We carried out a garden clearance a month ago for a young woman who knows nothing about gardening (her words). 18 inch long grass, overgrown shrubs and a corner full of brambles, and assorted junk.
I had a good look around a quoted 4 man days which was duly carried out.
3 weeks later I sent the invoice and received a tirade of complaints - the beds were scruffy etc, and you didn't clear the rubble in the corner. I explained that silk purses cannot be made from sows ears etc.
The corner in question was full of brambles and ivy. Underneath this we found an old barbecue, a duvet, wooden frame, lengths of wire netting and assorted rubbish. When all this was removed we found large chunks of rubble. By now we are slightly below ground level. On closer inspection the rubble was contained in a hole or pit and as far as we could see extended down about 3 feet or more and was possibly 5 feet across. As we are not experienced in matters of this nature, nor do I see this as work we can safely carry out, I declined to remove the rubble. There were pipes nearby so the pit may have been connected with this, or it may have been an old air raid shelter (it was enclosed on 3 sides by brick walls).
The client is refusing to pay all the invoice and insists that we 'should have cleared the corner as per the brief'.
The brief was to clear the corner of the garden which we did - to ground level. I can hardly expect my staff to start ferreting about in potentially dangerous pits or holes which is not what we are insured to do and I have a duty of care to avoid, as does the client.
What do you think ?
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What was agreed in writing?
All that was agreed in writing was that we would carry out garden work. The brief from the client was verbal.
how much of the bill is she refusing to pay?
£170
Bit tricky really as she is holding the money! We have been in a similar position on a number of occasions, so we stop working on that part of the garden, contact the client and warn them that we may be entering uncharted territory with possible additional costs. Regular photogaphic evidence is also very useful.
Negotiation is probably the best course of action here, what is the job worth....£600ish? If she wont budge, annoying, but £170 is probably not enough to chase up in Court.
Put it down to experience and move on.
I dont think theres much you can do here other than chalk it down to experience. Take what she is giving and run for the hills.
probably cost you more than that in disposal costs and hours to go back. state your side in a letter and ask her to pay, but unlikely. you could try money claim online if you feel you have a good case and want to pursue it, very easy to do and you'll get costs back. next time do it all in writing whatever the job is
Not enough to chase in court but definitely worth a letter threatening legal proceedings I would suggest.
If you quoted for 4 man days and delivered 4 man days then you will have fulfilled your side of the contract. Although you would also have needed to give cancellation rights etc as per the doorstep and distance selling regulations require. If you haven't then your argument would probably not stand up in court!
Colin Hunt said:
I have sent an email advising of imminent proceedings in the small claims court but just received an email back saying she has had a bad weekend, and is getting a builder to look at the rubble / hole. No mention of paying me.
In future I am a) going to avoid clearance jobs as they are a lot of hassle compared to our regulars, and for those clearance jobs we do undertake, only work to a customer prepared and printed specification, with before and after photographs.
One thing I do is have in my terms that my waste license is only for plant waste. The composting site I go to only accept "clean" garden waste.
If there's any issue with rubbish that's not from plants, you need to get a skip in.
Photos are essential. No reason not to take before and afters, as we all have camera phones now. It's routine for me as most jobs are for landlords who are overseas, but it's just as valid for every job.
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