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Forces sweethearts

If you have a family member in the Royal Navy, RAF or army, find support from other Mumsnetters here.

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Original poster

Dreaded March Out

57 replies

fairydusty · 25/02/2011 14:27

Hi ladies i'm looking for some advice. This is my first time in married quarters and we are due to move in May - i am already thinking about the march out as i keep getting told they are ultra strict on cleanliness of property when you leave. Looking for tips - grout between tiles not as white as it was, oven supposed to sparkle etc. Just really looking for tips and what the de will look for when we leave. Hope someone can help me out x

OP posts:

emmyloopsyloo · 27/02/2011 23:18

We've got out march out tomorrow. I'm currently sat here in my new 1/4 assessing the damage the piss poor removals guys have done, with piss poor packaging and dragging our furniture .

That's another thread, pay a cleaner, what £300 for a gte'd scheme, hand the cert in then run. I think it's all fixed anyway personally...........Pay their endorsed schem, or they'll fine you for something anyway..........call me cynical

Saltire · 28/02/2011 07:09

I have never yet escaped charges - even when it's been cleaned by an outside cleaner. I was told by DE, on querying one payment "well that's why you have insurance".

Our last MQ, we were told "do it to full march out clean" we queried this, as we'd had letters saying the whole estate was beign gutted - kitchens bathrooms etc.

They said "oh but someoen will definitely move in as your house won't be getting done up for at least a year".

Guess what - no one moved in. So we'd paid a cleaner £400 to clean including carpets (thats the bit that annoyed me) and cooker (again) and then it all gets ripped out.

vintageteacups · 28/02/2011 10:15

Oh - that's so naughty of them saltire.
Anyone seen that DE are chaning their name soon?
What that means is they're are changing their name to make people think they're going to be doing something different than the crap service before; in reality, it just means they'll do the same thing under a different name!

MrsSnaplegs · 28/02/2011 11:43

What are they changing it to defence mistakes?

vintageteacups · 28/02/2011 12:55

emmyloopsyloo · 28/02/2011 13:40

OHHHHHHHHHHHH we got no charges on our march out, it's a minor miracle I feel, gave them the cert and ran.

Goodbye old houseeeeeeeeeeee, hello new house, with the removals having to visit to photograph damage sigh

emmyloopsyloo · 28/02/2011 13:41

Don't get me started on Defence Mistakes, I'm stealing that phrase.

YesPleaseDrChristian · 28/02/2011 19:21

We have never been charged yet. However the last three march outs have been via a cleaning scheme recommended by DE at a cost of about £350 but I understand that the new scheme by Ideal cleaners will be more than that, probably about £440 or so. Ridiculous.

I am going to get a professional oven cleaner to do the cooker and the hood. We will have to get the carpets steamed as we have a dog. Other than that I hope we can do it ourselves.

emmyloopsyloo · 28/02/2011 19:55

I just got Ideal to do mine £305.

vintageteacups · 28/02/2011 20:39

This is what DE are going to be called :
DIO

plasticlentilweaver · 28/02/2011 20:54

Defence Mistakes don't come anywhere near Making Housing Shit or whatever the hell they call themselves!

I am absolutely convinced Ideal are giving the local DE woman backhanders for recommending them. That's probably libellous, but given how much she pushes people to use them.

Our routine cleaner will do march-outs so we will be using him. He is half the cost and will guarantee it. Plus, he can't complain about the state of our house and charge more as he will have been cleaning it for at least 3 years by the time we move out, as we will just point out that if it needs extra work, he can't have been doing his job properly!

emmyloopsyloo · 28/02/2011 22:05

It's because Ideal are the company DE use before march ins, to bring the house up to scratch, after work men, time empty etc.

If you use ideal you are basically paying for that process. You hand them a cert at march out and they basically leave you alone if your house is in over all good nick. It's not cleaned before march out.

You are saving them paying it basically.

