To cancel clean and expect not to pay?

[Purplepricklesonherback]

DS has come down with vomiting bug. Our cleaner is due tomorrow. I have messaged her ti cancel as would hate her to pick it up.

she has replied saying her policy is cancellations with less than 24 hrs notice is full payment for the clean (£60).

I understand this - I really do - but in last six weeks she has cancelled the clean on the day of twice. Once due to car trouble and once because her partner was ill of something. Both times I said no problem as understand things do come up.

I haven’t ever signed a contract. She’s been cleaning for us for about four months.

I will pay - not worth upsetting apple cart and I do get things are tough at the moment - but AIBU to feel a bit miffed? Can’t work it out!

I’d speak to her, tell her if she can make an exception and come a week later as she cancelled same day on you twice.

Did she cancel that week or just delay?

I really wouldn’t pay, honestly. She’s just pushing her luck. I only ever got paid for work completed and nothing more. She will
not be out of pocket because she will easily fill your empty slot with another client. Either rearrange the date or ask her to do downstairs only or something like that.

I always say DC has xyz, it's up to you if you wish to come today. Then it's not me cancelling.

I always pay if we cancel, and I don't if our cleaner cancels. Our cleaner is seriously ill with ulcerative colitis and so I cancel if there's any hint of a stomach bug in the house, and always pay her - don't think she should lose out.

she has replied saying her policy is cancellations with less than 24 hrs notice is full payment for the clean (£60)

That's nice for her.

But unless I'd been advised of and agreed to this at the point of taking up her services, it wouldn't be my policy.

I wouldn't pay it.

I agree

I had this situation a few weeks ago but gave her the choice to come (and I'd keep my child away) or cancel/postpone - they came a few days later instead. I think if you don't give her the option to come anyway you probably should pay.

Isn't this like with a childminder though, childminder cancels you don't have to pay, you cancel you pay. That's how their wages usually work, when it's your choice it's on you.

i would have given her the choice to come on a different day or still come.

I think you need to separate
A) being asked to pay, from
B) her cancelling twice
They're quite different things.

She isn't unreasonable to ask you to pay having cancelled less than 24 hours before.

She MIGHT be unreasonable to have missed two days herself.

I think pay her, but if she starts having more days off unexpectedly then think about that separately.

Think of it this way. If she let you cancel last minute this time without paying, you could do it again. She would then end up with multiple days where she could have booked in other jobs, but didn't as she didn't have notice. It's quite sensible on her part - although she should have mentioned this when you hired her.

The letting you down last minute is a separate issue and suggests she's unreliable.

The cancellation policy is due to the fact that you book her time. So if you cancel she's unlikely to fill that time and therefore will be short on wage unless she charges.

If you were at work and your boss said there's not much to do go home early but then as a result you earn £60 less than you budgeted to that week you wouldn't be very happy.

I would have tried to negotiate her to come a different day but if she couldn't yes I'd pay.

Wether you keep her on should depend on her skills as a cleaner and how irritating her cancellations are to you. But not this.

Yes you should pay, because with less than 24 hrs notice she can't arrange other work, and this is her livelihood. She may be in a position that if she can't work she can't eat. (Or may not, but it's not your call)

You are in a massively different position. This is not a relationship of equals. If she cancels at the last minute you suffer the mild inconvenience of a less coean house. The magnitude of effects is very different. She has no power over your livelihood.

You could consider texting back "Fair enough, I accept and respect that. However I think it would also be fair to say that from now on, if you cancel with less than 24hrs notice then the next clean you do is given at a 20% discount, does that seem fair? I am sure you only do it when unavoidable so no resentment just looking for a fair and respectful balance."

@YireosDodeAver isn’t this also just part of cash in hand, non contact work?

@Redsheeps is that supposed to make it ok for OP to exploit her position of power over someone rather than behaving ethically? There's no reason to suppose the cleaner isn't declaring her income and paying her taxes.

@YireosDodeAver agreed, I shouldn’t assume someone’s not declaring income and paying taxes. But power and ethics? There are benefits to not being contracted. exploitation is a strong word. Most of us know the pros and cons of the jobs we end up in

Surprised so many say don’t pay her and that “she will easily fill your slot” - no she will not with less than 24 hours notice. Presumably she still has bills to pay, perhaps she could stay longer next time or come another day instead but I wouldn’t make her lose the £60 for reasons on my side.

If my cleaner cancels on me, I don’t pay, however if I cancel on her I still pay her 🤷‍♀️ She’s amazing and reliable and a nice person and I want her to feel valued.

It is not ethical to book someone's time thus preventing them from using that time to earn money elsewhere and then cancel at the last minute and not pay. That does not change depending on whether one pays by cash or an invoice. A contract is a legally enforceable agreement for terms and conditions how any disputes in an arrangement, the lack of a contesct is only carte blanchr to behave unethically if you have no personal ethics and only behave decently if contractually obliged.

Her reasons for cancelling on you seem genuine. I am a cleaner. When taking on a new client they sign a contract- any cleans cancelled with less than 24hrs notice are charged 50% of their rate. In the last 12 months I have only had this happen once, and the client actually paid the full amount, which I thought was very kind.

I used to be a cleaner and this thread reminds me , why I’m not now. People complain how hard is to find a good cleaner, but are not prepared to treat them respectfully. Cleaner’s car broke down, how dared she didn’t come?! Why she simply didn’t grow wings?! And her child being sick?!! She thought her child’s health was more important than someone’s house being cleaned! How unreliable she is! Things like that happen and while mildly annoying, they don’t affect your income. Customer cancelling in the last minute is. If you had an appointment at the lawyers or accountant and had to cancel last minute, you’d be asked to pay cancellation fee and that would be fine. For some reasons cleaner asking for cancellation fee is called CF.

Your cleaner doesn't sound great.

mine has been with us 2 years. Never missed a week other than for one holiday week. I'm happy to pay her the times I've cancelled though.

Don't pay her and get a new cleaner.

You don't have a contract so there is no record of her 'cancellation policy' being agreed by you and the fact that she gets paid in cash means she is probably not declaring her income anyway.

Find someone who is reliable and agree on terms clearly and in writing before they start.

I would not stay with someone who cancelled twice on you and then makes a fuss about you having to do that for a very good reason.

It's her wage at the end of the day.. it is quite a common policy in a lot of job, hairdressers etc.

I'd tell her to still come.

Easy. You thought you were doing her a favour by cancelling because your DS was ill. She doesn't see it like that. So she comes and does the clean then? Job done. Just put your son in his room and tell her not to do that room. It's a kiddies sickness bug not the Bubonic plague, she'll be fine. I wouldn't pay someone for a job not done. You don't have a contract, it's cash in hand so it will be undeclared and untaxed income.