Another cleaner one…AIBU

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Another cleaner one…AIBU

I’m not sure if I’ll get shot down for this or I have a point but interested either way.

I have never had a cleaner before, I only went back to work after having my 3 DC last year so it’s never really been a financial option for us and I was at home all day anyway.

However life has got busy in the last year though and on top of this my DH who is Military deployed a month or so ago and is away till next year and the house has really started to get on top of me.

I decided to treat myself to a deep clean with a local cleaning company who came yesterday. I originally asked for 4 hours but the lady who owns the company said that 5 would be better which I was happy to agree to, 5 hours came to £85 and I left £90 and they took it all.

I was VERY clear that the house was feeling a bit grimy but would be tidy ish so they could concentrate on cleaning. I’d been asked to write a letter with priority areas so that they could concentrate on them 1st, which I did, mainly bathroom and two toilets and kitchen. Teenagers room was still a tip so I knew that was likely a no go however both other DC had tidied there rooms to a degree and I’d hoovered throughout, washed breakfast dishes etc.

They said they would arrive at 9am which was ok but my bus was due to arrive at 9.10 so I had messaged they would have to be sharp if they wanted me to introduce them to the dog, I can see my house from the bus stop and they still hadn’t arrived at 9.15.

At 1120 I got a message to say they had finished, the house needed a lot more time but they had done the best they could in the time allotted however they would be happy to come back another day

I was quite surprised and didn’t realise when it’s a team of 3 that means they all cover an hour of work each, they aren’t actually in the house for 5 hours, however put that down to my lack of knowledge rather than them mucking me about.

They said they didn’t get round to everything and concentrated on the bathroom and toilets

I messaged back to say that was fine, and had they managed to hoover throughout as we had guests arriving who would get there before me.

The answer to that is no, and on top of that all 3 girls bedrooms hadn’t been touched, no mirrors, banister, the kitchen floor hadn’t been mopped, there was Shampoo still all over the times in the bathroom, the sink in my bedroom had toothpaste in from the morning, there was a bag of rubbish I had missed from the morning (clearly) rubbish in the upstairs hall which not only hadn’t been put out but had been knocked so the contents were coming out of it, the bathroom floor hadn’t been done, there were crumbs in the gap of the top of dishwasher and surface, there were grimy marks around the pIug in the bath and the plug was blocked with hair, I could go on and on.

My youngest daughter was actually in 1st and phoned to say the cleaners mustn’t have turned up as she could see no difference at all.

Eldest was also really furious and wanted to message the company on my behalf.

However I’m torn, maybe my house really was just that bad, I’m so busy now, 3 DC, animals, husband that permanently works away, work I really do struggle to keep on top of it but on the other hand if I’d had 2 rooms that had been done to a really lovey standard and a quick dust and hoover throughout I’d have been happy, but it was like not one single area was cleaned properly.

I wondered how this comes across, that we live in a slum, that I’m expecting miracles, that I’m mug for not chasing this up, whether I should just put down to experience and choose a different company next time, that I should demand more time/money back…

Also is that a normal that if you book a company that sends out 3 cleaners for 5 hours that they are in the house for 2.

Any advice welcome.

£90 and no noticeable difference? I would have immediately taken pictures and sent them to the agency.

There were areas where there was a notable difference, the kitchen side for example, all work top appliances had been pulled out and cleaned behind and it looked great but the chopping board still had crumbs on it and the over lip of dishwasher has more crumbs and a splash of orange juice which must have been spilled that morning..

Upstairs bedroom had been hoovered really but still toothpaste in the sink from where my daughter had brushed her teeth before she left and really dusty mirror…there wasn’t one room that had a good finish!

The bit about hrs of cleaning being split between number of cleaners is right, yes.

But I would definitely expect to notice a difference in the house after 5 hours of cleaning. If they said they concentrated on bathrooms I definitely wouldn’t expect toothpaste left etc, unless there was absolutely heaps of clutter to wade through first.

3 people in your house cleaning for 2 hours and no notable difference??

How big is your house?

It’s normal to have several cleaners rather than one for five hours

If they were supposed to be focusing on a bathroom, 2 loos and the kitchen, and they didn’t get that properly done then take photos and complain

In 5 hours, if your kitchen was big and got a really deep clean then they might not have got all that much future - because they’d be pulling everything out.. so 1.5 hours for a bathroom and two loos and 3.5 hours for a big well stocked kitchen seems plausible. If it’s not that big then they might have managed something else.

In no way would 5 hours be enough to deep clean a 4 bed house.

Unless you agreed it with the agency, if you get a deep clean they will only deep clean, so if they didn’t get to the sitting rooms and halls, they won’t have hovered and emptied the bins.

This is a long way round of saying it doesn’t sound like they did a good job, but your expectations are also unrealistic.

But absolutely get them to make good the bathrooms and kitchen.

It’s a fairly small house, galley way kitchen, (no table etc)

living room/dining room, separate room that is meant to be the dining room off the kitchen which we turned into a bedroom for DD.

the smallest toilet in the world stairs, narrow hall, 3 bedrooms (teenagers mot touched and wouldn’t expect it to be) and separate toilet and bathroom.

Its actually forces accommodation, hence the weird sinks in bedrooms and the toilet being separate to the bathroom.

Sounds rubbish to me OP

If they are an agency I think the thing to do would have been to take pictures of the rooms they did "clean" and send to agency. However I think you would have had to do it immediately unfortunately so maybe not much you can do now

I would suggest, if you can, getting a regular cleaner and having them do a longer clean on their first visit. The problem with a one off clean is they have no incentive to do it properly, unlike a weekly cleaner who needs to stay on top of it

well it would have to be per "cleaner hour" - otherwise 5 hours 3 cleaners would be well below minimum wage, before VAT & overheads.

