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Dishonest Housekeeper and cleaners

7 replies

KipseyDoser · 11/01/2019 20:38

The housekeeper I have used for X years has her own cleaning company and professional laundry facilities and is meant to take the laundry from all the holiday homes she manages and do it in her laundry, iron the sheets and return the linen and towels. This is what I agreed with her at the outset and have reiterated to her on a number of subsequent occasions suspecting this was not what she was doing. Also, sometimes the towels are like sandpaper when she dries them on lines, plus bird poo on linen, though this wouldn't bother me so much in my own home, my holiday home is 5 star and guests pay top GBP and don't want crusty poo linen and this is not what I pay her to do. I have specifically told her not to dry my laundry on the line. Other tell-tale sign was washing machine was rocking on three legs so I knew it was getting some pretty heavy usage above and beyond what guests might do and the I was getting through laundry tabs at a rate. My neighbour confirmed my suspicions. Neighbour reckons Housekeeper was doing other people laundry in my machines too. She is definitely doing ALL my laundry in my machines which are for guest use only, using my electricity, wear and tear on my machines and is even using the fabric wash that is labelled "for guests' use only". I have recently installed a CCTV cameras, including one in the laundry room which the housekeeper moves every time she uses my laundry facilities, thinking I won't know what she is up to, but still caught one cleaner filling her pockets with my laundry tabs. My neighbour keeps adjusting the camera back for me and the Housekeeper keeps moving it. Though the camera is currently pointing at the ceiling(!), it has audio so I can hear my machines being loaded, running, being unloaded numerous times and even heard the cleaners commenting on how they have overloaded the machines, how hot the tight bundle of sheets is, and they don't do this to their machines at home! I am gobsmacked! It goes without saying that this Housekeeper and her team will be dismissed ASAP. Sensible suggestions about how to deal with this rather tricky to deal with lady please. Her charges are in line with what other truly professional laundry companies charge. I have paid her approx £2,500-£3,000 for laundering since engaging her. I am happy to pay the labour for loading and unloading my machines and for the ironing but think what I have lost in the cost of fabric wash tabs, wear and tear and electricity probably cancels those costs out ... sensible suggestions please.

OP posts:
SuperLoudPoppingAction · 12/01/2019 09:54

So are you looking to recover the money through small claims court?

If you can afford to lose it, the second option would be just writing an honest review of her service on any media she uses.

LittleLongDog · 12/01/2019 09:59

Are you suggesting you ask for money back or not paying her next pay cheque?

I would dismiss her certainly and make sure other holiday home owners that you know are aware of her.

Panicwiththebisto · 12/01/2019 10:22

Make sure she can't access your property and get any keys off her/change key codes.

Find a new housekeeper and laundry service.

I don't know what to advise re recovering money etc.

flugelhorn811 · 12/01/2019 10:28

Oh gosh OP I would be absolutely furious. Not sure if this is the sensible solution but I'd be tempted to sit her down and show her the footage you've recorded, and then explain that you're terminating her contract. Not sure what to suggest about recovering costs but I'd certainly want to pursue it - whether or not it would be worth it financially I'm not sure.

Disfordarkchocolate · 13/01/2019 07:05

I'd send her a copy of the audio recording and look at how to cancel the contract, I wouldn't be shy about telling the truth if anyone asked either. Good luck.

KipseyDoser · 14/01/2019 09:00

Thanks for your comments. I think I have gone soft over the years and find doing the confronting thing very difficult. I am going to woman-up and arrange a meeting with her in coming weeks, which I'll record of course! Will post the outcome.

OP posts:
Celticrose · 14/01/2019 09:07

Could you not go and actually catch her in the act. Your neighbour can alert you when she is up to her shennnigans

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