[NJWindowCleaning]

Hi to all,

This morning i was talking to a windwo cleaner who says he would collect his money every six months in arrears but he also said some f his customers pay six month in advance.

Myself would only let my customers one month in arrears and if they didnt pay the next month then i would stop there clean until they paid up or when they ask why you stop cleaning them.

Does anyone else leave that long??

[karygate]

i keep on calling till they pay.have only one customer owe me and thats from yesterday.but i do ring night before and that saves a lot of collecting.

[cat9921]

i keep on calling till they pay.have only one customer owe me and thats from yesterday.but i do ring night before and that saves a lot of collecting.

That's a good tip I hate collecting 

[jonnyald]

im hoping to get my collecting on track once ive weeded out every single one of my bad payers.its only a handful of true messers but they drag me down.
 ive heard Every excuse under the sun (cant find cheque book,my wages didnt go in right,death in the family,definitely will leave it under the plant pot/but dont ) and my rule now is only clean once and then must be paid

[soapy]

You got to give the custys 3 cleans before worring too much.

www.aswindowcleaning.co.uk

[Smudger]

2 cleans max - and then only for well trusted custy's

i usually pop out on a friday to round up and non payers - have to say tho these are very few as most leave cash/cheque or pay online.

i am not a bank and did not offer credit when i started cleaning - therefore i request payment asap - i keep outstanding monies down to the absolute minimum

Darran

[Tom White]

For me it depends on the customer.  Some I would be quite happy to leave it for many months, and some I wouldn't. 

For example, I clean a doctor's house whose also a friend of Wor Lass's from her running club.  He'll wait till he's six months in arrears, then pay me for those six months and for the next six months ahead.  Once those six months run out, he'll go into six months into arrears.  We never arranged this, it's just the way it's evolved.

But another account I can think of, a young couple whom I suspect live above their means, I start getting twitchy at the 3 month point when they owe me for three cleans.  But they always pay with an apology.

However, to be honest, 95% of my customers are long term good payers.  I guess over the years I've dumped the ones who were reluctant to pay, or they've dumped me.

[G Griffin]

For me it depends on the customer.  Some I would be quite happy to leave it for many months, and some I wouldn't. 

For example, I clean a doctor's house whose also a friend of Wor Lass's from her running club.  He'll wait till he's six months in arrears, then pay me for those six months and for the next six months ahead.  Once those six months run out, he'll go into six months into arrears.  We never arranged this, it's just the way it's evolved.

But another account I can think of, a young couple whom I suspect live above their means, I start getting twitchy at the 3 month point when they owe me for three cleans.  But they always pay with an apology.

However, to be honest, 95% of my customers are long term good payers.  I guess over the years I've dumped the ones who were reluctant to pay, or they've dumped me.

I agree.

[cozy]

Some custies, I run 3 cleans if I can't catch them at home. We collect at weekends, usually Sunday afternoons because Sundays are crap days for me. Try to take free days in the week most of the time. When we start news custies, I tell them that they can pay as we clean or we can collect Sundays. This seems to go down well and it removes the "Not this time, I'm skint" brigade.

Don't like being paid in advance really, makes me feel like I'm working for nothing lol. After we have finished an area cleaning, sometimes it's 2 weeks before I get back to collect. I think if they have any complaints, by that time they've forgot what they were !!

By the way, I like collecting, and I like the banter with custies. I like to think a face to the service makes the difference when the beer money crew turn up in the summer.

[mlscontractcleaner]

I expect payment up front, three months in advance, along with regular cuppas and bickies. I expect the customer to do the tricky windows themselves, in fact anything above ground floor. I expect Christmas pressies every year and hand out a "wish list" every November - just to make their jobs easier!!!

I don't expect too much and in return my customers don't expect clean windows - a win, win situation I reckon!!!

[dazmond]

i have a lot of variety like a lot of you!get paid a few cleans in advance/cheques through the door,pay when i clean/or collect.ive always got a few hundred outstanding at any one time and my debt is getting bigger and bigger as ive put all my prices up and getting better work!

ITS GOOD INNIT?!!!

i have wrote off a few lately(about £30 worth)i will not clean again after 2 cleans without payment unless its one of my long standing custys who i know pays in the end.that way you dont incur much loss if you have to write a debt off!!

none of us should be relying on every last penny getting paid to us cos we need it badly unless your just starting up!if you are your going to be mightly disappointed as you will never get ALL your money in!it just rolls on to the next month and so on and so on!!

[Moderator David@stives]

I just let people pay at there own pace and never collected or missed a clean through lack of payment.

One year a lady wanted to pay me and i said "hhmmmmm 13 months please" she nearly fell over and sacked us straight away.

Now we are bit more on the ball, we have Ruby, who now phones late payers asking them for payment.

[formb]

For me it depends on the customer.  Some I would be quite happy to leave it for many months, and some I wouldn't. 

For example, I clean a doctor's house whose also a friend of Wor Lass's from her running club.  He'll wait till he's six months in arrears, then pay me for those six months and for the next six months ahead.  Once those six months run out, he'll go into six months into arrears.  We never arranged this, it's just the way it's evolved.

But another account I can think of, a young couple whom I suspect live above their means, I start getting twitchy at the 3 month point when they owe me for three cleans.  But they always pay with an apology.

However, to be honest, 95% of my customers are long term good payers.  I guess over the years I've dumped the ones who were reluctant to pay, or they've dumped me.

I agree.

Almost every time I get a bad payer they are in "nicer" estates. I have even been ripped off by a double-barrelled!

I find council estates etc are usually the best payers.

3 months (depending on the monthly bill) is what we allow before chasing them up.

[supernova77]

Most of my customers are every 8 weeks... If they haven't paid their last bill by the time the next clean comes round I just offer them a gentle reminder and they pay up.

96.7% of my customers are very good payers 

Andy

[formb]

Most of my customers are every 8 weeks... If they haven't paid their last bill by the time the next clean comes round I just offer them a gentle reminder and they pay up.

96.7% of my customers are very good payers 

Andy

Roughly

[supernova77]

Roughly

Yeah, give or take 0.04%



Andy

[Platinum]

Most of mine pay on the day or when i collect.

When i have problems i never carry on cleaning if they owe me over 2-3 cleans. If i struggle getting the money then i get the cash and dont go back

[martinsadie]

Hi to all,

This morning i was talking to a windwo cleaner who says he would collect his money every six months in arrears but he also said some f his customers pay six month in advance.

Myself would only let my customers one month in arrears and if they didnt pay the next month then i would stop there clean until they paid up or when they ask why you stop cleaning them.

Does anyone else leave that long??

2x then they are suspended untill paid

[Sean Dyer]

i used to stop after 2 or 3 cleans, now with some i  know who will be ok i just keep cleaning but try catch them asap some, pay upafter 7-8 cleans happily and i know the funny ones now who wont

At the minute i really need to get on the ball with collecting as im owed a 1000 and counting tommorow!!! and thats just domestics!

but i have been away etc, i keep meaning to get everyone sending cheques but not that many doing it at present think i need to finally send a letter out i have been collecting from them for too long!! once im ahead with money owed out i will send the letter out !

[awcs]

I now take payment by paypal. Works for me and saves time having to pay cheques in.