But 5 hours seems a lot for so little difference - I'd have thought if they split up and 1 did the kitchen, 1 bathroom, other less intensive on general vacuuming, etc...
I wouldn't have expected so much to not be done

Sorry but I think you have been completely ripped off! How long does it take to clean a bathroom? Have never spent more than 20 mins max ! Hoovering 1hr if moving furniture mins ,Kitchen hour max !

Yes completely normal for a team to do the number of hours between them. But it doesn’t sound like you got your money’s worth. I would complain.
You can’t guarantee that someone will have change so in future try to leave the correct amount of money.

I think when you have multiple people it’s generally less good. A big area might need more than an hour but they split it all up and it doesn’t get the attention it needs.

My friend got a deep clean done recently, same thing, first time, we were both all excited. Her house is pretty clean all the time as they’re a very ‘it’s the weekend, let’s do this’ family. She got home and thought they hadn’t been but they messaged and said they had. She was gutted, rang them and said the bathroom looked no different, kitchen not much better and they said they could tell by her house that she had ‘too high standards’. They told her if she wanted she could take them to court but they wouldn’t give a refund. She ended up getting a third back after bartering

Ps I feel for you op, Id love to get a cleaner someday, and would be gutted if they didn’t make a visible impact

I would have a frank conversation, ask them what they actually did as you can't notice any difference. And go from there.

I once hired a company telling them I need a deep clean. However the price I was quoted for was a general clean. I said I will book for four hours and they can get as far as they can.

Now I know a deep clean takes longer than a general clean but they expected to be paid more for it as apparently the girls had to work harder. I freelance. Some work is more intensive than other but it is not the norm to charge more for the more intensive work.

I did not have them again but have since found a lovely lady that speaks my "language"

Speak to them and see what they have to say

I used to work for a cleaning company in another life, for a short time. It was bad. Very bad. I would never hire a company, only an individual that came highly recommended.

On an intial/deep clean, I can easily spend 2 hours in an en-suite.
If you say the kitchen was ok, I suspect they’ve spent the bulk of the time in there then moved to the bathrooms with whatever time was left.

I don’t charge hourly. I give a fixed price per job and I email a detailed list
of what will be included. The client knows what they’re paying and what they’ll get and no one is clock watching my arrival.
Very few other trades price hourly - no one has an hourly priced window cleaner or hairdresser who walks off the job mid haircut because time is up.

To be fair, I would speak to the cleaners first to try to remedy. They have, in fairness, adhered to your priority tasks. However I would have expected them quite a realistic number of hours at the start.

Perhaps look around for a ‘per job’ cleaner.

Try to find a weekly cleaner locally.
Companies are never as good IMO.

@Fynoderee how does it take 2 hrs to deep clean a bathroom 😳

When the shower screen glass is obscured instead of clear because it’s caked in limescale, when the screen seals need to be removed and all the soap scum and mould need to be scrubbed out of it, when the tiles are covered in a film of hard water marks and the grout is full of soap scum, when all the chrome is grey and dull instead of shiny chrome, when there are brown water marks in the sink and limescale the thickness of a 2p under the waterline in the toilet bowl.
Add in multiple bottles, storage baskets, laundry bins, mirrors, pots and bowls that need to be removed, cleaned replaced. Possibly a wooden slatted blind that needs to be cleaned. Maybe a chrome towel rail that needs to be scrubbed of surface rust and thick film of dust.
This is why one size doesn’t fit all. When people ask ‘how long to clean a house’, there are so many variables.
How much clutter? How long since it was last properly cleaned?
I don’t do a quick wipe in the least time possible. I clean everywhere that’s possible to clean so there’s literally nothing for the client to point out as missed. But this can’t happen in small windows of time.

I've had a couple of different cleaners and I would say they're taking the piss. I have a 5 bed with two small kids and both my husband and I work full time and are a bit messy. All three have been able to do the whole house in 2-3 hours, including tidying as well as cleaning and that's just one person.

It doesn't sound like they have done enough but I think you also have unrealistic expectations. Most cleaners aren't going to doing your washing up (the used chopping board) or take your rubbish out. It's also rather gross to be leaving plugs full of hair.

The stuff about them being there for less time as there are several staff is fine.

Leaving 90 when 85 is owed - they might have thought it was a tip for them. I wouldn't have left 90. But also in their position, I wouldn’t have taken all of it either.

the rest sounds shit really. But, this is the reality of life in modern Britain. I’d never use an agency/company if I could avoid it. I have never had a cleaner, but good ones have waiting lists. My db waited several months for his and she’s brilliant.

personally, I would try to assign stuff to each of you and your girls to try to keep on top of it. I just wouldn’t want people back in the house who clearly don’t give a damn about the quality of their work or even bother to show up on time.

I know someone who had home security and sacked cleaners for lying about how much time they were in her house. And someone else whose cleaner stole cash from inside a drawer. I am really wary as a result. Which is a shame as house cleaning is a valuable service when done by an honest and decent person.

Not really an answer to your question but this might be useful. I booked 2 cleaners for 2 hours to come a few days before Christmas a few years ago. Husband, DD19 and I stayed in and we all got cracking cleaning and tidying. A very busy two hours later and the whole house was sparkling and ready for Christmas.
Might be worth considering once in a while if you want help to have a clean house.

I’ve never had a cleaner but elderly mum has one and she has to give really specific directions whilst being in the same room with her cleaner or it doesn’t get done.

My mum is shocked that people leave cleaners alone.