What to do about window cleaner

[GlummyMcGlummerson]

Had a card through my door advertising window cleaning by "Steve". Been looking for a window cleaner for a while and thought great! I text the number to ask for a price explaining I'm in a 3-bed semi with 10 windows in total etc. He replied to say he'll "come round tonight at 8pm to have a look" . I said "sorry what do you mean" - he wants to come inside the house to check the layout! A window cleaner!! I've said no and I'll just leave it. I'm a single mum with 2 kids, I don't let anyone in the house unless they're family or friends.

WWYD - this is dodgy right? And not normal? Do I report him?!

Just asked DH who had a small window cleaning business for many years when he was younger. He says no need to go inside to look even if customer wants them done on inside.....if you know where they are on the outside you can have a pretty good idea where they are inside...just go towards the light...look for the bit that isn’t wall..etc etc. He’s still calling out comments...find the curtains, the windows won’t be far away.. I’m going to get this all day now

Are you sure you understood correctly? It's quite reasonable that he won't quote over the phone without seeing the job. He needs to look round the outside to see about access etc.

I think it's an over-reaction to report him at this stage.

I'd cancel.and ask my neighbor's who they use. Ours quoted for a full clean - windows, gutters, fascia etc on a pic back and front.

Hmm shouldn't need to come in to give quote unless only way to access back windows is through the property? But who on earth are you reporting him to? Surely you don't mean the police

Yeah that’s absolute bollocks he doesn’t need to see the layout to confirm which windows need doing. Maybe make your local pco aware as this sounds dodgy as hell.

Why shouldn't she report to the police it is really dodgy no window cleaner needs to come in the house to give a quote.nobody has suggested the op dial 999.

Ours asked how many windows and quoted us 16 quid.
Another in our old house said approx 15 to 20. Agreed to do the first one for 15 and asked for 18 For subsequent ones which I thought was fair.

Do you have an average-sized house? How frequently does s/he come? How long do they take? Do you live in 'the posh bit' of Knightsbridge?!

I'm not denigrating the job that window cleaners do, but every one that I've seen only seems to spend a couple of minutes (if that) at each window, with a squeegee and a bucket of soapy water. Maybe 20 minutes at each house? Other than the pressurised pole thing to do upstairs without a ladder, what do they do that you couldn't easily do yourself?

From what I read on MN, house cleaners don't charge that much per hour, and their work involves scrubbing, contending with dirty toilets, working around furniture and possibly clutter etc. Why does a window cleaner potentially earn 4-5 times more than a cleaner? Is it just because most cleaners are female and most window cleaners are male, so the latter deem themselves worthy of much more?

Each to their own, but considering that most people don't feel the need to have the budget to employ window cleaners, that sounds like a huge amount to pay.

Regardless of price, though, this sounds fishy as anything. 8pm is late to expect to come to a stranger's house, but even if it was 2pm, as PPs have said, why ever does he need to look inside? It's much easier to survey the windows by walking around outside than from inside, having to open and close doors and go from room to room.

At best, he's hoping to put a lot of pressure on you to enable him to secure the business and make you feel unable to say No or Maybe, rather than looking around outside, leaving you with a quote and saying "Just give me a call if you want to go ahead" (maybe he's asking for an unusually high price). At worst, well....

most people don't feel the need to have the budget to employ window cleaners

don't feel the need OR have the budget

Also, bold-fail.

God no, and I am ashamed to say as a single parent that I have lied and said my 'partner' in conversations.

No way, woukd Steve be coming indoors at all and especially not at night.

I've just got a window cleaner - they drove past the house to give me a quote (front only as back garden not accessible).

Sounds well dodgy, does he think he's in the 1970s porno....'what the window cleaner saw'😱

Laughing at the suggestion that I live in a mansion. Both modest sized 4 bed houses. Last one had a conservatory. This one doesn't. They use the pumped water thing. I am here whilst they are. Takes about 20 minutes maybe. Others might pay 6 quid for theirs. Good for them. I don't think it's a huge amount to either charge or pay. Can't see that they are making more than a modest living out of it! Blimey. Apologies for having windows and paying someone to do it. I don't have a cleaner so couldn't comment on the relative cost.

Weird as hell.

Looking at access and any problems ie conservatories blocking access to upstairs windows totally normal, inside your house? Absolutely not.

Report him, to whom? The Federation Of Window Cleaners?

Sounds very dodgy, I've had three different window cleaners over the years, not one of them has been inside to quote.

@VeganVeal

Report him, to whom? The Federation Of Window Cleaners?

It might be useful for the police to know if, for example, there was a spate of burglaries at houses he had visited. They wouldn't necessarily need to take any immediate action.

That seems odd, inside your house has absolutely no bearing on anything he would need to do. Ours just asked how many windows we have, said it would be £8 (£1 a window) unless we had anything like a conservatory, which we don't, and that was it.

How does Steve know that you don't have a burly boxing champ of a husband, 3 Rottweilers and 2 large teenagers.

It's a weird thing to ask, no doubt about that but not related to you being a single mum (unless for reason you told him that)

Are you sure he meant inside op? They do come and check the layout but they walk round outside and then give a quote. What did he say exactly?

Ask the neighbours if they've had a leaflet, and if Steve has offered to come and look inside their houses.

But if he is only cleaning the outside of the windows, he doesn't need to come inside. Does he think he is cleaning inside and outside?

Another vote for no here! A window cleaner definitely does not need to come inside the house!

I actually would report him to the police. Imagine if he's doing this with elderly or vulnerable people who naively let him in their homes.

Well @WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll I would not ask my cleaner to get up on a ladder outside my house, that's why I have a window cleaner.
His hourly rate is a bit more than hers but not by much, he's usually here for 40-50 minutes and he brings equipment with him and pays for his own products.
He also does not come as frequently as an indoor cleaner would.

Definitely not a mansion by the way.

Well the non dramatic answer here is that you didn't specify the outsides only. If he thinks he's quoting for insides as well, then coming inside is necessary. If, once you make it clear it's outsides only & he still says he needs to come inside then definitely report him to the police.