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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To pull up the cleaners over this - leaving early?

52 replies

Chicice · 15/09/2023 17:29

I book two cleaners for two hours at a total of £60. This is called a general clean.

I have a ring camera so watched them arrive at 1pm but leave at 2.30pm.

I messaged them straight away and said I was disappointed that they were leaving 30 minutes early. She gave some excuse about turning up early but I said I’d seen them arrive on time.

She then said they’d cleaned through to a high standard and when finished they will usually leave. I said id paid for 2 hours and I’d like that filled.

I came home from work and inspected the house, it was 95% to a good standard but still some surfaces a bit dusty and they hadn’t been particularly thorough in corners and some skirting boards. I felt they could have filled the two hours if they’d been a bit more careful and thorough.

Cleaning windows, skirting boards and under furniture is classed as a ‘deep clean’ though and will be charged at £80 for the two hours.

But I tried to argue that they hadn’t filled the 2 hours and could have done some of the above to fill the time.

AIBU or are the cleaners?

OP posts:

Spirallingdownwards · 15/09/2023 17:32

2 cleaners x 2 hours is 4 hours. They gave you an hour short on that basis. Play them 75% of their bill.

You may lose them as cleaners and need to find new ones but they are being paid an hourly rate not a fixed rate for the job

DustyLee123 · 15/09/2023 17:35

I agree, you’re paying for 2 hours so that’s what you should get. But you may find they spend 30 mins sitting on your couch next time, instead of doing more cleaning.

TibetanTerrah · 15/09/2023 17:36

Sometimes, particularly if you've had them a while, cleaners get faster, getting into a rhythm, knowing the house, even not knowing where plug sockets are slow you down in an unfmailiar house. Between you, you tend to decide to either fill the time, or leave early and pay less. They can't have the best of both worlds.

Peacendkindness · 15/09/2023 17:38

Tell them they arrive at 1 and left at 2.30 so haven’t done 2 hours each they have only done 3 overall

CinemaCrazy · 15/09/2023 17:58

Did you book a general clean which is what they did or two cleaners for two hours?

Original poster

Chicice · 15/09/2023 18:05

Two cleaners for two hours ‘generally cleaning’ not ‘deep cleaning’

OP posts:

PaperDoves · 15/09/2023 18:16

Is this the first time you used them?

Fiddlerdragon · 15/09/2023 18:18

The fact that she immediately lied about being early means yanbu. I’d request a quarter of the money back for the missing hour and fuck them off. They can’t be trusted

Bibbitybobbitty · 15/09/2023 18:19

DP pay their cleaner for 3 hours, if she's finished the basics she used to ask what else needed done, been there so long now she just gets on with the extras if time allows. You're paying for the time & they've cut it short by an hour

Abfab63 · 15/09/2023 18:21

I pulled my cleaned up for doing this and she quit.

She'd been cutting me short of 25-30mins for weeks as she didn't realise I had a camera. I finally said something as our house could definitely do with the full 3 hour clean and yeah.. she just said she wouldn't be coming back! I was taken back too as I worded it as politely as I possibly could.

But yes. I believe if you pay for two hours you should get them as there's always a way to fill that time.

Throwncrumbs · 15/09/2023 18:26

You are basically paying for them to have an hours pay for nothing. Get rid.

missmollygreen · 15/09/2023 18:26

If the house was spotless then it wouldnt bother me if they leave early.
Why make them hang around for no reason?

But then I would be questioning why they are charging for 4 hours if they can do it easily in less time

TurkeyTeethLookAwful · 15/09/2023 18:28

This is why I don't have a cleaner as literally every cleaner I've had has started off well and then taken the piss by leaving early

TheHappyCarrot · 15/09/2023 18:34

Cleaners seem to be rather an entitled breed. If they charge by the hour why shouldn't they fill that time. It's a bit much to then say cleaning the skirting etc comes under a different rate.

Incywincywoo · 15/09/2023 18:37

You are being had. The last time we had a regular cleaner we paid tenner an hour.

