What's your oddest complaint?

[BAMARED]

Mine came last night when a fellow called me telling me that the flyer that I taped to his mailbox left some tape residue after he tore it off. At first I thought this was some kind of joke or prank call or something, but the fellow was very polite and curteous and I could tell that he was serious. I apoligized and told him that I will immediately come over and clean off his mailbox.

When I got over there I discovered that the entire mailbox was covered with pollen/dust and when he tore off the flyer it left a small clean spot on it. I just windexed the entire mailbox, wiped it down and went back to the house - smiling the whole way.

Oh well - what can you say?

[MOW ED]

I had a customer that was a putz and he confronted me one day after I was done mowing and he said that my string trimmer must be leaving oil spots on his siding.
I immediately told me to show me where. He took me to the backyard and showed me small spots on his siding.
I first explained to him that my string trimmers exhaust blows away from his house, then I showed him that his problem was not me, it was spider $hit.
I hated working for that lazy idiot.
He didn't even apologize for accusing me. I guess he felt like a horses a$$ anyway.

[Richard Martin]

The oddest complaint I hear is actually about a competitor. His customers keep calling me up and asking me to come and bid the jobs. When I get there they explain that he doesn't bill them on a timely basis. Today I went and got one of this guy's jobs and the homeowner said that the guy had just presented him a bill for half of last years mowing for $550.00. I have gotten 2 of this guys jobs and another friend of mine has gotten 3 and all of these people are complaining about the guy's billing policies.

[SCAPEASAURUSREX]

I had an odd one tonight... A client called and left me a v mail whinieng about something... I called him back and he told me He did not want any of my guys on his PREMISIS without him knowing about it.. ???? WHAT... Does he think we can mow from the street ???? The guy has a contract which outlines the services HE requested ... With when they will start and finish..along with freqency.. Tried talking to the guy to find out what he exactly wanted me to do and how to do it and he just kept mumbling ? He Said there was some kinda problem with this ?? he just kept mumbling and yelling , I could not figure what he was saying .. strong accent.. kept saying that there was a problem, Best is I havent even started there yet.. He was on the schedule for tomorrow for the first service... I told him to go get someone else to cut his lawn... Click.....

[bobbygedd]

hello, this is mrs x, just wonderin when u guys were gonna finish my spring cleanup, there is still that old pool filter, washer and dryer that needs to be removed....

[mdb landscaping]

My oddest complaint ive ever gotten was last year. I had a lawn that doesnt require a fall cleanup because of no trees, so the last regular mowing was around mid october. I waited till mid november to get one more mowing out of it to keep it nice and low for winter. So, i mowed it mid november, and the client called and said "why did you mow our lawn, its november, no other landscaper has cut it in november". They never gave me specifications for that, they just let me mow their lawn all season and never said a thing, didnt know i needed permission for which months i can mow it in:D

[the point man]

Bobby, an almost identical thing happened to me a couple of years ago, and I immediately realized that I was at fault for not
explaining to the customer exactly what I wasgoing to do for
her. So I got a couple of buddies and we hauled appliances and
trash to the dump and I reaped a nice profit. She is one of what
I see as an increasing number of elderly, well-off customers who
will pay the big buck to have something done right and done now.

[1grnlwn]

Last year I had a old guy who changes contractors every year. We did a great job mowing(his words). He did not want us to bag his leaves(has 3 100 year oaks) so we donned the doubles and logged a few miles in his yard. He would say don't mow over there just around here (the big part). I charged for the time I was there. We mulched 3 times last being last of Nov. Last time he says that will be fine, I said anything else? No, thank you. I hand delivered bill from previous time and left. Sent last bill. A month later I get typed letter from him saying I over charged him. So I printed all computer rec and got him straightened out. Called him in Feb. just to check in. He says Well I haven't called for any Quotes yet. Oh by the way the last time you were here your guy (I was alone) did not blow leaves out from under the bushes. My son was here and pulled 22 lawn bags of leaves from under the bushes. (Gee you think there were still leaves on the trees when I left the last time?) Anyway he says I want you to blow the leaves out from under the bushes before you mow every time this year for same price. I told him we would do about twice this spring and then again in the fall when doing leaves. He said he would let me know. He leaves message (since you refuse to blow under the bushes I have found someone that will). When I find out who is doing his yard I will tell them to charge out the a$$ for leaves because thats the last they will see of him. Oh by the way I hired a new man and he said Oh I know Mr. Lyerla I mowed his lawn 2 years ago. 1 year. You better call him and see if you still got it. LOL Sorry for the long sad post. I hate silly season.

