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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To refuse to pay for 12 hours of cleaning

112 replies

Lightningboltblue · 27/07/2022 20:29

I am disputing an invoice from a house cleaner. For reference I have used the same company twice, at my mums address and had a rough idea what I should be charged. I’m based in Notts and they charge £22 PH for a deep clean.

They are claiming that it took two cleaners 6 hours each to deep clean my home (it DEFINITELY wasn't 12 hours worth of cleaning dirty haha).

Firstly, they weren’t there for 6 hours. There is no way they could have been there any longer than 4 hours due to the time I left for work and DH came home. Secondly, I didn’t request two cleaners so didn’t agree to 2 x the hourly rate.

Where do I stand with payment of the invoice? I am of course happy to pay for the work that I asked for but I’m not happy to pay double when I didn’t request two cleaners

OP posts:
CakeCrumbs44 · 28/07/2022 06:14

The fact that there was 2 of them is not an issue.
The fact that they're overstating the hours worked IS an issue.
Don't tell them what time you and DH left and arrived, just ask what time the cleaners arrived and worked until. Then depending on what they say you can go back with "they didn't arrive at 8am, I was there until 9" or whatever.

GoAround · 28/07/2022 06:14

The 2 cleaner thing doesn’t matter. Imagine it was your mum’s house that takes 1 cleaner 4 hours. If they sent 2 cleaners that took 2 hours each, you’d still pay for 4 hours of cleaning. The issue here is that they’ve charged you for hours they didn’t do. I’d go back to the company and ask for the start and end time of the cleaners. They’ll either realise they made a mistake like it was 2 cleaners, 3 hours each, 6 hours TOTAL (not 12 hours) or you’ll know for sure they’re lying and can confront them based on when you and DH were at home.

Marvellousmadness · 28/07/2022 06:20

Yabu for thinking DEEP cleaning a house wouldnt take long . It took my cleaner that I used to have 4 hours to do my small house. And that was a normal clean. Not a deep clean.

TheTeenageYears · 28/07/2022 06:21

If you complain absolutely do not mention the 2 cleaner thing. Lots of cleaning is done this way and you didn't have either a contact or conversation expressively saying it would be one cleaner - you assumed it would be one and will completely muddy the waters of your complaint. Focus on the 12 hours cleaning time not being possible given you left the house at X time and husband returned at Y. Those are the facts.

TheTeenageYears · 28/07/2022 06:22

*contract

BloodyCamping · 28/07/2022 06:24

What time did you leave and she arrive?

Mindymomo · 28/07/2022 06:29

What was actually agreed. Lesson to learn here, if you got a fixed price for doing a job, then it won’t matter how many people did it or how long it took. If you were paying by the hour and they were there 4 hours, not 6 then you have a case to ask for a reduction.

FrecklesMalone · 28/07/2022 06:49

A two bedroomed house unless exceptionally messy shouldn't take 12 hours if it's tidy. We had our 4 bed deep cleaned after building works and it took 6 hours

Hollyhead · 28/07/2022 06:54

I think it’s likely to be an innocent invoicing error - it sounds like 2 of them might have been there for 3 hours each so you should be paying for 6 hours, it’s not unlikely that someone’s had a brain fart moment and doubles it again by mistake. I’d query it based on the time the house was empty.

NumberTheory · 28/07/2022 06:59

I think it’s common for new properties to take longer. Cleaners are faster when they’re familiar with a place. So that might account for some of the additional time, but obviously nowhere near all of it.

I think you need to dispute it with them on the basis it was not 12 hours worth of work. I would not discuss the number of cleaners with them at all unless they bring it up in a way that needs addressing and then if you have to just express surprise they would bother sending two for such a small property when you know they don’t always for others of similar size. I assume you are suspicious that they didn’t even send two cleaners, but it isn’t really relevant. What is relevant is the number of hours they say it took and the fact they haven’t done nearly enough work for that to be reasonable. Make it clear you think it was closer to 4 hours of work. Use your mother’s house as a comparator. If you have pics of before and after for her place and yours, that should also help.

I would initially ask them if they have confused you with another property as you know cleaners did not attend for the hours stated as the property was occupied for a significant amount of that time (I wouldn’t say when, exactly, at this stage).

They may come back with adjusted hours that would be physically possible and some details that make you realise it could have taken more than the 4 hours you expected (maybe you have some things trickier to clean than your mum’s, or they did something at yours that they don’t bother with at your mum’s) in which case you need to accept that as you didn’t go over what work they needed to do.

