[fayellen]

Ok I'm going to have a moan!! just lately I have a few clients who have given up work and are at home when I am cleaning, for the most part they keep out of my way but school holidays are a nightmare, I have the mum the nanny two children and the nannies baby and they do not keep out of my way the nanny even says after I have mopped the floors to be careful walking over them as they will be slippy!!! grrr!! another house I have the children following me about and 'helping'
I am finding it very difficult and am seriously considering giving my notice on Monday as it is driving me mad. When the children are at school I get the odd comment of the mums like are you still in here as in cleaning a room. I have done one now for 3 years every morning and for the past year the mum has been at home, shes nice enough but I am soo bored with it. I am having a realy good long think as to giving up these two clients next week which will leave me 16 hrs down but am sure I can fill it as I have a good reputation.  Also I have heard people can be funny when you give up especially when it is to go to another client so what can I tell them? I think I will have to lie and say I am doing another part time job.  Any cleaners have this problem??
Thanks

[Missy dusty]

Excellent thread !!! Why cant people see its causes us a problem !!!
  I do like to see my customers in now and again ,but too often is a nuisance .
 I started a new clean this week , arrived , client in and chit chat for about 15 mins , I kept trying to walk away ...just wanted to get on ..but chat chat chat! When I finished ,they hadnt left the money out ..just wanted to get my money and go !But where is the client ..on the phone chat , chat chat ...waited a good 10 mins ,and eventually had to interupt the conversation ,couldnt wait any longer..felt rude , but I had another clean and a school run to do  ::)Anyway got my money , and then it was chat ,chat , chat again for ten minutes ..aarrgh!!

 Ive got another house I go to , half term theres 3 kids in the house , and nothing bugs me more when people upset your routine,.. these kids do : ,but I just grin and bear it TBH .

 Ive sometimes felt like giving up some of my cleans due to these sort of niggly problems , but hold back till something else comes up, but then I just get greedy and dont dump the other one,coz I dont wanna loose the money . :

  I do have nail buisness as well as my cleaning  ,which most of my clients know , so if I did wanna dump one I could always make some excuse up about my nail biz to get out of the clean.

Mmmm, its a difficult one ,maybe you should try and speak to the client  :-\the kids running across the wet floor is a hazzord to them ,I cant understand why the mums cant take the kids out for a couple of hours whilst your around ah ? Common sense !

Goodluck

[fayellen]

Glad I'm not the only one as for your other thread If they talk I take it out of their time. I had one on monday where I had just moved all the settees in the living room to vac,  the children came running in plonked themselves on the settee and put the tv on Grandma comes up behind them and says I hope they aren't in your way I said well i was just going to vac, she then lifted the smallest child onto the settee so I said theres not a lot I can do so i may as well go home, she said do what you want. I left half an hour early but still charged for full hours as I considered this to be realy thoughtless and not my doing.... common sense??? another actually laid me off in the school holidays as she wasn't going to be out as far as I'm concerned they SHOULD make sure they are out. 
Do you have any snotty ones or late payers?

[Missy dusty]

 Nope thankfully not  so far , although the one with the three kids does sometimes cancel in the school hols if its just for a week, which can be annoying when Ive had the decenty to book my  daughter into holiday club so I can still do their clean that week for them , and she knows I put my daughter into hol club during the hols.

[nat1]

Hi I have a couple of clients who are at home, in a way I like it as I do get too have a natter, however I do see where your coming from regarding time, out of interest do you charge per job or hour?  I also have one who has three kids at home during school hols, I still go round but if she books a two week holiday she only has me for one of the weeks .  The kids are quite good and if their hanging around one of the rooms I clean, mum tells me not to bother with cleaning it that week!.  However a new client of mine who had just had twins more or less as I started, had every man and his dog round one day including a couple of kids and it's not the biggest of kitchens, one of the children who was a tot was hovering around my cleaning materials, which I don't like for health & safety reasons & I was worried about one of the mums tripping over my vac whilst carrying her baby ARRRGH!!, but I think the most annoying part was as I was cleaning the kitchen they were leaning over me making cups of tea( no offer of 1) & generally just being bloody rude.  Im still there & visitors are at a minimum now, however trying to carry a vac over a sleeping baby on a playmat still makes me a wee bit nervous!!!


Ta Nat

[Anna Warren]

I don't mind really, no. I always have nice litte talk with my customers. And.. Am i a lucky one? Their children are so nice, sometimes I have to say how lovely their guinea pigs are (they really are, they're so cute). However, it does take less time without customers ina sign.