Mark

[Ssouth]

Sparsons, what you did (going back and windex-ing the mail box ) will be great word of mouth advertising. I don't know if it's a normal client or just somebody's mailbox you put a flyer on. Either way, what you did was to go out of your way to fix a problem. Small things like this seem trivial to some, but this is the best advertising possible. When this guy tells a friend what he did; they will laugh at him first and then ask who it was that came back? After that, you can laugh all the way to the house and the bank!!

[bobbygedd]

now somehow i view that differently. i think it will go more like" that lawn guy, yea joe whats his name, he left a piece a tape on my mailbox, and i got the shmuck to come back and wax my whole box. " and now the next guy will expect, when he says jump, u say "how high?" i would have done the same thing, but somehow i think going out of your way like that for some a hole who is just going out of his way to disrespect u, will not pay off in any way. in my washing machine case, it was one of those peoplewho want something for nothing, she knew damn well i wasnt supposed to take that stuff, and, not stereotyping, but she had something stuck in the middle of her forhead, like a red dot or something. and she thought she had me by the hairs cus she owed me $150 for the cleanup. i was so mad, i said im coming right now to get paid, leave a check in the mailbox, or i suggest u have a cop there waiting. the check was there

[eslawns]

I had an old lady a couple of years ago who called because she expected me at the same time every week. No earlier or later. I explained that what she wanted was not possible for me, and she said she wanted me to come in the morning on the same day each time. Fine.

We had a storm for a few days and she called wanting to know why I hadn't cut yet. She said it wouldn't hurt me to get wet. I just explained that I will sometimes finish up a lawn if it starts to rain after I've already started on it, but I don't mow in the rain, generally.

When I did get to come by a day later, I stopped to talk to her and she wanted to know why I didn't come the day before. I was beginning to lose my patience, but explained that there were 2 days worth of lawns ahead of her, and I had only stopped to see how soft the ground was. She said she didn't care how mushy it was, and I told her I would leave ruts if I mowed. She said she didn't care, so I mowed and left ruts everywhere. Naturally, she had a fit.

She called every day for a week to find out what I was going to do about the ruts. I called her back each time to tell her I wasn't going to do anything about them and each time she griped and complained. When I came the next time, she refused to allow the WB on the lawn, because it had left what she called "tire tracks" all over. Even though I had used the same machine for a whole season before the storm, she insisted that I use the 21" from then on. I told her that I could do that, but it would be $10 more for the work, and she said she wouldn't pay it.

At that point, I politely thanked her for her business, told her I couldn't do what she wanted, and loaded my mower and left. She called every day for a week to ask me when I was coming to mow her lawn. I called her back twice to make the point that I wasn't, but I don't think she ever heard a word I said.

[Turf Technologies]

eslawns, thats the funniest thing ive ever heard.

[Ssouth]

now somehow i view that differently. i think it will go more like" that lawn guy, yea joe whats his name, he left a piece a tape on my mailbox, and i got the shmuck to come back and wax my whole box. " and now the next guy will expect, when he says jump, u say "how high?" i would have done the same thing,

Bobbygedd, you are contradiciting yourself. A good first impressions is far more meaningful than a bad first impression. I say do whatever it takes to get your foot in the door and then set up the parameters of your specific work.

[James234]

Re: the mailbox thing. You guys are missing the point. USPS mailboxes are protected by federal law. You can't put your ads in them or "on" them because it's against the law. If I found an ad taped to my mailbox from a lawnservice I would contact my local postmaster and press charges against the violator to the full extent of the law (very hefty I might add). Outfits that do this are classic scrubs!

[mikal]

One spring I was backed up a couple of days and when I showed up to this one account the grass was 6 to 8 inches (alot of rain etc.). I wasnt going to charge extra because it wasnt his fault about the rain and his # on the list, but after i cut his lawn i rang the door bell and i said i was done blah blah. He goes" my lawn didnt need it and I'm not paying you.'' he was even pist a little that I cut. I tried to tell him that it was 6 to 8 and he called me a lier. So I told him to pay me and find someone else to do his lawn. Suprisingly he paid me and I've not seen him sense,Thank God. what an *ss hole.

