customer texted after husband got home

[sassyotto]

new customer that was referred by another customer. Gave me garage code. went in and cleaned. Texted her I was done and would lock up. She gets home and texts the carpet looks great. Then about a half hour later texts that her husband came home and saw that the stair side posts were all banged up. I said there was no way that I could have done that since I use hose guards that are 21 inches tall so even if any of my equipment did touch those areas, the bottom 21 inches would show no damage.

I just hate being accused of something, especially how picky I am.

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[SamIam]

Well the vacuum line can contract and ride up, usually not like that

 

[sassyotto]

Well the vacuum line can contract and ride up, usually not like that

not the way I clean, and in that house the vac hose would not have touched that corner as the front door is to the left side of the steps and the hose ran up the left side of the stairway along the carpet. That post is on the right side of the steps. I did clean the first floor to the right of that post so the vac hose would never have touched that side of the post and again would have run along the floor.

If there was ANY chance I would damage a customers home I would let them know as soon as I find out. But this is impossible

 

[Jim Pemberton]

We (customers/service providers/aging trainer-suppliers) all become “blind” to what we should see every day...

....until something different happens and it gets our attention.

Back when I was on my 30s and often traveling, I came home to notice a broken wheel cover on my wife’s car. Her father (a fellow I never warmed up to) had told her to have her brakes fixed at the place he liked, instead of the place I preferred.

So of course I immediately blamed “his guys”.

Then my wife reminded me that months earlier, she had slid into a curb in icy weather and the damage occurred then. I had remembered the event, saw the damage, and completely forgotten.

Sadly, this characteristic of human nature means that we have to be borderline paranoid in inspecting where we clean for anything for which we might be blamed.

First time customers who have not yet developed a trust in us are the ones with whom we need to be most careful.

*We go through the same thing when we fix truck mounts. The machine and entire van interior can look and smell like a trash dumpster, but the smallest scratch becomes the fault of our repairman.

 

[hogjowl]

I’d just walked into a house and was standing in the LR talking to the guy. My son had just walked by with the first section of vacuum hose and the dude pointed out a scratch in his wood floor.

 

[Kenny Hayes]

To my point, I can't imagine having
to deal with multi truck residential operation in a city. Hats off to Brian and CJ of Stanley. No wonder Brian has the same amount of hair by the looks of things as me and younger.

 

[Matt Middleton]

not the way I clean, and in that house the vac hose would not have touched that corner as the front door is to the left side of the steps and the hose ran up the left side of the stairway along the carpet. That post is on the right side of the steps. I did clean the first floor to the right of that post so the vac hose would never have touched that side of the post and again would have run along the floor.

If there was ANY chance I would damage a customers home I would let them know as soon as I find out. But this is impossible

Bummer.

 

[they live]

I’d just walked into a house and was standing in the LR talking to the guy. My son had just walked by with the first section of vacuum hose and the dude pointed out a scratch in his wood floor.

I would tell him I could fix it for him for a fee since its preexisting.
He was waiting to blame it on someone or he wouldn't have seen it.

 

[sassyotto]

I’d just walked into a house and was standing in the LR talking to the guy. My son had just walked by with the first section of vacuum hose and the dude pointed out a scratch in his wood floor.

and you said.......

 

[hogjowl]

I reminded him that I’d been standing there the whole time and the scratch was 10 feet away from the area my son had just walked through. That made him realize he’d misread the situation.

 

[sassyotto]

UPDATE!!!
I texted the lady early this morning and said I would be happy to show her my equipment and go through step by step how I cleaned so that she could see that there would be no way I could have done that damage. She texted back that her son stopped by while I was cleaning (I never saw him) saw how I was set up and told her that it was highly unlikely that it was caused by me. In addition, the cleaning ladies were there the day before and may have done it.

Big sigh of relief

 

[sassyotto]

I reminded him that I’d been standing there the whole time and the scratch was 10 feet away from the area my son had just walked through. That made him realize he’d misread the situation.

lucky you were there!

In over 40 years of cleaning I have bumped things or scratched something and always told the customer right away. So this really threw me. I remember one time I bumped a ceramic giraffe and broke a leg. Thought I was cooked. She turned the giraffe upside down and the sticker from the garage sale was still on it. $5

 

[Kenny Hayes]

Not me. One of my cleaners knocked over a vase with a long a, it turned into a vase with a short a. I've told the story. It became an insurance claim.

 

[hogjowl]

lucky you were there!

In over 40 years of cleaning I have bumped things or scratched something and always told the customer right away. So this really threw me. I remember one time I bumped a ceramic giraffe and broke a leg. Thought I was cooked. She turned the giraffe upside down and the sticker from the garage sale was still on it. $5

I broke a lamp once and owned up to it right off. The lady told me it was a $200 lamp. I texted a picture of it to my wife asking her if she thought she could find one to match. She texted me right back telling me they were $35 at Walmart. My wife had the lamp there before I finished the job.

 

[Dwain Ray]

I was working at a local inn one time and there was an antique table in the corner with a antique ceramic wash basin and matching pitcher setting on it. I remember thinking to myself, i should move the ceramics off the table before i moved it. Of course i didn't. I did successfully move it without breaking anything. However when i went to set it down in the middle of the room it toppled over and broke the ceramics into several pieces. Apparently the table was a 4 legged table with only three legs and was propped up in the corner with a missing leg. Fortunately i didn't have to pay for it but from that point on i dont move furniture unless its free of anything that can fall off or break