[M.Acorn]

Was doing a small £65 job in the old mill just down the road from me ! top floor is split between 2 penthouses,the normal flats are pretty executive,concierge etc very swanky and upmarket,used to be an old paper mill and printing works,late 18th early 19th cent,lot`s of old black and white pics of the place in it`s heyday,the phone number was St ives 2  ,while i was on my way down in the lift i got chatting to a guy who lived in the penthouse,would i mind going and doing him a quote ! He had my buis card,which i leave a stack of in the local petrol station,7 jobs in the last 2 months from that !

The place was amazing,furnished like Buck palace,very very well laid out,amazing views of the river and open countryside,not a huge place but job is worth £350,i don`t hike my prices just because people are minted,as people with money can be tight in my experience..

He said he will call me in a couple of weeks time,fine i thought......My 6th sense was giving me the weird something is not right feeling,so i just got home and did a google on him....My god he is a very naughty boy ! He obtained 11 loans from 8 different lenders ,without declaring he was bankrupt,total of £290 grand for that,no monies have been paid back !
Then another one where he obtained over 400 grand from close friends,for phoney business deals,he also took money from his kids godparnets,and close family friends,for more fake business deals,that never came to light.He served 2 and a half years for that one !
Still no monies have been paid back !

I am going to be upfront with him and ask for Cash,before i go anywhere near the job !
In 2 minds wether to say yes when he calls !

[Shaun_Ashmore]

I'd bin him, he'll not be a long term customer and worse he'll not bat an eye lid about not paying the cleaner, only thing it will give you is sleepness nights.

Shaun

[M.Acorn]

Think you might be right,think he would be very shifty,prob try and say i broke or damaged something,to try and con money out of me 


Unfit Conduct
A second bankruptcy order was made against xxxxxxx, hereinafter referred to as “Mr xxxxxx”, on 14 April 1998. Mr xxxxx remains undischarged from these proceedings (i) Between 7 January 2005 and 10 April 2006, and contrary to Section 360 (1) of The Insolvency Act 1986, Mr xxxxx obtained eleven loans totalling £290,100 from eight different lenders without disclosing that he was an un-discharged bankrupt. (ii) That, in respect of 10 of the loans obtained in (i) above amounting to £278,100,  xxxxx provided false and misleading information as to the purpose for which the loan monies were to be used. No monies have been repaid in respect of the loans at (i) above.   

[Shaun_Ashmore]

You get those feelings from Claims culture people with the questions they ask you, you can focus your efforts on new and present customers as you wouldn't if someone robbed £350 from you.

Shaun

[clinton]

Mark

Ask him if hes going to pay cash etc.Some work i do here in a few clubs and pubs are run by some guys from my gym and people dont mess them around but you know they always pay there bills.

[Doctor Carpet (Ret'd)]

Mark I would steer well clear if you don't feel happy. 6th senses are normally correct.

As a matter of interest, you are normally discharged from bankruptcy after one year nowadays. (It used to be 6 years upto 1986.)

Apart from a few specific circumstances, once you are discharged you do not have to tell somebody you are a discharged bankrupt.

You are also once again entitled to apply for credit but whether you get it or not is another matter as lenders will be "once bitten twice shy" and there will still be references to your lending history on your credit files.

Finally, did you know that you can be made bankrupt for as little as £750 and that a dead person can be made bankrupt..........not that they are likely to care

[M.Acorn]

Yep,think i am going to go with my gut on this one.It`s the first time i have googled a customer since i started up 5 yrs !
And it was kind of the result from google i was expecting,weird !
Not sure what to tell him when he calls though ? Prob something along the lines of my insurance won`t cover me for any mistakes,and don`t wanna risk my reputation.
It was a lot of money,total of 8oo thou ,400 from friends and family too ! he is not going to bat an eyelid at a claim against a lowly carpet cleaner,there was so much antique furniture,and other very expensive stuff up there,it`s right up in the eves of the roof,so large sections of carpet to clean without much headroom,all i would have to do is knock something,or not put a furniture pad under right.

Just found out the building was used by Clive sinclair when he first started up,lot`s of history

[clinton]

Mark

That clive guy made the little buggy

[Joe H]

The Sinclair C5 wasnt it?

Saw 2 on the back of a trailer couple weeks ago in Warrington.

[Doctor Carpet (Ret'd)]

Friend of mine bought a C5 on ebay and is doing it up. Really looking forward to having a go in it

[clinton]

There becoming a cult buy i guess

[M.Acorn]

I did have one of his watches when i was younger,inherited it from my grandfather,it was the black plastic one with the red numbers.Think i swapped it with a mate for something useless,like football stickers or something..
This is a pic from other side of the river,see what i mean about the roof space,amazing views of the surrounding countryside




Don`t think you could get to the top with a tm though

[derek west]

now theres an idea
barge mounted carpet cleaning,
derek

[M.Acorn]

Ha Ha yeah filter the water from the river,wouldn`t need a tank 

[kevin sparrow]

Mark

Your undisclosed customer would'nt be Sir Fred Goodwin would it?

[M.Acorn]

Nope not him ! is he from round this way then ?

[derek west]

"barge carpet cleaners"

"making your carpets look boatiful"

derek

[M.Acorn]

Have worked on a few house boats,had really bad leccy probs,had to not use the heater as it kept tripping the power off.

[M.Acorn]

When i say house boat it was kinda like a static caravan plonked ontop of a floating base 
There are loads of them round here,loads of marinas etc,don`t have to pay council tax if you live on a boat 

[clinton]

Sounds a nice life not sure in the winter mind you