[Tyner Lawn Service]

One spring I signed up this appeared to be tight wad couple who first had me do a spring cleanup. Then I started with a weekly mowing. Along about the third week I ask for the $100 cleanup payment and the Mrs. ask if I could knock off $5.00 a week for a few weeks because there was a small 10X10 area in the backyard that had no grass under a shade tree and she figured I was'nt mowing any grass so why did she have to pay for it!! I was already very competative on my prices. I had enough so I sak her for the payment and the 3 weeks and she would have to get someone else. She paid me and said she would'nt refer me to anyone. I told her I suggested she hock the title to their Mercedes so they can afford to have a life. I later found out she was a real pain with other mowing companies. I bend over backwards until pushed too far for some people.

[Tyner Lawn Service]

Forgot to add that the dirt area was in line with the mowing lines so it made no reason to go around this small area. We had to cross it to keep our lines straight.

[SCAPEASAURUSREX]

I got another one... A few years back I had signed up a new client.. They bargained a little on price for maint and cleanup and I met them alittle on it cause I needed the work.. ( big mistake ) .. So I do the cleanup , took me 5 hours and a fully loaded truck I only charged the guy like $200.00 for the whole job which also included seed and fertilizer , ( So I shafted myself ) .. I went over it and made it as perfect as I could ..... About 2 weeks later when the guy recived his bill he calls and says he is completly dissatisfied with the cleanup.. I said why , Blah Blah.. Why did you not call me immediatly... Well I go over there and meet with him and there are like two sticks by the road.. I said no prob, picked them up and put in truck then he say s and wht about this garbadge hanging here pointing to his phone line which for some reason was really long and laying on the ground.. I said sorry but I m not messing with your phone line , that s hooked up , WHY /??// I show him it and he says ohh... SO I think everything is ok.. start cutting, meanwhile did not yet receive payment for the cleanup... IT get s better..... He claims that when I said to just drop the payment in the mail , He thought to just leave it in the mail box, so after 3 months of this , I finally get a check and its dated for the day before, Yeah i't's really been sitting in your mailbox for 3 months... Threatend with a lein for the rest of payment , He paid up , I said B By........... And he wanted to know if I was coming back .. LOL.... This was probly my best experience... LOL

[BAMARED]

James,

Thanks for your input. However, I've spoken face to face with the local post master regarding this issue. After I told him exactly what I was doing and why I was doing it he told me that as long as I do not place my flyer in the mailbox or interfere with the functionality of the box (flags, doors, etc.) that he did not mind me putting my flyers on every mailbox in town. It ended up that he had me come over to his house and bid on cutting his lawn. We agreed upon a price and he is now one of my favorite customers. His wife makes awesome confection candy every Christmas.

Thanks again,

sparsons

[ohiolawnguy]

we used to fertilize a home which we didnt mow. well, their thery o mowing was absolutely silly. they mowed once a month, whether it needed it or not.

after every time they mowed, they would call us, and say why is my grass yellow?
you must not be ferilizing properly!
would explain to her that the grass isnt supposed to get 12-18" tall before you cut it. that s why it is yellow after you mow it.

no. no. no. she says. i know how to cut grass! this went on for 2 years before we finally got rid of her.

[mikal]

I thought that some of my cusomers were a pain until I read these threads. I now think that for the most, the majority of my cliants are ok

[laynlow]

The post office can fine you for putting things in/on the mailbox, but normally they just charge you postage due. If you've got the rubberstamp from the postmaster, its moot anyway.

[LJ lawn]

isn't it just great to know that there are people out there with nothing better to do with their time but to call the post office and attempt to press charges against someone putting a flyer on their mailbox or complain about some tape residue.

[proline32]

One of my better customers today came out and started complaining to me about the fact that the fertilizer i used on her lawn is making the grass grow so fast and thick that two days after I mow the yard looks bushy! What can you expect lady, it's fertilized... then she wanted me to thach and aerate the lawn again in a week, I said why...... we did it last fall, she thinks that by thatching and aerating it will slow down the growth....HELLO:rolleyes:

[Scotlawncare]

Originally posted by James234
If I found an ad taped to my mailbox from a lawnservice I would contact my local postmaster and press charges against the violator to the full extent of the law (very hefty I might add). Outfits that do this are classic scrubs!

James do you have nothing better to do than try to knock a person prob getting started in this business. Not every person has the 1000's of dollars it might take to spend on door hangers or flyers to be inserted in newspapers or the time to walk 1000's of houses just starting out. The majority of people on here have placed an ad on someone's mail box. But stating "Outfits that do this are classic scrubs!" is an insult and a true showing of your lack of class. Don't sterotype someone because they are trying to save a few $$$.

Who know's James might be a scrub.

