[Window Washers]

I had a call a few days ago my guy had forgotton to do a window on conservatory (the door), I said sorry to this guy and also said I would be back to fix it in the morning.

I didnt knock money off becuase of a mistake because i feel that shows you could be trying to pull a fast one by skipping windows, human error we cant always be perfect even though we try.

I offer to fix it becuase we will be paid for the full job, the guy said you dont need to come all the way over here for one window. I am driving there today just to clean the one window because im like that. Good customer relations and more than many other window cleaners would do, so I will turn this negative into a positive.

Why dump someone for your mistake?

Ian

Give and take, Dai said he goes out the way for this customer.

Dumped. 

I am just saying what I do, this must have been why Dai used this excuse to dump the guy because he was out of his way, Dai was at fault on the job.

[AuRavelling79]

Gotta say, Dai - you shot yourself in the foot. I think you have given away too much (for you) and feel bad about it. Sure, the guy could've responded with "No, no, no let me pay you..." but hey?

Me - I would have gone out and done his window as soon as it was light enough to do so.

I've forgotten windows, I've cleaned windows twice, I even took money off of a lady at the front door, did the back and asked for it again!

I've had custies tell me I've cleaned their windows and forgotten to put a bill in and they've paid me. Hell, I even had one last month pay me double because she couldn't find the "slip" for January and "knew" I'd been. I told her I hadn't due to the weather.

We all make mistakes - custies do - even ol' Squeaky - but especially me!

[simon knight]

I'm with Dai here and I too would have dumped him. To me the customer has commited 3 crimes:

1). He's actually taken the trouble to email about one window out of the entire house. We've all missed windows and when that happens it's usual with "proper" people to let it pass but mention it next time the window cleaner calls.

2). In his email he asks "you've forgotten to do my lounge window, what do you want me to do?". In other words he's as good as asking for money off. What does he want off? £1??...the petty cheapskate!

3). When told not to pay at all he says "OK". Most decent people would say: "Oh no I must pay you for the work you have done."

The customer sounds like the sort of petty, grasping. selfish twit that I'm allergic to...!

Well done Dai you're well shot of him. There's plenty of proper people out there!

[Alex Wingrove]

and I wrote saying I was sorry, and not to bother paying, he wrote back saying "Ok thanks"

If you didnt want him to take you up on the offer, why offer the offer?

you must have realised there was a percentage chance of him saying what he said,

And then we get the "sack him brigade" come along who answer to every customer problem is "sack em" and then bad mouth someone they don't even know,

[simon knight]

Gotta say, I'm with the "go do it proper or don't get paid brigade"

Simon, I don't want to pick a fight, but IMO your 3 customer crimes are complete rubbish!

This guy may well be a pain in the rear, but he is paying for a service and if the service is not completed to your mutual satisfaction then something has to give, and seeing as how Dai was the one who made the mistake it is down to him to rectify it. Now if the window was missed cos a big dog was sat underneath growling that would be a different matter!

Not saying the customer isn't within his rights. But I don't and won't work for that sort of customer. Reason being that window cleaning is as much a relationship industry as a cleaning industry. And in any relationship there's give and take and a bit of slack is cut. The customer made no concession. He just grabbed the chance of having something for nothing...a total scumbag in my book.

[simon knight]

He didn't grab, it was handed to him!

Yeah OK...I can't see why Dai gave him that option. Nonetheless, the guy if he had any decency would have insisted on at least paying for the work Dai did do.

[simon knight]

I agree.

Got a bone to pick with my daughter. Turned up at a customers house today...nice £40er to be told: "Simon, didn't you get the message...I can't do today."

[simon knight]

I agree.

Got a bone to pick with my daughter. Turned up at a customers house today...nice £40er to be told: "Simon, didn't you get the message...I can't do today."

No spending money this week

Not being funny but she's 17 in a months time...I mean how hard can it be to remember to pass on a message? She'd soon get the prick-ache if I forgot to pass on the message that she should call her boyfriend...bloody kids :

[ftp]

Not sure that's a term i've heard before. 

[AuRavelling79]

Not sure that's a term i've heard before. 

Yeah! Sounds a bit strange I must say ....

[simon knight]

Quite a common expression in SW London...obviously not so in "miles from you" and "my own little world"...ho hum

[simon knight]

Anyway, away from "prick-ache"...I'll relate a true story of a "proper" customer:

Done the guys house for years. Always started front...through side gate to do back.

He's retired and always there to let me through.  Anyway a few months back as I'm putting up the ladders he comes out and says: "Can you do the back first so I can lock up as I'm going out."

So I go round the back, wash 'em and return to the front. He's on the doorstep waiting to pay me...I take his £10 (a small 3 bed semi) and spent 2 mins chatting to him. He climbs into car and off he goes...I load up ladders and off I go.

Later on I suddenly realise that I didn't do the front. When I get home I call him and to explain/apologise/make arrangement to rectify. He says:

"You know I thought they looked a bit grubby but didn't like to say anything in case you were having an off day."

