Problems already

[dewos]

Ok, so i have about 45 yards and all weeks it has been raining till about Sunday late morning. I don't cut in the rain and i specify it in my contract that my customers sign. So it has rained wed, Thurs, Friday, sat, and early Sunday, but to the point i have been getting done my customers in order from Wednesday. Not only is it taking longer because of the grass being so high but i had problems with lawn mowers. This lady that called me was scheduled originally on sat. I called and brought it to her attention that we will be late and we are very far behind because of the rain she said ok get her asap. So today she calls me tells me she cut it herself and told me I'm fired!!?????????? What do i do in this instance?:hammerhead:

[lurch]

what does your contract say...if she is in breech you could take it farther

[dewos]

I mean she is going against the contract but i mean an unhappy customer might as well not be a customer. I don't want to hold her in against her will. I did nothing wrong threw the contract standards she just thinks shes my only customer. What would you tell this lady, shes being just unrealistic. All my other customers understand... its always the old ladys that do not understand why we are late sometimes. I have an old lady call me when it was pooring out and ask me why iI wasn't cutting.

[lurch]

i would try to explain the problem to her one last time...if she still does not comply then abide by the termination clause in your contract...

[ed2hess]

Might look at changing you policy on mowing in the rain....a full time service is not going to easily suck up 4 days of work. But you have to have the type of equipment that will cut when it is raining.

[Charles]

Keep this saying in mind-- The squeaky wheel gets the grease! If you do that you will rarely lose a customer because you are behind:cool2:

[J Hisch]

I'll be happy to sdervice the lawn but understand the grass may clump and their may be slight tire marks through your lawn. If you can handle that on this occasion then I'll se you asap. You would have kept her and made her happy. You have to cut in slightly wet weather sometime especially in the spring it could cause you to miss a cycle and we never want that to happen.....

[Poncho25]

Why do you not work in the rain? Afraid to get wet? ;) Seriously though, I could understand if it was down right pouring outside, and hell with lightning an thunder I don't work in that, but reg rain fall? why not? Just curious.

[M&SLawnCare]

Trying to make a yard look good when its overgown from an extra week of growth is much harder than just cutting it wet. Even worse its a headache to schedualand get back on track. If you have decent equipment the rain wont be a huge factor. The only time i refuse to mow is when the turf is so saturated that i risk damaging it just from the weight of the mowers.

In those cases just explain to the customer that the ground is so saturated and "mushy" (the technical term :) ), using the mowers on it could tear up the grass or cause indented wheel tracks. I have yet to meet the person that gets pissed at me for refusing to cut their lawn when they can't even step on it without sinking a little.

[WJW Lawn]

Just imagine you're the Priest in Caddyshack playing the greatest 18 holes of his life! Only don't get struck by lightning. lol Thats basically what I did the other day...if Im not gonna tear the yard up...im cutting...I hate down time.

[DLAWNS]

Do what you can do to explain to the customer your stance on the situation. Just don't worry too much about it, there are always customers like this and if you ask me their not worth your time. I had one when i lived down in Florida he was my first customer ever and everyone else understood but he just didn't so he canned me and i could care less because he wasn't my problem anymore.

[jeremy067390]

ya know i have a few customers like that and some how i keep them happy... i wish some of them would can me. i mow in on and off showers or rain, if not i do the other stuff then mow when i was gonna do that. if it rains too many days in a row i just skip the week and bite the bullet. better have a serious bagger though

[HOOLIE]

She already cancelled. Move on.

[Roger]

I don't know where you are working in Pittsburgh, but I agree with some of what was said. Yes, I was rained out on Wednesday, all day (actually did get 20 minutes of work done before the rain). But, Thursday and Friday were banner days. They were the most productive of the season. My schedule was behind by end of Friday, and was intending to get nearly all work done on Saturday to catch up. However, Saturday was again a total washout. Yesterday was great, and now I am only one day behind. Thursday, Friday, and yesterday were 11, 12 hour work days, but the production was good. And, yes, I agree the turf is really growing. The hand mower alone took off about 55 bags yesterday. One property with a front yard of about 6K sq ft, I took off 10 Gobblers with my Exmark w/b.

As for cutting in the rain, the conditions in this area makes mowing difficult even when the sun in out, and the temperatures are 70 degrees. At this time of the year, the clippings are so laden with moisture, they can easily turn to mush and green wads. With a bit of dew, drizzle, or sprinkles, the results of any work on the lawn will make a huge mess. It is not about getting wet, or not getting wet, rather whether the mowing operation can even function.

The lady who mowed for herself is not a customer in good standing. Anybody who mows one time gets a letter saying they are off the schedule. If they did it one time, they will do it again. As a side note, and to repeat what I have said in other posts, this lady again proves the usefulness of a contract, or lack thereof, for the simple task of lawn mowing.

[CustomKare]

I say good riddens!! One less PITA. Find a replacement and move on. The walks and drives get ugly when cuttin wet and the extra time cleanin your equipment. Commercials are the only thing I will cut wet

[topsites]

It's just the breaks, here more and more I find we always compromise one end to get to the other, frustrates me to no end somedays. What is to be gained here is we either cut in the rain, or we tolerate the taller grass, one or the other, it's just how it is, and believe me I wish it weren't so but we can't have both.
You have no idea how much it tests me somedays, but what can you do?

See I don't cut in the rain, and the resulting phonecalls frustrate me sometimes, but other days I think to myself, you know, it is a good thing the phone is ringing. If one or the other doesn't like it, well there's more fish in the ocean, some folks will like it that you do not cut in the rain, others well, idk... Then just get out there and do it, best you can, is all I know.

[Poncho25]

I can understand if its completely underwater, if any of you ever been in the Tampa area or Fla in general during June - Sept. You are pretty much guaranteed a down fall every day, how hard, and how long varies, but the humidity and sun are always out after. We would all be out of work if we didnt work in that weather. Only time I don't cut is when its flooded, lightning out. But hey, she's gone, move on. :)