[proline32]

I guess i'm a scub becuz I used tape and stuck a business card on the outside of a mail box.... I'm soooo sorry Mr. postman.

You can stick a card or flyer on the outside of a mailbox, the post office only has a fit if you stick it IN a mailbox and even then they many times don't give a rip. they have better things to do ;)

[Brickman]

Don't you just love blazing idiots?

Customers like you all have been describing, you can't get rid of fast enought!!!!!
Where I am in my business is I have SOOO many people that are begging for me to work for them and I turn them down because I don't have time for them. So as soon as I get a loser like this, I shortly get rid of them, after trying to make things right of course.

As for the customer that said they wouldn't refer the contractor to friends, that is OK. You don't want any more like they are.

I have had some real strange ones. One caller wanted some body that had electric ONLY trimmer and mower, because she didn't want environmental polution going on at her property.

Others want you to mow every other week for the same price.
Others blame ME for the way their yard looks, when they don't water any where near enough, or fertilize at all.



We are not in this business for our health!

[darryl gesner]

Around here, the postal carrier will collect all fliers, turn them into the postmaster and the business who put them there has to pay the postage for each one, at first class rates. I don't know if they also fine them. One company around here puts their fliers with a quote (almost always $42) in a plastic bag with some crushed stone in it and throws them into your driveway. Pretty unprofessional IMHO.

[totallpm]

To make a long story short, I had a customer call me to say one of my guys had just took a leek all over her house. I did not know what to say and told her I would be right over. I got there and she had called the police and was yelling at Roberto for his actions. She said she saw him out the window going from one end to the other. After talking to him and seeing the sittuation the grass was wet and the trimmer had thrown grass on the side of her foundation. He had the garden hose and was just washing it off.

She still did not believe the true story.

Got to love those seniors. (blue hairs:D )

Kevin Total Landscaping

[bobbygedd]

she couldnt tell the difference between the garden hose and roberto? roberto, u da man

[MikeLT1Z28]

this is turning in to the funniest post i have ever seen on here.

[jeffyr]

Originally posted by LJ lawn
isn't it just great to know that there are people out there with nothing better to do with their time but to call the post office and attempt to press charges against someone putting a flyer on their mailbox or complain about some tape residue.

Exactly what I was thinking.

I thought that some of my cusomers were a pain until I read these threads. I now think that for the most, the majority of my cliants are ok. [/B]

Exactly what I was thinking......again !
:D

jeffyr

[jeffex]

5yrs ago one of my customers tells me to go see her neighbor she wants me to cut her lawn. GREAT I am pricing it in my head as I walk over to her door thinking I'll go high on the price. "high Mrs Betty " nice to meet you. She tells me she likes my work and wants me to cut her lawn. I list the services we do and tell her $35 per cut. She looks at me as if I'm crazy and boasts " I pay $50" taken back a minute, I reply "$50 it is Mrs. Betty" . To bad she moved this year due to poor health. Maybe I could have her cloned

[fastrunner]

If I found an ad taped to my mailbox from a lawnservice I would contact my local postmaster and press charges against the violator to the full extent of the law (very hefty I might add). Outfits that do this are classic scrubs!

hey James,, I'm a professional and I sometimes tape fliers to mailboxes.... one of the best methods of advertising. if you dont like it do us all a favor and take your mailbox down :D

[LAWNS AND MOWER]

Old lady wanted her yard mowed every 10 days, but she also wanted it mowed only on Fridays. Do the math. Would ***** when I came on a Tuesday even though it had been 10 days. Had to show her a calender and explain how Fridays are every 7 days and not 10 days.

LAWNS AND MOWER

[MuskTurfKing]

I have a customer that is about 10 fries short of a Happy Meal, I have to make sure everything is PERFECT when I cleanup her flowerbed, it's her pride and joy even though I do all the work, but she pays well so I can stand hearing her b**** about the 2 "weeds" I missed which turn out to be flowers. LOL

Hank

[C4chris70]

I once did a sod install for a friend of a friend at a great price. After I completed the install I advised the man that I would warranty the sod for a period of 90 days if my company maintained the lawn or 30 days if he or another company handled the maintenance. He said he was going to have a kid down the street do the work because he would mow the yard for $10.00. About a year went by went I got a certified letter stating that I had 48 hours to replace his yard or he was going to report my company to the BBB and the local investigative reporter. Now I haven;t heard a thing from this guy in a year and I did not maintain the lawn. I contacted the spraying company I use and they found that the yard was infested with bugs, the yard was stressed due to an extended drought, and it turned out that the man applied weed and feed for Bahia grass to a floritam lawn. No wonder it died! I sent back a certified letter with the findings of the spraying company and politely told the man that there was nothing I could do to help him and that he would be held liable for any damage done to my company name as a result of his slander. I never heard a thing from him again.

