Slum lord's bad review/what would you do?

[rhino1]

OK, so I hate to categorize this type of customer as a slumlord, but there is no better term I can think of for the type of property owner that rents out old run-down houses in bad neighborhoods.

This guy called me on a Tuesday and we had the normal conversation as far he had a rental house and the previous tenants had messed up the carpet and I went through the normal speech reserved for rental property owners. I always tell them upfront that there is no guarantee on results for carpet in rental properties, that we will try as hard as possible to remove every spot and stain, but we can't make it new, but we will try to get it the best it can be.

It was cleaned a few days later. Of course he didn't show up as he said he would, but sent someone in his place to let us in. (this happens all the time to me, rental prop. owners will suddenly get called out of town, have an emergency, or simply forget their checkbook at home and expect to be billed, then wait 2 months to pay) Well I have a new policy for rentals - pay in advance the day of service or we go to the next house. This was nicely explained and a phone call later got a credit card payment.

Of course it was a dump, so we did the best we could and away we went. 10 days later (yep, 10) the guy called and immediately jumps into a diatribe about how bad it looked and he was just going to replace it and he demanded a refund. I told him I was sorry the results weren't what he expected but I could come right out that afternoon and clean it again. He says no he needs a refund and I told him we don't refund rentals, and it wasn't really up to me that he wanted to replace the carpet after we cleaned it, but I would still be happy to come out again for him. He starts yelling and threatening so I just hung up.

Well this guy calls and leaves a complaint for the BBB and a bad review for me on Google, but then he claims that we did a horrible job, we wouldn't return his calls, when he finally spoke to me I was rude and hung up on him. He also claimed in his report and review that he had to rent a machine and do it himself!

I responded to the BBB and they dropped his complaint and I replied to his bad review as tastefully as I could manage. I know this has cost us business because we usually have many internet customers every week and suddenly that dried up for a while.

In hindsight, I wish I would have just given the guy a refund, but holy crap, what a liar! The point being, he just didn't want to pay for the service. This is the kind of person that lies, connives, and schemes to get something for nothing. When he didn't get his way initially he went a different route to try to blackmail me into it.

So what do you do in this situation?

 

[Royal Man]

I wouldn't worry about it.

You did all you can do and you posted an explanation after his review.

Since you only have 4 reviews the best solution is to get a bunch more reviews and bury the bad review.

Would be easy to get it on page 2-3

 

[renegade_cowboy]

Call him and offer a refund if he takes down that review. It's never to late.

 

[Heathrow]

I find often that a filthy carpet can clean up very well relative to what I started with, but at the end of the job the carpet still looks like crap, only a better level of crappy than before. I normally take a few pics while extracting these to show that there was in fact a 'night and day' improvement from cleaning it, but that the carpet is just too far gone to get it looking fantastic again. Pics often come in handy.

 

[Jimbo]

http://www.justbats.com/default.aspx?s= ... QgodvHNBQA

 

[tmdry]

Don't worry about the bad review, it's actually good to have at least one bad and many good ones, this will make your company more "real" to the public, and like Dave said you already replied to it. Google won't remove it unless the guy goes in and does it himself, even if you refund his $ and asks for the bad review to be taken off, he might take the $ and you never hear from him again, n you still have the bad review on there, so you may lose out on it twice. I wouldn't stress it, can't make everyone happy, you did the best you could.

 

[Able 1]

I have a couple slum lords that I do work for and if I think the cleaning won't meet there expectations I tell them(though I do have keys for all of them) if they say "just clean it" I send the bill and expect payment.

I would ask to see the new carpet installed before I would ever refund any money, and if he did replace I ALWAYS refund, since I thought it was cleanable(only happened once).

 

[sam miller]

Its hard You did all You could pics would be great on a before and after other then that, Tell when You see the bad review remover

You'll give him his money back.

He's just mad because it was to far gone and wants You to be responsible! I call it the gamble do You pay a hundred to know for sure

that You need to spend a Grand or just spend the grand.

My Dad always says "first loss is the best loss."

He also says on a hot day "Its hotter then teenage love in July". whatever thats worth.

The question is "are You going to be happy spending this money regardless if its salvagable or not."

 

[Dolly Llama]

I like Kieth's (Able1) advise best

That's pretty much how we handle it .
'cept I'm not sure I'd refund any money...cuz...
if it's going to look like hell when we're done, I call 'em
and DOUBLY fo-sho if a first time custy

were you personally on that job??
if not, I'd of gone and looked at it



..l.T.A.

 

[Fred H]

I would refund if they pull the bad review. also you gotta know when to walk away.

 

[Desk Jockey]

I find often that a filthy carpet can clean up very well relative to what I started with, but at the end of the job the carpet still looks like crap, only a better level of crappy than before. I normally take a few pics while extracting these to show that there was in fact a 'night and day' improvement from cleaning it, but that the carpet is just too far gone to get it looking fantastic again. Pics often come in handy.

Good idea if you clean a lot of trashed carpet!

 

[Padden McFadden]

When dealing with a wack job, I find it's worth it to pay them to go away, and give a refund. I mean this kind of thing only happens once in a blue moon so a refund on these morons won't break you. In the mean time, I would call the guy up and very nicely tell him that if he wont take the review down then he will have to look over his shoulder casue at some point in the next month you will find him and have to put the boots to him.

 

[idreadnought]

I would never refund his money. Like others have said a bad review can be a good thing. Tell the story you did on here and let the public know that you offered to return and Re-clean it. He mentions that you wouldn't return his calls but you hung up on him. How could you hang up on him if you wouldn't answer the call? Just write a very tastefull explaination to the google public and that in itself will actually help you.

 

[lust1kiddo]

I would say..we can do this the nice way, or the Brooklyn way. Its up to you...lol. I had to set a customer straight the other day when he decided to call me and question my integrity and was very cavalier about the way he spoke to me. I have NEVER gotten a complaint about those things..sure have I screwed up, yes. Have I paid for things to be fixed and stepped up to the plate?? EVERYTIME. I will not accept people calling me saying I ripped them off.
He threw out there that he wasn't going to " bash " me online. But he said it almost like a threat.
I let him know I just happened to be around the corner from his house, and I could come "see" him if he wanted..lol. And he knew what I meant.. and he calmed down.

just my experience..lol.

shiteatinggrin
Jarred

 

[Desk Jockey]

He threw out there that he wasn't going to " bash " me online. But he said it almost like a threat.
I let him know I just happened to be around the corner from his house, and I could come "see" him if he wanted..lol. And he knew what I meant.. and he calmed down.

He bashes you on line and you bash him off line. :shock:
YOU crazy....but I like it!

 

[lust1kiddo]

Richard..I'm not a caveman my any means..but sometimes you have to let people know that there is more than one type of justice in this world..lol. Oddly enough, that's the only time I have had to check someone like that in this business..but then again, I have only been in it for almost two years..haha.