Even if you clean to standard, they'll get ideal in, so they like you to use them. That's what I gather.

doonhamer · 28/02/2011 22:36

Emmy's correct. many years ago when we still had housing offices on estates, the DHE (as it was) introduced this pre payment cleaning thingy and our housing mananger told us not to touch it with a bargepole as "we have to clean the quarter before new tennatns move in regardless of when it was cleaned, so by doing this we are getting you to pay for a job that would need to be done anyway"

and, that link to new DE name - lets take bets on how many years it will be before we are paying £600/700 a month to lvie in these crap houses?

vintageteacups · 28/02/2011 23:58

at at that point doonhammer, we'll surely all just rent privately at that price? Then they'll have empty quarters just sitting there with nobody in them.

scaryteacher · 01/03/2011 00:01

They'll sell them off to Annington as they did with the MQs in Plymouth.

scaryteacher · 01/03/2011 00:06

What I'm curious about ( and this is the first time I've lived in service accommodation since I was 7) is what happens with SSFAs. We are the second lot of MoD tenants in the SSFA (not in UK). It wasn't redecorated before we moved in, and the l/l was round the other day asking when we were moving as the agreement he has with the MoD runs out next year and we don't move til 2013. L/l says he wants to put in new kitchen (wish he'd do it now) and presumably it will need to be totally redecorated before MoD hand it back, so what will we need to do apart from clean it?

vintageteacups · 01/03/2011 00:08

I'd just get it in writing that you just need to get it 'housework clean' standard if they're going to redo it. There'll be dust and mess etc once you've gone so it's naughty of them if they try to make you clean it from top to bottom to march out standard when it's going to be messy/dirty again.

doonhamer · 01/03/2011 08:03

vintage - isn't that the point though? They want us all out so they can sell off the MQ estates.

vintageteacups · 01/03/2011 09:31

oh, bummer.

MrsSnaplegs · 01/03/2011 09:49

Doonhamer absolutely right ! They are doing it by the backdoor on some patches I know!

madwomanintheattic · 01/03/2011 14:28

well, to be fair, they are supposed to get the cleaners in before you walk through the door, to make good any issues after workmen have been, and get rid of any accumulated dust etc.

what tends to happen in my experience is that the money that has been paid for guaranteed clean at march out isn't used, and you arrive at a quarter with a full removal lorry, to find carpets uncleaned and kitchen cupboards full of jam and sugar. oh, and an estate manager that warns you abour wilful damage. when you're 35 with 3 kids. and then he was pissed off that we actually intended to move in that day (our stuff was arriving within the hour) and so he would have to pay for our guaranteed clean at the end of our tour...

MrsMatelot · 02/03/2011 13:54

Ideal cleaners should be renamed Not Ideal! There was no way my house was up to march out standard when I moved in, they don't get inspected and rescrubbed for their efforts....just charge too much for a sub standard service!

MrsMatelot · 02/03/2011 13:55

vintageteacups · 02/03/2011 13:59

Glad you said that - when we march into next quarter, if it's not been cleaned to march out standard, I'm putting it writing that it won't be cleaned when we move out.

limbangmogul · 24/03/2011 09:46

Hi I work in one of the Army families office and basically IDEAL are the only company who have a contract for cleaining to a guaranteed marchout. DE didn't set up t he ocntract the MOD did and daily DE and our office have trouble in particular with the standard of work carried out. That said once you pay your fee to IDEAL and have your slip to say paid up you move out hand it to DE and you are free to leave. Ideal are constantly called back to carry out work one a particularly bad one a few months ago the oven which if doing under your own steam has to be brand new clean was disgusting ans the DE Housing offr's reply was "our hands are tied they aren't trained to take the appliance apart and get into certain area's". Well why are we all expected to do it was my answer. Depending where you are the Housing office should have numbers of local companies who although don't offer guaranteed march out will be there on that day and carry out anything else that is picked up...I know we do that and the DE reps work close with us to sort families out at such times.

The prices charged for damage or none march out standard are extortionate so I would recommend to anyone that IDEAL is used as its your get out of jail card!!!!! Although they won't say this DE would rather you didn't use IDEAL as they don't want the follow action they awlays end up having with them. IDEAL aren't used as the defualt cleaners regardless and its not the case that you are paying for what DE would have to anyway. Its MHS that gets a house to standard for DE not DE themselves and the problem is MHS as a company is Broke-But have to honour the contract.

I would clean the house as much as you can then if need be get a cleaner in locally who is used to march out and the a quote form them for the rest or the main one google local oven cleaners usually £30-60 alone but worth it.

Oh and if you have a dog (you're not entitled to steam clean by DE/MHS once left for free) the licence agreement requires you to clean the carpet to high standard what this means infact is steam cleaned to irradicate all ticks/fleas/bacteria form pets that you can't always tell are there. This definatley a billing point if not squared away and also the garden has to thooughly tidied and the bins steam cleaned.

Sadly DE offices in differnet areas offer different levels of customer service some really good and some really bad....If your really unsure and want the right advice speak to your nearest families office which should help I know we would as obviously things change and neighbours may sometimes only have had bad experiences so may have one sided views etc.

Hope this helps

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