[proline32]

Ya gotta love those "friend of a friend deals" seems like they are the worse ones Arn't they:rolleyes:

[GreenIsland]

Once fired because I didn't attend church every Sunday- Basically told I was going to hell . And my neighbor complained because I didn't stick around until she got off work to get paid (her 14 year old had to walk 50 feet across the street to deliver a check - I wasn't too worried about waiting around for 4 hours to get paid from a neighbor.

[rodfather]

I had a very good customer of mine (he's deceased now) say to me, "You don't charge enough for your work." I then replied, "I sure wish you had told me that back in April (it was Novemmber). I could have done something about that back then."

i just laughed and walked away. Too bad I didn't have more customers like him. I sure miss him.

[proline32]

Hey green island, I had the same problem once with a customer who kept telling me I need to go to church, So I told the guy I was jewish and went on saturdays as my sabbath.;)

[Bob Minney]

Yesterday
A customer has an area of pea gravel against a sidewalk that she wanted me to edge "just like you do with the grass." I explained three times and could tell she still didn't believe.

or

a few years ago a customer called and said her husband told her the line in my trimmer was too big so I would "just have to get down there and start using hand clippers." Wasn't a complaint about the work just want that big line around their stone walls.

or

"I don't thing there's anything in your fertilizer except a bunch of dandilions." -just a granular fert.

[summitgroundskeeping]

This is the complaint I got

"One of your guys came to plow my driveway last night. After he plowed the drive he the took a snowblower down the sidewalks and infront of my steps, but he didn't do my sidewalks or in front of my steps." Huh?

I later found out that she was complaining about a strip of snow no longer than my pinky fingernail wasn't removed. She b!tch threatened to cancel checks over this, too.:angry:

[plow kid]

Originally posted by James234
Re: the mailbox thing. You guys are missing the point. USPS mailboxes are protected by federal law. You can't put your ads in them or "on" them because it's against the law. If I found an ad taped to my mailbox from a lawnservice I would contact my local postmaster and press charges against the violator to the full extent of the law (very hefty I might add). Outfits that do this are classic scrubs!

Whats the problem James, is it your time of the month?? ~NaTe

[Kent Lawn Care]

Well, with my experince with the oddest complaint happened a year ago, but im my books its still my #1. well, anyways, we had this gentleman who complained about us missing the trimming about a 5 foot stretch behind a group of pine trees along a fence. so anyways, i wasnt with the crew that day, but this gentleman called me up, and had me drive to his house to see what the problem was, well, he showed me, and proceded to tell me "well, both you and i know that if you want the job done right you gotta do it yourself" well, he was talking about myself being the owner doing the job and not the employee. well i wish i was a quick enough thinkers to tell him right back, "if you want the job done right do it yourself.":alien:

[Kent Lawn Care]

Originally posted by James234
Re: the mailbox thing. You guys are missing the point. USPS mailboxes are protected by federal law. You can't put your ads in them or "on" them because it's against the law. If I found an ad taped to my mailbox from a lawnservice I would contact my local postmaster and press charges against the violator to the full extent of the law (very hefty I might add). Outfits that do this are classic scrubs!

We'll i dont know where you live, but it kinda sounds like you found out about the "hefty fines" first hand. where im at, in the country, they could care less what you do, heck we still get drunk on a friday night and blow up or smash the mailboxes that we just put letters on. okay, so thats a little tp much info, no one knows about this, RIGHT?!? anyways, just check with the postmaster, they are usually cool with you putting stuff on the boxes, its when you dont say boo to them, thats when they get pissed.


P.S., you arent a scrub for putting letters on mail boxes, your just trying to get business, ive found it to be the best way to get business. guess our friend wishes he thought of it first, maybe he lost customers this way along with the fines.

[anythinglawns]

I was fired by a lady last year because I would not kill her grass. She told me weekly lawn care was too expensive and that she wanted me to cut it low enough to kill it. I refused explaining that every one that drives by sees my work and that all lawns are like billboards. She fired me that week.

[RoewMow]

Yesterday my partner had a "nice" customer complain about our service. The yard looks fine but she was mad that we used our walk behind with a sulky on her lawn. She said that the last company used one and tore her yard up!!!! She told my partner that she had to sue them in order for them to re-sod her yard from this "damage." She wants us to use the "big mower" on her yard.

