Ran into my 1st snag w/customer

[Hawaiianelement]

One of my neighbors stopped by house because she keeps seeing this detailing van ( Honda Element ) w/the graphics on it parked in front. I moved in w/in-laws in June so I get alot of people walking up .Anyway long story short . All her co-workers used to go to this other guy but he can`t be reached and they have pre-paid vouchers..can you say SOL? I tell her 150 for a full D . She thought that was really high, so I describe all the services I offer that he probably doesn`t , Fender wells dressed , engine cleaned and dressed. Apparently he does that too for a 100. She says I can get aloty of business from her co-workers if I can lower my prices. Well it turns out she`s the mother of my wifes classmate. In Hawaii classmates mean more than just classmates. Make sense? OK . :phone:

So I do her daughters car, POS BLACK Altima for 125. :brick

Well the storage compartment under the radio won`t close now and the daughter is supposedly upset . YOu know the console storage .Push to open , push to close . Well the little plastic alligator looking clip won`t secure the door now. What do I do ? :ticked

Do you guys take responsibility when the cars are in your hands and something breaks ?

I mentioned to her that if it was under 30 I would pay ,over 30 I`d go half. I`m a reasonable guy. The bad thing is it would`ve broke the next time someone pushed it but try and explain that to a 23 yr old girl . No offense ladies..

[scottabi]

ohhh the importance of insurance....

[detailbarn]

ohhh the importance of insurance....

you`ve got to be joking , you would turn a claim in for this... come on the deductable would be at least $500




Hawaiianelement , if you broke it pay for it. It doesn`t matter if it would have broke next time , if you broke it then it`s your responsibilty. I would just go to the dealer and purcahse the piece and install it yourself. In the long run you`ll make the customer happy and get more work. Honstly I`ve found that if I tell the customer right away when stuff like this happens they don`t usally care and tell me not to worrry about it.

[ShineShop]

Insurance would not have really made any difference for nuisance items like this. Just pay for it and be done with her. If you end up getting sued by her in samll claims or on "Judge Judy" you will end up paying for all of it anyway because even if you didn`t break it you had "care and control" of the vehicle and thus are legally liable for anything that happens to it while in your posession. Suck it up and make her happy and move on - part of doing business.

[jaybs02]

:yeah
The last thing that your ever want said is that "he(she) broke it and now i`m stuck fixing it".
Not good for business, if possible note it before you start working on it so you don`t get blamed for it later. There is a check list that was on the one of the boards.
Especially if there is potential for more business from that source, just fix it and chalk it up to experience.

Just my $.02

"J"

[scottabi]

Actually That comment was to make a point about how important it is to be covered. It was in realation to the line "...do you take responsibility when the cars are in your hands and something breaks..." I reliaze that the response was vague, sorry I sometimes get caught up in a thought and think others will know what I am trying to say...lol...sorry.
No I wouldnt have turned that into the insurance company, it is a cheap part and can be fixed for cheap.

[ALAN81]

You broke it ................stand behind it and fix it.In the long run it will work out for you.Here there are auto lock places that can fix it for about 35-40 dollars

[Hawaiianelement]

Thanks guys , I see a trend in the replies and it all makes sense to me. I wouldn`t want to lose business over a $10 item..

[AtlantaBoy]

ohhh the importance of insurance....

Insurance is for big claims. Something to keep in mind is if you are detailing part-time you need to have some sorta coverage, cause anything can happen. If she would have talked about lower prices to me, you already know that they are the cheap-o and will nail you for anything they can. It`s usually the person you wants a cheaper price, in the end will nick pick the finnished result to death. If the car was a POS I would replace it either. Usually they are broken before you ever touch it. I have had people claim I did several different things (none of which I did) just to try me. When they knew it was broken or missing before I even started. Pick your customers, I do.

[TDMAN]

It doesn`t feel good, but this is where you suck it up and pay for it. Learn from it, and it won`t happen next time. Worse things have happened to better people than you or me.