CONSUMER AWARENESS INFORMATION
How
To Avoid Bait And Switch Carpet Cleaners
It's sad but there are people who are
just out to get your money without providing a service of value. But
they would not have as much opportunity if there weren't individuals who
felt they could get something of value for a ridiculously low amount
of money. "LET THE BUYER BEWARE" is the old adage that rings
true when talking about 'too good to be true' prices. If you see
an ad for carpet cleaning for say $9.95 per room ... Beware! It could be
an unscrupulous carpet cleaner or someone who doesn't know any better
and is imitating one.
We call them "Bait and Switch"
con artists. The bait is the unbelievable low price. When they get there
they demonstrate their double scrub cleaning method, or deluxe cleaning
method. That's the switch, which means that in most cases they won't
pre-spray the traffic areas or work the pre-spray in with a carpet
grooming tool unless you pay them extra for it. The "extra" ,
which should have been included in the initial price, is usually an
additional charge of so many dollars or cents per square foot. Now the
room you thought you were going to pay $9.95 for has tripled or more and
that is before add-ons like carpet protector and deodorizer.
In reality, when you add up the cost of
the equipment, van, labor, insurance, advertising and other overheads,
it costs the average reputable company over $50.00 just to send someone
to your door. And that's before there is any work done. So how can they
clean for that price? They can't. And if you insist they do what they
advertised, they will either leave, try to get a minimum trip charge for
coming out, or just lightly clean around the furniture very quickly and
you will not get a good job.
What
Can You Do?
First of all, don't be fooled by
unbelievably low prices. If the prices look too good to be true,
then they probably are.
Ask questions before you invite them to
your home. Like:
- Are
your cleaners employees or subcontractors? (Watch out if they are
subcontractors).
- What
certification does your company and employees have?
- What
cleaning method does your company use? Please explain it to me. (See
methods of Cleaning)
- What
type of equipment do you use? Portable or truck mounted? If you are
using portable what sort of a machine is it?
- Are
there any extras that you will charge me for or offer me? What are
they and how much?
- Do
you charge a trip charge or mileage charge?
- Do
you have a written guarantee? What is it?
- Can
you give me a list of satisfied customers? May I call one or two?
- Are
you a member of the Chamber of Commerce or Better Business
Bureau?
- Why
should I use your company over any one else. If they can't answer
that question to your satisfaction, do not use them.
ALSO...
- If
they come to your home and do not have a van that has
permanent signage on it, then send them away!!
- If
they do not have reasonably clean uniforms with company logos
on them, send them away!!
- Ask
to see the inside of their van, if it is a total wreck inside, send
them away!!
- If
they bring in dilapidated dirty equipment, send them away!!
How to choose a professional carpet
cleaner
Anytime you have a service provided in
your home you want to make sure that the firm that you invite is
reputable and competent. But how can you tell when you have never had
any experience with the company before?
So, some questions may be in
order, such as:
- How
long have you been in business?
- What
kind of training have you received?
- Do
you give free on site estimates? (be careful of estimates over the
phone unless you are dealing with a reputable firm)
- How
do you arrive at your charges?
- How
would you clean a 5th generation nylon?
Let's analyze some of these questions
and why you would want to know the answers.
1. How long have you been in
business? Everyone has to start sometime, it's not a crime to be new
in the business. However, you don't want the person to be practicing on
your carpet or furniture. What will compensate for being new in
the business is if the individual has been certified by the Institute of
Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification or other similar
training organization. The IICRC is a highly respected, non-profit
organization that certifies cleaning technicians. If they say they are
certified, ask them to show you their card.
2. What kind of training have you
received? How many days and what subjects did you learn? The
technician training should be considerable as they will be responsible
for the proper care of thousands of dollars worth of carpet.
3. Do you give free estimates? A
reputable firm will be most happy to do this. They will come out to your
home, measure the size of the rooms (why should you pay the same price
for cleaning a small bedroom that you pay for your large living room or
den?). Examine the carpet for clean-ability. