AIBU to tell her to fuck off if she can't afford it?

[cleanerlondon1]

So I’m advertising on the next door app for my cleaning services, and this woman decides to send me a long message saying ‘how dare I charge £13 an hour, when the going rate is £8-9 ‘ ‘ people can’t afford it, and I’m being unfair’.

I just feel like there’s millions of cleaners out there advertising, and if she can find one she can afford she should go for that. Why send me a message complaining about the price? I could understand if it was £50 an hour or something like that. I even offered her a discount and said I’d do it for £10 an hour for her first clean, but no she wanted it under a tenner

I’m in East London btw, and I know people here charge £12-13 an hour.

I pay £14 an hour and tip a tenner. It is properly hard graft and I respect her as a professional who cleans far better than I ever have. But that’s besides the point, you could charge £200 an hour and it would be entirely up to you.

You could charge a million pounds an hour and you'd still be well within your rights. Nobody is being forced to pay for your services.

I’m in nw London - I pay £15p/h but she does ironing too and I trust her to have keys so it’s well worth it for me.

Unreasonable? No.

Unprofessional? Definitely.

Just ignore and block. You don't need to "win her over" or anyone else. Do your due diligence with your business and it will grow.

Prices vary from area to area, I'm in Bedfordshire and we pay around £14 ph so I'm amazed it's £11 in London.

But then, really good cleaners here are like gold dust so...

Life’s too short to get worked up about this. Forget about it and concentrate on your wonderful business

Do'nt try to win her or any client over!

You quote your prices, if it's too much, say you understand and wish them luck finding someone else that fits their budget, that your rates aren't negotiable.

If you discount it the first time, cheeky fuckers will think you can always do it for that rate.

Find clients who think they've got a good deal at £13 ph, not that they are being ripped off.

I charge £15ph for babysitting, and get lectured on how extreme that is quite a lot. But I would personally rather earn more for fewer hours of work in nicer houses because my clients are insanely rich . I do recommend other sitters with lower rates to families who can't afford me though.

when the going rate is £8-9 ‘ ‘ people can’t afford it

In London? Sounds like someone trolling advertisers!

Block and ignore, don't waste time engaging. The idea of a fixed price "morning" for a first session might be worth doing but not at that price.

TBH in London, cleaners fill up their books quickly by word of mouth. Mine has a waiting list!

I think £13 an hour is entirely reasonable. I don’t know anyone round my way who charges under £10ph. I live in Bristol and charge minimum of £15ph (I supply my own materials and have full PL insurance). There are cheaper cleaners out there but I won’t do it for less. It’s bloomin’ hard work as you know.

Don’t undersell yourself 🙂

“It’s unfair and people can’t afford it”

If they can’t afford it, don’t get a cleaner??? Clean your place yourself... IMO having a cleaner is a luxury.. don’t gave one atm as trying to save some money and it’s cheeky to message someone giving them sh!t over their rates

People can see your rate - they don’t have to hire you 🤷🏼‍♀️

London living wage is £10.55 so you definitely shouldn’t be charging less than that.

London living wage is £10.55 so you definitely shouldn’t be charging less than that

Why not?

I would ignore.... failing that, if you feel you must communicate you could say something like' thank you for your interest in my services, I'm sorry I could not accommodate your request at this time, however there are many other local companies that should be able to fulfill your needs. Kindest regards blah blah blah...

Keep it simple and courteous.
No need to ruffle feathers even if you want to burn them off.

"Good afternoon,
This is the first complaint I have had, although I would like to thank you for tour feedback and will take this into consideration should I find I struggle to find work. In the meantime if you do wish to use my services for my standard rate of £13 an hour, £10 for your first clean, please do not hesitate to contact me on XXXX"

Professionalism always wins.

I paid our cleaner 15 quid an hour (south east london) a good cleaner is hard to come by and if you know are good, charge it lady! Always know your worth x