Cleaner driving me mad!

Hi I've been a housecleaner for 20 years. Obviously this is unacceptable however it may be worth giving your cleaner another chance. Remind her you have a ring camera that notifies you of all comings and goings and to be sure to stay for the correct times. Regarding missed tasks, anyone can clean but not everyone can do it well. Best to always leave a list of tasks you want doing. It's a nuicsnxe but maybe type and print out some lists? Some agencies will have tick sheets on their website. Long term i would look for someone else who has more respect for you. Also never pay cash. Always use bank transfer. She's avoiding tax and benefits reduction and your being complicit I'm afraid.

If she cleaned today then don't pay her and tell her to take the money from the £50 deposit for the deep clean!

was going to suggest the same

tell her you can’t afford the deep clean so just a normal clean that you’ve paid for already and then only after the clean let her know you’re stopping services - simple enough to say you’re having to cit back and cost of living etc if you don’t want confrontation

What about ask to postpone the deep clean, get her to do a normal clean for the $50. Then tell her due to her standards dropping you won’t need her services again.

15 an hour is decent. I paid that

25 an hour? Maybe tell her after the deep clean or she’ll do less. Just text her. I won’t be carryong on…

No .... Tell her AFTER the deep clean, not before. Deposit is already paid.

London is one of the cheapest places to hire a cleaner. I have my own theories as to why, but it's not important. I know someone who lives in inner London and pays almost half what I do. I really don't care, because having a cleaner is a commitment and a very intimate process...those of us who give keys to other people and let them have free reign of our homes put ourselves in an incredibly vulnerable situation.

It wouldn't matter what my cleaner did, or how disappointed / let down / p*ed off I felt, there's no way I'd tell them. I would simply find a reason never to have them back. At the end of the day, I'm sacking them off, and telling them why won't enhance my life - if anything it could make it a whole lot worse, because I'd expect them to exercise their right to reply.

Added to which, you never know when you might need them to come back, or at the least bump into them in the supermarket - that's going to be awkward & a half. My mother told me it's important in this life never to burn bridges, and I live by that.

OP - your problem is you want to sack your cleaner, so find a way. Shoulder all the blame if you have to. But don't make your situation harder by off-loading all your dissatisfaction about the service she'd provided on to her. At best it will only make her sit up & improve for all her other clients. But not you.

@WickedlyCharmed 🤣🤣🤣

Cleans up all the dirt she’s allowed to build up by being a shit cleaner.

What does she do for a deep clean?

£50!!!!!!

we used to pay £30 for two hours earlier this year. I wouldn’t be paying more than that

Great idea!

Honestly you are overthinking this. It is business - you're not sacking off a friend. She loses and gains clients all the time.

As long as you phrase it as alalalala suggested or similar it will be fine. For all she knows you can't afford a cleaner any more, have got addicted to Fly Lady videos, or have entered a BDSM relationship and make your sub. clean your house.

Ask her can you swap the £50 as payment for the next 2 hour clean as you decided against the deep clean. Let her do the 2 hour clean but be there so she doesn't leave early, and then tell her she is no longer needed.

I'd tell her after the deep clean in January and the off the money she owes you for leaving early on last clean.

£25/hour? Gosh that's steep and I live in London!
If she's leaving early and cutting fitness - her time is up. Do you have a notice period? I'd give her notice asap (either deep clean in place), or after she's done that if no notice period. Just say you don't need her anymore. You don't have to make up some excuse.

Absolutely not which is why I’m not a cleaner. However, it’s way more than the going rate. No need to attack me on that one though, I’m not the one setting it.

Would you spend 2 hours cleaning someone’s house for £50….less tax, supplies, transport, sick pay, insurance, holiday pay?
I think I know most peoples answer to this.

Be there when she does the deep clean and ask for your key back.

If she’s not cleaning properly I wouldn’t want to give her £140 in January to do a half arsed job which I could do myself, so I would let her know I no longer need her services and loose the deposit. If you want to give a reason tell her she’s not cleaning properly and you’re having to go over it which defeats the point of having a cleaner.

I'd message and ask why the clean was short today and why so and so hadn't been done. You are paying for a service, not doing her a favour. She's cutting it short because she can; you won't bring it up or she thinks you don't know. Keep her booked for January as you've already paid, and then go from there. If you feel awkward or anxious, just say your circumstances have changed.

I honestly don’t even understand why this is hard. After the january clean send her a message saying ‘Thanks for the deep clean, I have just settled the bill. We’ve decided not to carry on with cleaning services going forward. Many thanks for your help to date.’

I’m not sure how it could be more complicated or difficult than that.

What the poster WickedlyCharmed wrote - you could text about deducting the unworked paid time. You are right and they are in the wrong. If it gets nasty just think you’ve saved £90 from the deep clean hassle.