Look around locally for a single lady rather than a firm and check she’s highly recommended. They’ll usually accept £10 or so an hour provided you provide everything To clean with and is cash in hand…

Pleaseme · 15/09/2023 18:37

I think that cleaners, a bit like carers, seem to price jobs on the basis of leaving early to get to the next one. £15ph sounds a fair bit but if you have travelling time, car expenses, holiday pay and pensions to account for then it’s down to minimum wage ish so they try and make up time where they can.

Do you think the job was worth £60?

Cleaners are more like £20 an hour where I am!

Gjendefloooo · 15/09/2023 18:38

missmollygreen · 15/09/2023 18:26

If the house was spotless then it wouldnt bother me if they leave early.
Why make them hang around for no reason?

But then I would be questioning why they are charging for 4 hours if they can do it easily in less time

It wasn't spotless though. Some surfaces were still dusty and some corners hadn't been cleaned properly.

But as you say, yeah, if they can do it easily in less time then they shouldn't be charging for 4 hours.
OP, you could say you only want to book them for 1.5 hours in the future because it seems that is enough time for them to do a general clean.

Pleaseme · 15/09/2023 18:39

Do you think the job was worth £60?

Cleaners are more like £20 an hour where I am!

sparepantsandtoothbrush · 15/09/2023 18:43

Cleaning windows, skirting boards and under furniture is classed as a ‘deep clean’ though and will be charged at £80 for the two hours

Surely a deep clean is a regular clean PLUS these extras? So how do they do both a regular clean and a deep clean in the same amount of time

FlySwimmer · 15/09/2023 18:47

We use a local firm and I complained when the cleaner did this. Worse, we had only recently increased the time (from 2 hours to 2.5 hours) as a couple of them said they found it hard to do everything in 2 hours. I was working from home that day so noticed her leaving (but was stuck in a meeting so couldn’t ask why she was going early).

On the leaving-early day, it hadn’t even been done to a decent standard, so she couldn’t even claim to have truly finished: she’d only vacuumed around the edges of the coffee table for example, kitchen corners were not vacuumed or mopped. I wrote & complained and they refunded me the time. So it’s worth saying something, especially if they left early AND it’s not spotless.

Having said all that, I suspect that when both DH & I are out, they leave a bit early. I’ve unfortunately never had a cleaner who hasn’t eventually developed this ‘habit’.

tt9 · 15/09/2023 19:09

just no. get new cleaners. and personally I would put some cameras in the house for peace of mind for both you and the new cleaner.

plenty of good professional people put there who take pride in their cleaning.

Foggyfoggyfoggy · 15/09/2023 19:11

I have been a cleaner for 10 years plus. Never been in a house I couldn't find stuff to do for the last half an hour..
Sack them off op. And give an honest online review if you can.

PoshHorseyBird · 15/09/2023 19:13

I've managed a cleaning company in the past a d currently work for myself as a cleaner. YANBU. Communication goes a long way. If you've managed to do absolutely everything and its taken less time you let the client know. Give them the option of cutting the time or you can find some other jobs to fill the remaining time. If by chance I have a bit of time spare I'll dust skirting boards, wipe down doors/cupboards, wipe off light switches...you can always find something to do! The fact they've lied is not good. As someone else said they'll probably just sit down for any remaining time. Its dishonest. You might be better off getting someone else.

brentwoods · 15/09/2023 19:23

The fact that she lied about arriving early means you can't trust her. Get rid.

If the house was done to a high standard by long time cleaners and they got faster after having gotten used to your house, then I'd think about it.

Yetanothernewname101 · 15/09/2023 19:47

Yikes. My cleaner comes for 4 hours a week, split over 2 days, and she finds all sorts to do in that time, tops of doors, on top of the kitchen cupboards, windows, cobwebs etc once she's done the general vaccing, dusting, bathroom and kitchen cleaning.
You aren't being unreasonable to expect them to do the full 2 hours of cleaning you've booked them for. Chances are you're going to end up changing cleaner if these ones carry on leaving early and cutting corners.

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