Proper customer...proper person.

[martinsadie]

Not sure that's a term i've heard before. 

Yeah! Sounds a bit strange I must say ....

sounds like he needs to go to the clinic 

[dai]

Guys this thing was a test.
This is the way I saw it. I may, or may not have missed one of his windows, and he shouldn't have to pay for work if it hasn't been done, no argument there at all.
When he asked "what do you want me to do about it,"it was obvious that paying the full price was the furthest thing from his mind, when I said "don't pay", he accepted this as a fair conclusion to the matter.
He emailed me because he didn't think it was fair to pay the full price, fair enough as I said, but he didn't think for one moment that it might not be fair to me to pay nothing, after I had made a 2 mile detour, {the job is 5 miles away] and cleaned all his windows bar one.
This house is the only one I do in that area, and I only took it on in the hope of picking up some other work, in what is a nice area, that has never materialised, so the job had become a pain in the rear.
I could have said just pay me £9 instead of £10, but I gave him the chance to take advantage, and he did with both hands. As I said, a worthy dumping.

[Window Washers]

Quite a common expression in SW London...obviously not so in "miles from you" and "my own little world"...ho hum

I have never heard that expression 

[Niall McAllister]

you didn't do the job right, what's your problem.
as for your proverb, it's nothing to do with mutual benifit. you're paid to do a job, your not doing him any favour.
seems to me the guy was giving you a chance to sort it out which shows him as the good guy.
I'm sure most of us have forgotten a window at one time or another, but we don't try to shift the responsability to the cust.
  muppet

Why call him a 'muppet'? The fact you cant put an argument accross without resorting to playground name calling suggests you just might be one yourself.

if you read what i said you will find i put the argument across quite well, the "muppet" was free, like the windows, but i think the point if proven by the fact that dai's last post shows he is looking for a reason to dump the cust and hoped he would get the backing here.
just tell the guy he is too far outside your cleaning area and you can't keep him on.

[davids3511]

you didn't do the job right, what's your problem.
as for your proverb, it's nothing to do with mutual benifit. you're paid to do a job, your not doing him any favour.
seems to me the guy was giving you a chance to sort it out which shows him as the good guy.
I'm sure most of us have forgotten a window at one time or another, but we don't try to shift the responsability to the cust.
  muppet

Why call him a 'muppet'? The fact you cant put an argument accross without resorting to playground name calling suggests you just might be one yourself.

if you read what i said you will find i put the argument across quite well, the "muppet" was free, like the windows, but i think the point if proven by the fact that dai's last post shows he is looking for a reason to dump the cust and hoped he would get the backing here.
just tell the guy he is too far outside your cleaning area and you can't keep him on.

So you detracted from a reasoned argument by being rude. Why not put your argument over without the insults. Would you have said 'muppet' if he was standing face to face?

[martinsadie]

Guys this thing was a test.
This is the way I saw it. I may, or may not have missed one of his windows, and he shouldn't have to pay for work if it hasn't been done, no argument there at all.
When he asked "what do you want me to do about it,"it was obvious that paying the full price was the furthest thing from his mind, when I said "don't pay", he accepted this as a fair conclusion to the matter.
He emailed me because he didn't think it was fair to pay the full price, fair enough as I said, but he didn't think for one moment that it might not be fair to me to pay nothing, after I had made a 2 mile detour, {the job is 5 miles away] and cleaned all his windows bar one.
This house is the only one I do in that area, and I only took it on in the hope of picking up some other work, in what is a nice area, that has never materialised, so the job had become a pain in the rear.
I could have said just pay me £9 instead of £10, but I gave him the chance to take advantage, and he did with both hands. As I said, a worthy dumping.

i go to new areas for one customer when they say there is no cleaner in the hope of piking up more if this doesnt happen i get rid by passing on to a cleaner i see in that area

[Window Washers]

Guys this thing was a test.
This is the way I saw it. I may, or may not have missed one of his windows, and he shouldn't have to pay for work if it hasn't been done, no argument there at all.
When he asked "what do you want me to do about it,"it was obvious that paying the full price was the furthest thing from his mind, when I said "don't pay", he accepted this as a fair conclusion to the matter.
He emailed me because he didn't think it was fair to pay the full price, fair enough as I said, but he didn't think for one moment that it might not be fair to me to pay nothing, after I had made a 2 mile detour, {the job is 5 miles away] and cleaned all his windows bar one.
This house is the only one I do in that area, and I only took it on in the hope of picking up some other work, in what is a nice area, that has never materialised, so the job had become a pain in the rear.
I could have said just pay me £9 instead of £10, but I gave him the chance to take advantage, and he did with both hands. As I said, a worthy dumping.

i go to new areas for one customer when they say there is no cleaner in the hope of piking up more if this doesnt happen i get rid by passing on to a cleaner i see in that area

good work ethic there old lad 

[martinsadie]

shop woman asked me to clean hers at xmas,when i went got next door,got home she rung me said her mates next time,went two weeks back to do 3, ended up doing 9,still scope for more