now and again as we provide a service. If I refused to deal with them and drove away they would use another company. You can use working for these companies to your advantage in your marketing and selling yourself to customers.I started with one of the Gas Boards sub contractors and the gas board approached me, now I deal with them and all their contractors. You have got to have a good customer care if you are going to deal with large companies, as i said small acorns.

Bob

[Peter Blackburn]

I had one last week. Turned up in the morning as requested, posh old woman with the biggest ears you have ever seen opens the door and before I could even speak says "Take them shoe's off before you come in my house"!! this is when i was crouching down to put my over shoes on.
Looking into the hall I said to her that I only quoted for two rugs (She had thrown a third one in) Her reply "Oh well YOUR people told me that they would throw that one in for free" I said to her that it was me that she was talking to on the phone as I was a sole trader. To this she replied "Oh arnt you a clever lad, now go and get busy and stop wasting time".

Told her I was leaving because I didnt like her and her attitude. As I was walking up the drive to leave she was shouting "Oh come on, dont be like that, please dont leave, I,ve moved all the furniture" got in the van and drove off with a big grin on my face.

Regards
Pete

[colin thomas]

well done peter, i would have and have done that over the years, it always seems to be the older person who thinks the world owes them more respect than they actually deserve, i'm always respectful but i wont bow and scrape for anyone,

colin

[clinton]

Peter

I would have done the same and will do now theres no reason to be like that with anyone

I dont speak to anyone like that so dont expect it back

[Doctor Carpet (Ret'd)]

I love threads like this so much. It's one of the best things about this forum. Long may they continue.

Once I was about to bring my hoses into the house I was stopped by "I hope you're not going to bring those into my house!" as I was on the doorstep, overshoes on facing a pure white wool carpet in the hsl and with a dog running backwards and forwards along the hall (I was to do 2 bedrooms.).

(Incidentally I had estimated £65 on the phone and when I assessed the job it came in at £70, she kicked off big style. Oh, and it was a big 5 bed house and husband flew long haul 747s for a living. So the price was really academic.)

Anyway, despite feeling like replying "No,Madam, I'm going to lick your carpet clean!" I smiled sweetly and gave her the red-carpet treatment. Took the money and resolved never to go there again.

Why did I do it? There is a perverse pleasure sometimes in not letting the client see that they have annoyed you is one reason. Secondly this was quite a few years ago and I had nothing else on and it nicely filled up an hour or so. Finally it gave me yet another story which I might include in my memoirs when/if I get round to writing them.

Would I do it differently now? Almost certainly yes. Partly because of the knowledge and experience I have gained in the meantime and from forums like this. Secondly as I have got older I've found that it is easier to impose a natural air or authority in these circumstances which often avoids such issues occurring in the first place.

Having said all that I think Tihson is not far off the mark. If you can promote yourself as the solution to the problem (by being independent) rather than part of the problem, and in effect siding with the unhappy householder you can often generate loyal customers for life.

But as Joe said I think this was probably one customer who proves the rule that they shouldn't be touched with a barge pole.

Roger

[psg]

Hat off to you you deserve a pat on the back for that one mate.
psg