Also said we ran over her "topsoiland grass seed" (bagged potting soil) in her yard (funny, no tracks).

The funniest thing is that she has Scotts treat her lawn and they spilled fert in her yard a burned about a 2' circle in her yard and left the fert there for a week. Then came back and put a little bagged soil and seed there which washed at the next rain and we saw the nice orange spot in her lawn.

My nephew called it when this lady called. "she sounds like a nasty old lady I wouldn't cut her lawn if I was you." The fifteen year old is right we may drop her..... no contract, per cut basis.

What do you think??????:blob2:

[NewbieOwner]

Last year I had to deal with a real peach of a customer... Wish I had never stopped for that slurpee... Met the customer at a 7-11, she'd seen us around, and wanted a price "cuz my lazy husband just won't mow the lawn"

No problem, did the estimate, the lawn was at least 10" tall. I couldn't do it today (friday) but I would be back on monday, and then again on friday (just to get her onto schedule) And the first cut would be done at our hourly rate because of the excessive length. Customer signed the estimate and service request and initialed the hourly first cut section.

Hardly finished my days work before the rain started coming down HARD. Rained Friday night, Saturday, Sunday... Right through until wednesday. I was out cutting, trying not to fall too far behind, (wednesday night when it started to break I was on tuesday evenings cuts) I had called her Monday, and warned her I wouldn't be by until friday or Saturday due to the weather "No problem dear, just get to it when you can" Well Friday came around and I had gotten myself back almost on schedule (about 3-4 hours behind) I pulled up to her yard, and it had been masacered. Turns out her husband had decided to do it finally tuesday night. Electric side discharge mower, w/ a blade that was as dull as the broad side of a barn. At about 1.5" Lawn was kentucky blue, fescue and perennial/annual ryegrass.

Needless to say, it was a mess, there were clumps everywhere, mulch on everything (house, drainage gutter, driveway, beds, rock beds) Everything you touched was green with 'grass juice'

Knocked on the door, hoping someone would be home to find out what they wanted me to do. Called the office, asked for recomendations. They said "Just mow it". I wasn't so sure! I did have the digital camera with me, so I filled it full of every 'complaint' I could find. And the progression of the 'cleanup'

We pretty much gave them a full spring cleanup, except we didn't power rake. Spent the better part of an hour blowing and picking up mulch from everywhere it wasn't supposed to be. First 2 cuts were at 2" trying to pick up all the discharge. Then we had to drop it to 1.5" to get the cut evened out. Spent another good hour with both of us trimming, the grass was that long around the edges. Oh did I mention, found out their little dog likes to poop along the fences in the back yard? Had to mow the edge of the yard again, (due to all the trimming mess)

When we left the yard was almost perfect. The mulch had retained a LOT of moisture, so some grass was still layed down when we were finished, but it was a 1000% improvement over when we arrived.

Now we were really behind. 4 hours for a 1000 sq ft yard! Called the office, let them know what was up, and we'd be really late getting back. Finished our route, got back after everyone had left (think it was 10pm)

Monday I came in very chipper, figuring I'd have some praise on the "brag board" (bulletin board where they put all our compliments) Quite the opposite. I got a ripped a new a**hole. And to top that, I had forgotten the digital camera at home, So I couldn't even prove my case.

My house was on my monday afternoon route, so I stopped by the house (pissing off my landlord, 3/4ton crewcab and 24' trailer blocking the alley wasn't appreciated) emailed the pictures to work, and faxed a copy of the estimate form (kept a copy for my records (sales bonuses)) signed by the customer agreeing to the hourly charge for the first cut.

Got back to the shop to get even more strips torn off me... Just couldn't win... Ended up getting paid on the 37.50 (I got 22% comision, so about 7-8$) for the regular cut, because it wasn't 10" tall when I cut it. And to top it off, I had to go there first things tuesday morning and cut it AGAIN to get all the laid down grass that had been missed on the first 4 mows. Pro Bono!

Meanwhile, if I hadn't cleaned up the mess, who do you think would have had to come back on monday to clean up all the mulch?

Sometimes I really hated working for that company... As far as I'm concerned I still handled things properly. The yard might not have been 10" tall when I cut it, but the mess was still there from the 10" height.

Customer was an absolute PAIN for the rest of the year. Finally at the end of the season, after the husband told me he'd never met a more incompetent landscaper (because I couldn't show up at 2:30 friday afternoon every week), I told him to take his mercedes and shove... I'm sure you can figure out the rest.