If they don’t come back with a figure and explanation you find acceptable refuse to pay on the basis the work was not to performed proficiently and offer what you think the job is worth (I would aim on the high side in order to give them reason to settle). See if they will go as far as to sue you for the difference.

You might als ask neighbours if they have Nest or Ring doorbells that might have captured your house or the cleaners car(s) arriving or leaving, so you have more ammunition to show they have lied. But that’s mainly irrelevant because your argument is, even if they had two cleaners there for every second the house was unoccupied, they didn’t do enough work to justify it.

woohoo54 · 28/07/2022 06:59

YABU a deep clean takes a long time. But do dispute the timings if you know they weren't there.
Could you have just missed them?

WidgetDigit2022 · 28/07/2022 07:01

You pay for what was quoted and agreed.

You've both made a big mistake here in assuming the cost before starting without confirming. Although ultimately I think it's probably their mistake more than yours as they can't prove what theyve provided.

Viviennemary · 28/07/2022 07:03

A deep clean doesn't ususlly involve the inside of kitchen cupboards AFAIK unless specifically requested. If you are happy with the clean and think it's a fair price for what they did then pay. If you dont think the clean was worth what they charged then dispute it. I think two cleaners get more done than one cleaner. I don't mean to state the obvious but you usually get an all round better clean.

Randomthoughts992 · 28/07/2022 07:05

I have a 3 bed house and a deep clean is usually £100 for me and takes 4 hours for 1 cleaner.

end of tenancy deep clean is £200

TibetanTerrah · 28/07/2022 07:06

By all means dispute the time they were there if you're 100% sure. But I have to say I've had clients like you, and their houses are always far grubbier than they see/admit to.

InChocolateWeTrust · 28/07/2022 07:10

Tibetanterrah 12 hours in a 2 bed house?

I could deep clean and tidy an absolute hovel of a 2 bed in 6 hours max.

TibetanTerrah · 28/07/2022 07:16

InChocolateWeTrust · 28/07/2022 07:10

Tibetanterrah 12 hours in a 2 bed house?

I could deep clean and tidy an absolute hovel of a 2 bed in 6 hours max.

It wasn't unusual for two of us to do an end of tenancy clean (mostly students to be fair but still) and it take a full day - each.

It really does depend on what it was like to start with.

TibetanTerrah · 28/07/2022 07:16

TibetanTerrah · 28/07/2022 07:16

It wasn't unusual for two of us to do an end of tenancy clean (mostly students to be fair but still) and it take a full day - each.

It really does depend on what it was like to start with.

Show quote history

Sorry I meant in a 2-3 bedroom flat.

Sally872 · 28/07/2022 07:18

I think 2 cleaners or 1 cleaner is business decision and not something you would book/agree to.

You should have had some discussion before estimating the time required so i would be willing to pay for the time they were there (4 hours x 2 cleaners) and lesson learned on more detailed discussion next time.

HoneyIShrunkThePizza · 28/07/2022 07:24

I don't think 2 cleaners for 6 hours is unreasonable for a through job, even of a 2 bed. But I do think lying about length is! I would dispute it, pay 8 hours worth and take it as a lesson to never go ahead without agreeing hours first again.

LaCerbiatta · 28/07/2022 07:27

I think the idea of 'deep clean' is relative.. For me it definitely cannot be done in a few hours. I have a 4 bedroom house and my concept of deep clean would take maybe 3×8 hours. Moving all furniture, dusting everywhere including removing every single book, etc, cleaning inside fridge, oven, microwave, bins etc, top of kitchen cabinets, windows, skirting boards, lamp shades, dusting walls, cleaning sofas with a damp cloth, washing cushion covers, etc etc

PuttingDownRoots · 28/07/2022 07:35

What exactly was done in that time?

diddl · 28/07/2022 07:36

Hopefully an invoicing error.

If someone was there when they arrived & left they'd be pretty stupid to be claiming hours outside of that.

Depending on what was done & if much stuff needed moving around to dust I would have thought that 2x4hrs is possible.

upliftingtwisting · 28/07/2022 07:39

Just chat to them. My cleaner when I had one did 2 hours worth a week. Two of them came and did an hour each. Fairly standard for cleaners to double up.

Oblomov22 · 28/07/2022 07:49

A 2 bedroom house, lived in / normal/not particularly dirty house, doesn't take 12 hours to deep clean.