[fayellen]

Hi, I charge by the hour. I know about people making drinks and not offering you one then again all mine do but one.  I do have one where the children are adorable, 4 little ones and I like their mum so doesn't bother me too much there, another the children are not so likeable and don't realy speak to me, private education for you maybe? Think I maybe just getting a little fed up of cleaning!

[Missy dusty]

 Oh, does anybody mind if I have a rant and rave about a new client,came away feeling really annoyed today ,only started there last week ,these guys seem to have something against giving me a key , so I gets told the hubby will be in to let me in weekly .
  Now Ive already mentioned in this thread , about a chattey client and thats him !!! The first week I should of gone in , they cancelled coz he was ill ,went in last week, fine ..apart from the chit chat from him,and the waiting about to get my money whilst he was on the phone!
  Monday this week gets a call ,can you come in another day this week Ive got to go to a meeting  Tuesday..ok I come Wednesday @ 1.Any how originally agreed to do 3 hours every Tuesday ,last week he changed it, was alternate ..2 hours one week 3 hours the next , now hes saying Wednesdays will be better for him, but I generally can only do 2 hours then!!!

  He never left the money out today like he said he was gonna to do ,and I had to knock on his office door again to say Id finished ,but luckily this time he wasnt gassing on the phone. 

Just annoyed he expects me to work willy nilly round him when it suits,and now Im doing 2 hours on a Weds instead of 3 on a Tuesday like originally arranged  ...WHY CANT THEY JUST GIVE ME A KEY .

   Im gonna give it a few weeks see what happens,and if it starts doing my head too much , and they definatly dont wanna give me a key , I ll be givin them a miss.

Ps: Thanx for listening.

[scrubberz]

loving this post all, i have one client who has four children and both parents work from home so in school holidays it can be a nightmare, that said on normal weeks when the kids are at schools they are one of the best most thoughtful customers i have so i will continue to gin and bare it 

[suffolkclean]

For all the reasons above - we will not do regular domestic cleaning biggest pain in the a*** 

[Missy dusty]

Well sposse no jobs perfect  Just the way I see it I had enough of working for an annoying boss,now I work for my self I have to put up with annoying clients.Sposse its just the joy s of working with the public ah 

[nat1]

Hi Suffolk Clean, is your main work commercial? do you encounter alot of probs with this line of work?


Ta Nat

[fayellen]

Missy dusty they sound like a right pain, I think I would either say to them you need a key or are giving up!! If they started messing you about on the second week they will continue to do so I would put money on it. I have one who doesn't always leave my money and it has been like that for a year now I put up with it but only because she's one of my highest payers. Let us know how you get on.

[Gav Camm lammy 283]

hse and all that makes you wonder but if youre struggling for a w/c gizza shout good luck

[joANE]

oooo thanks people for confirming i,m not going completly gaga..had all of the problems mentioned in your posts and am ashamed to say i did really loose it (well for me anyway!) one week in the summer term i just kinda exploded with the lady of the house about what chaos it was and i was trying to work it was blooming dangerous too but they are so not into cleaning it doesnt occur to them,,until an accident happens maybe then its us that goes away feeling to blame. currently battling with dirty nappies being left over the house,on the stairs,utside the room im working in as if to say 'here  deal with them'and actually i have given notice ive had enough of this particular place they dont really engage with me..and yep fayellen ive fibbed a bit! i cant say look i hate it here so much that ive been known to cry when i walk in..now i know im on my last legs there ive got a much lighter feeling about it. i havent got a replacement but i have got an enquiry which is taking longer than expected but even so sometimes we have to have faith in ourselves and  i do know about the money thing..ive put this off for so long cos of money. I do like reading other cleaners stories tho.

[GWCS]

ok this sounds strange BUT seeing that most of your problems are holidays - why dont you charge extra when you take them on for school holiday working.

explain the reasons why for what most you you have put - children/visitors etc in the way so you are unable to work .. obviously put across sympathetically. Also explain you are there to clean for them not to chat - so you dont mind chatting but they must be prepared to pay for it and expect work not to get done.

Or dont work for them during the holidays. ( i guess that may sound easier than doing it)

Payment as you turn up or paid into your bank account (on time).

Set some T&C's and stick to them.

Personally im a WC, but i find cleaning during holidays hard as kids in the gardens playing with the dog.. extremely annoying as all sorts of stuff in the way and very unsafe for all! I generally miss homes like that - and take the opportunity to put out more flyers.