Five years of landscaping, that's the only customer I've ever lost my temper with. They got EXCELENT service in their 200sq ft front yard. The back was another story. We mowed around the dog doo if it wasn't picked up, I made no effort to trim the fenceline nice and neat "sorry any closer and I'll damage the fence" Rather than grabbing the hand can of 24D if there was a couple weeds on the yard, (they were also a fert/wc customer) I'd book in a respray (usually took about 10-14 days to get done) No 'optional' services (my discression) like RoundUp on the rock beds, seeding the doggy-done-it damage... No cleaning of the road in front of the house... NOTHING!

Crazy enough, I hear they booked in again this year... Some people's children I tell you!

Andrew

[corban]

First mow for a new customer this season. He walks me around the yard to show me what needs trimming. Then he watches me unload my 48"wb and start the front yard. He comes out and makes me turn off the mower and says, "I really don't think that is going to fit through my back gate" I smiled and pointed to the 21"ers still on the trailer. Poor old man was just really having a hard time accepting someone else mowing his lawn for the first time. Then he leaves HIS spreader out for me to apply with.

[marcie]

I had put flyers out and was thrilled with the response until this old lady called and wanted me to come over on Tuesday to turn her mattress........ I told her we didnt turn mattresses and she says "well, your flyer says you do spring clean ups" go figure

[pops the dog]

Had a customer who had a back yard that was 10k sq. ft and was nothing but "rat grass", you know some fescue, lots of weeds, and probably a bunch of rats down in there. Anyhow, she let the grass get to about 18"-30" and wanted me to come back and cut it. Well, I get there and say to myself, " I guess I will have to triple cut this mess" and so I do. Well, there was just a wee bit of mulch left over, but not too bad considering she had waited 2 months between cuts, and I didn't charge her anything extra for my extra work and she calls me the next day and says, " hey, what are these clippings doing in my back yard?" I told her that those clippings were the remains of her 2+feet of grass that was wet and that she should not wait 2 months in between cuttings if she doesn't want any clippings. She then said she wanted me to clean it up. I said sure Mrs. Dork and went over the next day and blew the remaining clippings away and made the property look nice, considering the mess that was there the day before. Well, she then refuses to pay me for this effort. Ignores my invoices I send her, my phone calls, all attempts to contact her went on deaf ears for about 3 months. So I then left her a voice mail that said, "Mrs. Dork, I am going down to the magistrate court tomorrow to start the paper work on a lien against your property for non payment, blah blah blah. Well, lo and behold I got a call that afternoon saying a check was in the mail. Got it two days later and I stuck it on my wall to remind me never to be as big of a dork as this lady!

[ADMowing]

We have one customer teetering on the brink of being let go...

When we got there, they complained about ZT turn marks in their yard by the old mowing service, so we told them we'd be careful not to do it. They were particular about the height of their grass. We said we'd mow it on 4 (St. Augustine). They said that they liked their garden edged. We always do that, we told them.

So the first time we go out to mow there, they had watered the grass that morning. I knocked on the door and asked her to wait until we leave before she waters. First of all, ZT will make marks if on wet grass on small lawn. Second, it is better for your grass to water afterwards, I told her. So they started doing that. P.S. Bunton ZT does not make ruts even in small yards. This was another of their concerns. We've been mowing there for two years now and no ruts.

So, they are happy with our service. Then we drive up to his house one day and the grass all along the road is dead. We ask him what happened? He said he was going to ask us the same thing. It had not been scalped because there was tall yellow grass there. He wasn't convinced, but it looked someone had come along and just sprayed his front lawn with weedkiller. We told him this, but he didn't seem like he believed us. Anyway, we got some plugs (his expense) and filled it in for him.

Then the next week we come out there and he says he went around the neighborhood and there were other yards that looked the same way. Looks like the county came through and was trying to clear up the water main hookups in everyone's front yards and just sprayed the dickens out of everyone's yards. The man never apologized for accusing us.

Then, he has a large bald spot in his backyard... says the mower did it. I show him how I mow and that it is impossible that the mower did it. I don't even turn at this point in the yard -- AT ALL! He lives on a golf course and caught the golf course mowers mowing up in his backyard and they made the mess!!! Now I mow all the way down into the golf course so that they don't have to get anywhere near his lawn.

