How much would you pay?

[ConflictedBeagle]

I would really appreciate honest opinions please.

I booked a cleaning company for a deep clean, 2 bedrooms, living room, kitchen/diner, utility, WC bathroom and en suite. It has been a couple of years since my previous (fantastic ) regular cleaner retired and I have been struggling to keep on top of things like cleaning doors, skirting boards etc.

I have been charged for 8 hours deep cleaning. Skirting boards are dusty (shows on finger when wiped), door frames not dusted, shower heads not cleaned, shower plug holes not cleaned, water marks on taps, visible marks on coffee tables, doors etc. They did hoover throughout, cleaned windows and cleaned bathrooms but not to a good standard. They also did not wipe or empty kitchen bin, which she says is not included in a deep clean.

Business owner sent the same people straight back when I complained but I was putting my son down for his nap and asked to reschedule with lots of flexibility. I also felt uncomfortable having the same people back but appreciate I may have had to get over that. The owner says she has no availability and that I have a negative attitude and should still pay for the time although she accepts the photos show things aren't cleaned but says my house was in a bad state (although the cleaners themselves had made the opposite comment on arrival).

We have left it that she has asked me to make up my own mind whether to pay or not but to keep in mind she is paying her staff for 8 hours as that is how long they were here (2 cleaners for 4 hours).

Obviously I will pay something but what do you all think would be reasonable in the circumstances? I have never had an issue like this with cleaners before and have used a few!

Many thanks

Now a separate one saying I am looking for trouble

Just drop her a message back, saying thanks for the message, please don't message me again, and, for your information, I have reported your response to the police for future reference, given your veiled threat to my safety based on an honest review of the service provided.

There are two separate threats against you in a single message -

Hopefully I don’t bump into you in person anytime soon
don’t be surprised when someone reacts to you pushing them

One is an veild threat, and one suggests retaliation directly. Both are to intimidate you, or an attempt to.

if you really want to piss her off, post this reply to your review. 😂

I wouldn't reply. Make sure you have her messages saved securely. Save any further ones. If they escalate severely, call non-emergency police. I would stop engaging with her entirely.

Did you take before photos? Difficult to o complain if they come back at you that your house was in a state. If you haven't had a proper clean for as few years then 8 hours won't do it. It may shock some here, but a good " bottoming" every few weeks in different rooms does not take long and is surprisingly therapeutic (yes, I did it, working full-time, leaving the house at 6am). Fridges - wipe out before shopping, cupboards, wipe tins etc before putting away. I am not patronising, just saying little things which take seconds make things easier in the long run. Get a routine, and if you do book help, first clean should be listed and overseen, to prevent misunderstanding.

You could just do it yourself like normal ppl

Why the hell would you go round with a damp cloth when you were paying cleaners to come in and do a deep clean?? She’s insane.

I wouldn’t expect shower heads etc done, I would expect plug holes to be cleaned. If it’s a deep clean, I would t expect to find dust on door frames etc.

Did she come round and see the house to give you an estimate? Who set the 8 hours? Seems quite a lot for just a 2 bed, I would expect a very thorough clean for that. Sounds like they didn’t even do what I’d expect on a weekly clean (apart from the windows).

FFS! Lots of “normal people” have cleaners.

I would definitely upload the threat after contacting the police on 101 and reporting.
You were completely ripped off, which I bet she has form for.
Have you a video door bell?
If not get one.

Thank you all, yes it was a deep clean.

I have been working well in excess of full time hours, have had some health problems recently and so time is very limited which is why I hired a professional cleaner to do things to a good standard to free up some time for me to spend with my children at weekends instead of deep cleaning.

She sent me a list of things included and doors, door frames, skirtings and all surfaces were on there but none were done.

I am really surprised how many people think shower heads shouldn't be included in a deep clean of a bathroom. I would give these a clean even with a standard bathroom wipe over! Maybe others are not as prone to water marks as mine!

Ah To be fair, I was probably thinking you meant descaling. I would wipe them over every week.

It is utterly bonkers that people think shower heads shouldn't be included in a deep clean, of course they should be. Its a bloody deep clean.