When mowing the other day I went over 8 inches too far into the non customers yard,maybe 3 foot strip. Joe blow comes out saying how anal he is regarding his lawn(doesn't show),bla bla bla. Tell him it was an honest mistake etc. Later he wants to "show " me again, tell him I'll look later. Sure this pisses him off as he mumbles and storms off. Tired of being the nice guy when people are a** es. What would you say as next week I am expecting his company again?
Kevin, I had the exact situation a few years ago. Most people would be glad if you accidently cut their lawn. I had a small 3' strip to cut and used a 4' mower. The non-customer asked me not to go on their yard. So I used the trimmer after that. About 2 weeks later the non-customer calls me on a Sunday, demanding that I fertilize their lawn, today. I was going on a family picnic and said no. They were really upset. Then I got the last laugh. The non-customer was having a Bridge Club party about 20' away from the property line. I ran the trimmer for about 10 minutes in that spot. They all went inside. We exchaged words again the next week. No cussing or shouting, just normal conversation. My customer moved away the next year and I lost the lawn.
I always go a half a mower with over such property if we mow at the same height . I don't scalp anyone who mows long( rare here) . If I did run in to nitpicker I just say sorry and back off . I think the rule should be both parties overlap a few inches what's the big deal.
This one lawn we cut at like a devlopment where the two houses are connected, it's hard to tell exactly where the property line is. So sometimes we turn at little in the nieghbors lawn. One week we go to cut the lawn and the nieghbor put up a little string fence and left us a not that said not to mow there lanw and told us to "slow down". go figure.
Alot of people are very territorial. Like animals. Makes you wonder about this evolution thing sometimes
We have a neighbor of a customer that puts up a chicken wire fence between his lawn and the one we do in the fall to keep the leaves from blowing on his lawn. With this fence there, the leaves build up like snow does next to a snow fence in the winter. This guy has become a bigger pain than any customer we have had.
Yeah I had a customer's neighbor pee on my lawnmower...like a cat. Honestly you can end up with major problems with neighbors like this. If they don't like you they can really influence your customer.
Also I might add , why is that a neighbor can water my customer on their mow day? This has happened to me so much I couldn't count.
I had an account that owned about 10" on the other side of his fence on the neighbor's side of the property. I went to mow with my 21" mower and the lady comes out of the neighbors and threatens to call the police for me tresspassing on her property. Apparently there was a land dispute going on in court about this, and thus the hard feelings on both sides. I just told the homoeowner I would not get involved in their BS (said in a PC way), and would not mow over there. People are crazy, sometimes...
Sometimes we need too have selective hearing ( my wife says I aready do ) in one ear and out the other!! Try not to let thos type of people bother you I know its hard but lifes too short and not worth the time to *****.
