to get rid of cleaner because she won't accept a bank transfer?

[changers5]

She's really nice, I like her, does a decent job, but she always wants cast and charges £17.50 each time she's here. I have a 3 month old and am very disorganised/exhausted. I almost always forget to get money out for her and end up having to make an early morning trip to the shops (which are miles away as I'm rural). She's through an agency so pays taxes and isn't tax dodging, but just won't accept me putting money in her account. She wants cash. That's fair enough but it's a PITA for very disorganised me... would it be harsh to get rid of her and hire someone else for this reason alone?

thatmustbe my son's 82 year old violin teacher doesn't take cards. She is very good, and local so there is no way I'd go somewhere else because "this is the modern world and I don't carry cash". If I had that attitude my son would be missing out! How about being a bit flexible? (Pun not intended )

@Imnotswallowingthat exactly! There's so much naivety on this thread.

I'm also agog at those suggesting op should just pay £20 cash to the 'poor' cleaner!!! The cleaner earns more than me!! I'm obviously in the wrong job.

And again, op lives no where near a cash machine and doesn't even drive!

But Daisies would she take a cheque (I'm old world in that way) or let you do bank transfer to her account for a term's fees in one go?

Every bloody bank branch has closed in our suburb. Maybe Prezzo or the nail bars could start doing a sideline in cash points...

I don't think so Ovienna, paying in advance is inconvenient in case she needs to cancel a lesson. Also I find cash a lot easier than wtiting a cheque. I like cash, so convenient!

I can't afford a cleaner but if I could I certainly wouldn't be happy with paying cash. I would want to be able to set up a standing order and forget about it.

OP has a husband who is presumably sufficiently organised to draw some cash out of an ATM, perhaps you should just delegate this to him, OP?

YABVVU and could do with checking your privilege if I'm quite honest.

There have been a couple of posts like this, and I'm left wondering whether the posters live in the real world.

I'm self employed doing a service (not cleaning, but similar). If any aspect of what I do isn't working then of course the person paying me is welcome to find someone else more convenient!

The obvious undertone that anyone cleaning is somehow a charity case who the OP would be plunging into poverty by ceasing to give her business to is really quite offensive.

YANBU, op. If finding a cleaner is easy where you live then just get another one.

If your that disorganised how will you remember to pay? Honestly you need to sort yourself out. Your next cleaner could be rubbish..... remember that!

£17.50 x 4 organised once a month!

Really difficult .... not!

She was offering to pay a monthly by standing order! From what I saw up thread. Not weekly.

I'll have to be honest and say the possibility of tax avoidance/benefits fraud doesn't bother me. What others choose to do, or not do isn't that interesting to me.

The obvious undertone that anyone cleaning is somehow a charity case who the OP would be plunging into poverty by ceasing to give her business to is really quite offensive.

I agree. I'm not a cleaner so have no axe to grind, but it implies that you would need to be desperate to do the job. Some people love cleaning, it can also be very flexible, always is demand, can't be outsourced to a foreign country and is great for people who enjoy their own company. I have a friend who left a decent job in financial services to become a self employed cleaner and loves it. She has time to get DC to school in between jobs, is always in great demand and lives in a bigger (always immaculate) house than me! She charges £20 an hour and people are lining up to pay it.

I get this will probably be a 'cancel the cheque' thread (skimmed), but if you pay £20 & say 'so that's £2.50 change you owe me, but if it's easier I can just give you £15 next week, or I'll give you £20 each week for 3 weeks then a tenner the 4th week, whichever you prefer' then surely that's problem solved?

She's getting her £17.50 & advance payment on next week, so all good?

I think it's reasonable for her to ask for cash, but then the onus is on her either to make change, or, if she doesn't have it, accept that you've paid a bit towards next week in advance.

If that wasn't good enough I think I'd be looking at making other arrangements.

I pay my housekeeper daily & quite often say 'sorry I've no change so this is for tomorrow as well'. On the one occasion I couldn't give her cash - I was out & had tasked teenage ds with paying her, & the local atm was broken - she wasn't happy, which is fair enough, so I rang a neighbour to pop the cash round.

But if you pay her at least what she's owed & possibly some in advance, I don't see the problem.

If it's 15 miles to the nearest cashpoint, and she comes from the next village over, then there's your reason she'd prefer cash! It's a hassle for her to get to a cashpoint too.

Can't your husband draw out cash once a month and pop it into envelopes for you to give to her? Him working away mid week doesn't prevent him helping you.

My cleaner gets cash x

And is £12 hour

No one has cash what a ridiculous statement, lots of people still prefer to use cash . I work in a shop & most of our transactions are cash, people use cash all the time. I pay my DS’s tutor cash every week, I give my DS cash for his school lunches every week, I put cash in the Church collection every week, I am paying cash to someone who is doing work in my home. I give cash as presents at Christmas.

Yes, lots of banks have closed where I live but I just have to be organised & think ahead to get cash.

If you can’t organise yourself to get cash, find a new cleaner.

What plain says

The "cash is for the luddites" attitude annoys me too.

Small businesses pay a levy on debit card transactions - why can't you (customer) carry a small amount of cash around with you to buy a packet of chewing gum or a single coffee?

How do you give a tip, a donation to a charity tin, pay money you owe to a friend without cash? Sure you can do your friend a bank transfer but then you need to ask for her bank details, log in to your bank app, do the transfer. Just hand over a £20 or whatever!

Sure, we're moving over to a cashless society but we aren't quite there yet. Those who never have cash on them are just as inflexible as those who only deal in cash.

I always think, when people say they don't carry cash - Who are you? the fecking Queen?

regardless of the cleaner issue if you have no car and its 15 miles to town it is ridiculous not to have cash in the house, what if electric goes off the village shop won't be able to take card but you could get your bread and milk with cash,
what if has happened at least 3 times in past year one or other of the banks systems go tits up and you can't withdraw cash or use your card you are just stuck
in your situation you are hardly likely to be in crime central so having £100 somewhere at home for emergencies would be just sensible

The agency are paying the tax for the cleaner, she's not a tax evader.

We can't just assume that the cleaner is hoping to get £20/week instead of £17.50.

Could your husband get the money out OP?

Could you ask the cleaner to make sure she brings change and just go once a month to the cashpoint?

Yanbu OP
I know the PITA that is bus fare change etc
and I can see that over paying to round it up to £20 is more convenient, but it’s not right that you are being coerced into tipping like that.
For you, having this cleaner is the opposite of making your life easier.