Then.... you think that is enough.... we picked up a few leaves for him a few years ago and didn't charge extra (our fault). We get a call from his wife (she can't remember our names)... She asks us to bag the leaves. We get there and it looks like the WHOLE neighborhood put their leaves in a pile next to his driveway. So, we pick up the leaves. They got a nice hefty increase this year. Let's see how they like paying for the neighborhood leaves to be picked up... Bet they don't do it again! We sited the increase as being "increased maintenance for your yard has constituted the necessity to raise your rate."

They are teetering on the WIRE -- I'm telling you!!! But the man is a big wig in the Homeowner's association of the housing development and we don't want to piss him off. So, we've got to be somewhat diplomatic about it. We mow several other great lawns in there.

[darryl gesner]

My oddest complaint was that I was doing too good of a job maintaining a customers lawn. They were afraid that if it looked good, their tax assessment would go up.

Why would you hire a professional to maintain your lawn if you didn't want it to look good????

[Mdirrigation]

Customer calls ,( a snobby real estate agent) my lawn sprinkler is leaking and my kitcken floor and basement ceiling are wet?
I tell her thats impossible , she argues and says it has to be so I have to see this. I get there walk around the house , no windows are open and the sprinkler is off. Now she is a PITA from before , so i go into the kitchen and find the ice maker line has broken. I turn it off and give her a bill. She refuses to pay saying the lawn sprinkler is under warranty . At first I was pissed , but then I just left , since she wouldnt pay the bill she voided the warranty , Never heard from her again. Best 60 dollars I ever didnt make.

[Wells]

I just signed up a new customer who wants me to turn on all of his sprinklers after we are finished mowing to check that none of them were damaged during the mowing process.

He fired his last company because they wouldn't do it. I explained that it's an odd request and that we'll have to charge him more for that and he was fine with the price increase.

[landscapingpoolguy]

I had one lady a few years ago that had about a 2 acre lawn...she wanted us to cut weekly and reseed some bare spots....and thatch the lawn for her....So first day we go there and do a cut and thatch and use some fresh compost topsoil and some seed on the bare spots...next week i get a call why didnt you guys seed or thatch and only cut? I said we clearly seeded and thatched because you can see the seed on the ground.....she then continues to complain that her dog is tracking grass clipping into her house...So i go to her house and the topsoil is there but the seed is barely left...turns out her dog was goinout in the yard and rolling aorund in the grass and seeds and tracking it into the house..she refused to pay me...I told her its not my job to make sure the dog stays out of the seed....so I had to threaten her with my lawyer and tell her to find someone else to try not to pay.

[GrassBustersLawn]

I had one old lady (with COKE BOTTLE GLASSES) that would watch out her window when we came. One day she told me that the trimmer wasn't trimming (she could see this from 200 feet away out her window), that she (I had an over-achiever woman working for me) was just carrying the trimmer around. When I told my employee this (it was a HOT day) she said, "Well, if I wasn't going to trim, I wouldn't even carry the trimmer around, I'd just walk around making a motor noise." I LMAO at that. I told the customer that since she didn't value our work, she could find a new service for next week.

One other insane-o client. Called me to come back and look at her yard. Said it hadn't been trimmed. I assured her over the phone that it had been, as I was at the site. She had to have me come over and see. Drove over there and she showed me one circle around a tree where the grass didn't look even, like it hadn't been trimmed, after she FLUFFED it up! I said "what did you say? FLUFFED IT UP?" Yes, she would go around and "FLUFF UP" her grass after we mowed. (Talk about too much time on her hands.) Anyway, (I was pissed) I told her that we cut her grass to industry standards. If she wants to "fluff up" her grass afterwards that is her choice, but our cut was good. I also told her that I didn't appreciate having to spend my time coming over to look at her yard for her ridiculous complaint. That obviously she doesn't value my time by doing that and that she could find a new service.

I don't have the time or patience to deal with CRAZY people!

Mike

[Wells]

Also had an old lady tell me that the trimmer is killing the grass and the blowers make to much noise.

[GrassFearsMe]

We had a customer call up and say she waited all day for us to come trim her bushes. we told her that we never set a time to come to her house and that we never even set a date. So she gets over it, we thougth!

[GrassFearsMe]

So She calls back a while later and tells us we have to come on monday to do her property. We said we couldn't do that we had other things planned,(basically angry she "told" us when we had to do something). So she tells us she is going to call another company to do it, ok. Later on that week she tells us she found someone to do it and she gave them the mowing too.

Fine, we can play games too, on that monday we went and trimmed the neighbors bushes. The kicker is the new company she hired didnt come for 2 weeks after that and eventually ended up killing off her beautiful lawn. Serves the old witch right.