Advice please: cleaners have damaged my sink. What to do?

cazziebo

How many hours do they do?

If they are doing more than an hour each you're getting a very good deal so I'd be loath to stop any money from the payment. I'd raise it with the boss and see if they suggest a compromise. You also have to bear in mind it is 4 years old. (Wait until you experience the wreckage a toddler can do!)

With a new baby I imagine you don't want to go on the hunt for a new cleaner right now when this situation might be salvageable.

PS - I think it can be very MSE to have a cleaner if that frees you up to do other things.

74jax

I have a cleaner and I would deinfinately ask them to replace.

I understand what others are saying about it being pretty minor BUT the fact remains if the cleaners hadn't touched it then the owner wouldn't have to replace.

Yes, to some it probably wouldn't need replacing, BUT it was perfacetly nice and smooth and shiney BEFORE the cleaners took to using a scourer, why should the owner who PAYS for a service have their goods damaged, whether it be a sink or a sofa or an oven etc... whatever it is doesn't really matter.

A cleaner dropped a frame of mine, just a small 2in x 2in photo frame - we have 16 going up the stairs so would have been easy to do, they were £3.99 in Ikea but I asked for the money to replace.

if I was you op, I would phone the main contact, explain all you've said here and ask for a replacement part and for the cleaners to be retold just to use your items. They may have swapped cleaners in your house.

I have a special kitchen cleaner as they are glossy cupbaords and so leave this for the cleaners, i'd be pretty miffed in your case too.

Quentin

If you went to the length of charging your cleaner 3.99 after an accident expect them to get it back off you one way or another

EmmyLou30

I don't think you're angry over nothing at all. Ok so it doesn't stop the sink functioning but if you have something immaculate and not scratched you'd like it to remain that way. If you have an accident yourself then fine, you live with it, but cleaners who are absolutely clueless damaging my property I wouldn't accept. Do you pay them in cash after each week's cleaning? I would suggest you mention it before they clean next time, see if they sound like they'll cough up the money (which they should as they clearly damaged it through using the wrong product but I wouldn't get your hopes up) and if not you let them do the cleaning and then don't pay them for that week and send them packing. At least there's £20 you've managed to claw back towards the damage.

hunters

The plug is more than 4 years old??

Person_one

Agree with the suggestion to switch to a different cleaner. You don't sound remotely happy with this firm even before the 'incident'. I would ask them to pay for the damage too, but wouldn't be getting into a big nuisance of a fight about it if they argued.

Although, if you are very particular about your cleaning down to micromanaging exactly what products the cleaners use in what rooms, maybe that's not the best area for you to relinquish control? Could you outsource something else to save the same amount of time? Get your food shopping delivered and put away, have the washing and ironing collected and delivered?

Nicki

EmmyLou30 wrote: »

I don't think you're angry over nothing at all. Ok so it doesn't stop the sink functioning but if you have something immaculate and not scratched you'd like it to remain that way. If you have an accident yourself then fine, you live with it, but cleaners who are absolutely clueless damaging my property I wouldn't accept. Do you pay them in cash after each week's cleaning? I would suggest you mention it before they clean next time, see if they sound like they'll cough up the money (which they should as they clearly damaged it through using the wrong product but I wouldn't get your hopes up) and if not you let them do the cleaning and then don't pay them for that week and send them packing. At least there's £20 you've managed to claw back towards the damage.

I think that's a horrible (and dishonest) thing to do. The cleaner who doesn't get paid may not even be the cleaner who caused the damage (skintchick says different people are in and out) and cleaners are really poorly paid anyway. Not paying someone for their work may mean a family not eating that week or not being able to pay the whole of their rent. The fault is with the owner of the business not the poor cleaner who turns up next week.

In the cold light of day is the damage awful? If yes, does the cleaning firm have insurance and will they pay to put things right. If it's not awful is it just a bit more than normal wear and tear on a sink which is now at least 4 years old? If so, as others have said replace the cleaners now and the plugs when the children are older and you have more time and spare cash. Unfortunately things do get broken or cleaned with the wrong materials when you use cleaners, especially if their English isn't great. It's one of the downsides of having the luxury of hiring them (if it makes you feel better skintchick a non English speaking cleaner once cleaned a marble worktop in our house with window spray. Ouch!)

blobbydoodaah

You really should have mentioned this little problem to them straight away-it is such a small issue if you are happy with everythimg else just let them know to stop any further damage!

j.e.j.

Firstly congrats on your newborn baby!

With regards the cleaning, I am trying to think what dimwit would use a metal scourer on a sink. I'm hardly the queen of clean but even I can figure out that using something abrasive like that is likely to scratch the surface of whatever you are cleaning!

If there are other issues too I think I would politely give them the sack and get someone else in. But if it's just this one thing, maybe just have a word with them.

Better_Days

I'd be cross too OP.

Do you have the same cleaner(s) each week who are aware that the cleaning materials for each room are kept in that room? If so I think you do have cause for complaint but I also think that the cleaning company will probably say that it can't be proved it was them that did the damage.

I have a cleaner every week and it is one of the best decisions I made. It was really getting me down not being able to keep the house clean (due to ill health) and now it's not an issue. And I'm sure you'd much rather spend time with your lovely new baby than cleaning sinks and floors :D

Over the years I've had a number of cleaners and they all have different ways of doing things and not all listen when it comes to cleaning products. Now I simply make sure that only what I want used is available - so I don't have to worry about, for instance, bleach being used inappropriately. When we lived in a rented house I stopped the cleaner in the nick of time using bleach on the cream sink - it would have ruined it and quite rightly our deposit would have been docked. It simply didn't occur to her that bleach would damage the sink, and I think this is what has happened with the scourers (were they trying to get rid of limescale?)

There are a vast array of cleaning products and cleaners do not necessarily read instructions (or may have difficulty doing so if English is a second language). It seems to me that you can't trust these cleaners (nice as they are). I think I'd chalk it up to experience, and get different cleaners in. But do feedback as to why you are changing.