Clients that make you go hmmmmm.

[Mick Dempsey]

5 minutes ago, Stubby said:

Thats when you tell them that whatever they want done it will £128.87p/hour .

Always a fine line to tread between being firm with clients and outright rude.

 

[Mark Bolam]

Always best to err on the side of rude though, saves confusion later on.

[paddyvero]

Itemised quote? Then if its a decent amount of work I offer a discount, maybe 10% if we do it all. 

[Mick Dempsey]

9 hours ago, paddyvero said:

Itemised quote? Then if its a decent amount of work I offer a discount, maybe 10% if we do it all. 

Who can be arsed with that? (Not me in case you were wondering)

[lux]

On 12/08/2017 at 17:43, Mick Dempsey said:

Now, I'm a big boy, been paddling my own canoe for more than two decades now, I know that when you price work there are no guarantees, and you have to take the rough with the smooth.

 

Today though, the literal biscuit was taken, I was out all day, and the first appointment was 30 minutes away, arranged by email, so I pull up, look at the abandoned cars and neglected garden and instantly think "probably not" but I'm here now so put on my game face.

 

It was a dying thuja hedge and a couple of small lombardies, all about logistics so I give it some ol' chat and price it.

 

The lady then told me that they are doing it themselves and wanted to know what it would have cost!

 

Luckily the rest of the day was more successful but that really riled me.

 

Any outrageous time wasting client stories?

Went to look at Beech tree last week. Customer said a branch had dropped off but she wanted to save the tree. 

 

Arrived at a very lovely old house that is now split into apartments. lovely building and very well kept so I was thinking this was a positive as I waited at the impressive front door. 

 

Got taken to the rear garden to find a very large Beech with  a failed leader from an included union. Big lump to clear up and a very large Beech remaining that could do with some reduction work and perhaps some cobra bracing in places. Spent some time going through it and gave a price on the spot for the clear up and suggested tree work to then be told the tree no longer belongs to them and that the owner has arranged a contractor to do the clear up and that until they buy the tree back they wouldn't carry out any work on it but just wanted to know what it would cost.  

She then asks what would I charge to do maintenance.  Maintenance on what ? She says they would like to buy the woods back but would like to know what it costs to maintain. 

I gave her some advice about getting a woodland survey done prior to buying it and any maintenance costs could be forecast from that. 

 

Waste of time visit to look at trees they don't own and someone else is supposedly already instructed on. 

 

Probably wouldn't of minded so much if that had been made clear on the initial phone call rather than halfway through looking at it all. I grumbled all the way to getting a take away cappuccino down the rd. 

 

 

[doobin]

5 hours ago, lux said:

Went to look at Beech tree last week. Customer said a branch had dropped off but she wanted to save the tree. 

 

Arrived at a very lovely old house that is now split into apartments. lovely building and very well kept so I was thinking this was a positive as I waited at the impressive front door. 

 

Got taken to the rear garden to find a very large Beech with  a failed leader from an included union. Big lump to clear up and a very large Beech remaining that could do with some reduction work and perhaps some cobra bracing in places. Spent some time going through it and gave a price on the spot for the clear up and suggested tree work to then be told the tree no longer belongs to them and that the owner has arranged a contractor to do the clear up and that until they buy the tree back they wouldn't carry out any work on it but just wanted to know what it would cost.  

She then asks what would I charge to do maintenance.  Maintenance on what ? She says they would like to buy the woods back but would like to know what it costs to maintain. 

I gave her some advice about getting a woodland survey done prior to buying it and any maintenance costs could be forecast from that. 

 

Waste of time visit to look at trees they don't own and someone else is supposedly already instructed on. 

 

Probably wouldn't of minded so much if that had been made clear on the initial phone call rather than halfway through looking at it all. I grumbled all the way to getting a take away cappuccino down the rd. 

 

 

Just to cheer you up further....that absoloute monster that we looked at? A relative is going to rent a cherry picker and take off the worst bits apparently. You couldn't make it up.

 

I'll post the news article when it happens...

Edited September 30, 2023 by doobin

[lux]

14 minutes ago, doobin said:

Just to cheer you up further....that absoloute monster that we looked at? A relative is going to rent a cherry picker and take off the worst bits apparently. You couldn't make it up.

 

I'll post the news article when it happens...

😂😂😂.  Let me know the date.  I’d like to come and watch that.   😂 what’s the odds you’ll be doing a little fencing repair down there.  It’ll be interesting if the new replacement oil tank takes a whack too 😂

[Mick Dempsey]

Had one a little while back, a client I’ve already worked for, money not an issue. 
Removal of a really big red oak over a house, I took some lower limbs off a while back so I know the tree, awkward logistics, lots of thinking. 
Anyway the husband and wife are out there with me and we are talking money, and she says “we won’t be having it done for 2 to 3 years”

I splutter that I cannot price for two years hence, and that I could well be retired by then. 
Another drive home muttering about bloody time wasters!

[Rich Rule]

I seem to be getting the call for a few juicy jobs.

 

Until we start chatting about timeframes and diary bookings and when I can fit it in.

 

Oh, we are thinking about next year and just wanted to know a price.

 

If they didn’t have a couple of Teslas on the drive, along with a boat etc I might have thought they would need to save up!

 

 

 

 

[Mick Dempsey]

10 minutes ago, Rich Rule said:

I seem to be getting the call for a few juicy jobs.

 

Until we start chatting about timeframes and diary bookings and when I can fit it in.

 

Oh, we are thinking about next year and just wanted to know a price.

 

If they didn’t have a couple of Teslas on the drive, along with a boat etc I might have thought they would need to save up!

 

 

 

 

Well call me next @#+¥ing year then!

Jesus H Christ, You have to leave your own house, drive to theirs, knock on the door, act all nicey nicey, talk to them for however long, all in the hope of securing a day or twos work.

 

Yesterday I drove 40 minutes to what sounded like a promising job.

They were nice enough (the couple) the job was two small medium ash over a septic tank, piece of piss.

I pointed out a 3/4 dead cedar right next to the house.

I said if you want to spend money on trees, that’d where I’d start.

She says no initially, then asks if I could just leave the trunk and cut every branch to a foot or so (still attached to the trunk) so it looked like a giant heated hair roller (she thought it would look like modern art)

I said no, that’s stupid, I won’t do that.

Anyway half an hour later, I secure a days work doing the ash.

 

Funnily enough it was a  water mill very near a chateau where I worked for an American couple years ago.

A few bits and bobs the main job was a single big Leylandii removal.

We parked the chipper and truck next to it first thing and whilst filling the saws the husband appears and without a hint of embarrassment asks if we can do the other stuff first as the wife wants some alone time with the tree to say her goodbyes!

I said no way.

 

Sometimes I think line clearance sounds nice, no public, just head down and go.

Then I remember I’m usually drinking tea on the sofa by 2.30.

Swings and roundabouts etc.