AIBU to be annoyed about this?

[blatantplacemark]

I have my own cleaning business and have recently taken on a new client .. I go for four hour clean once a week and always on the same day of the week - a Thursday. Today would have been my fifth week

Most of my clients have given me a key and where they don't, they're always there to let me in. This client has always - to date - left me a key to her house under a plant pot when she goes out in the morning. She usually comes back at some point before midday.

Anyway I turn up today as normal and I'm there at 8.40am. I know that she leaves for school run/ other stuff at 8.15 or so. The key is not in the usual place. I try messaging her - I can't get it to send , she lives in a remote ish village with next to no network coverage. So I waited almost an hour until just gone 9.30 in case she did come back. She didn't.

I had to leave as couldn't sit outside her house all morning and I drove the seven miles back home. On getting back, my network coverage obviously returned and she'd sent me a message at 9am ( not received due to coverage issues) saying ' were you coming today? I've walked off with my keys! Anyway, have a look in the shed or the summer house, there may be a key in a shelf in one of those .. '

I replied that due to network issues in her village I'd not been able to receive her message and was now back home and unfortunately had no more flex in my day to return to her today. I've offered another day and she's not messaged me back. I sent this message to her about six hours ago now, so she's obviously annoyed with me.

Who's at fault here? I turned up at our agreed time and looked for the key in our agreed place.

WWYD? message her again? Wait for her to come back to me?

Oh good. Some sense at last ...

CAspie ... I do not like to be messed around when I turn up to do my job. Yes, of course last minute stuff crops up on both sides that can't be avoided but you tell me in what other profession you'd arrive to do your job as arranged and the other person had basically just buggered off and forgotten about you... On what planet is that acceptable? I just don't have the inclination to mess about driving a mile down the road to see if I can get a signal and then what? Call or message her and hope that she'll come back ASAP?

I'm disinclined to put up with nonsense and I just want someone to stick to our pre arranged agreement.

I truly believe that people tend to look down on cleaners and I find it fascinating. I'm in the South East and I charge top rates for my services. I do the job because it pays well, it means I'm able to collect my youngest from school and it gives me time to run my other business. I've had some hilarious comments from clients.. One woman was showing me round her house and was telling me to take great care with her Lalique ornaments. She said, and I quote ..' You won't have heard of these because they're very expensive but they're called Lalique so please take great care near them.'

I didn't like to tell her that I have a Lalique collection worth far, far in excess of her bits and pieces but I inwardly boggled that she thought that, as a cleaner, I must be hard up. Another client said has three bathrooms and as I was leaving one day I made a comment about having to go home and whizz round my own house as I'd not had time that day .. She said ' ooh at least you'll only have the one bathroom to clean, a ha ha ha '

Umm no. I have three bathrooms too. Just like you. Her face was a picture.

blatant it sound to me as if you can grow your business as big as you like.

We too charge premium rates (as you must to run a staff and stay viable) and if i could only find, hire and train staff fast enough we would be able to add regular to our schedule clients almost daily sometimes and at least two or three a week but because it takes a lot to find the staff I want we only add around six regular s per month. Now we are full I'm running a waiting list again.

You will never need any client who doesn't respect you. looking at our schedule now there are two out of the 70 who have ever treated us with a slight disdain on occasion, all the rest are adorable and have encouraged and supported our business growth. Those two we will still serve because they haven't cost us any time or money - yet. They just sometimes seem to think think we are robots and not humans. I see it as their personal issue since the majority are not like that at all, the rest are just truly grateful that someone is coming to take care of their home for them and seem to love us for it.

If I were the employer I'd be fine about what you did and expect no more. You were there on time, the key was not there, you waited a more than reasonable amount of time and then went home to get on with your day. I'd suck it up and, hopefully, learn to repeat the cock up!

Thanks for that dangly! I'm quite happy with doing 20 hours a week for now... I'm just me myself and I as I don't want to be responsible for staff and all that goes with that. It's good pay when you do it for yourself of course

Oh yes blatant staff are tricky to manage at times. I remember working by myself full time at first, i would work around the clock but by God, i was minted on the rates i charged with growth in mind, most of it was left for my wages after costs, it was a LOT.

I am enjoying growing the business though, it's my baby and I want it to work out well for the future plus I'm middle aged now and can't clean myself as much as I used to so the admin role suits me better now.

I've pm'd you by the way.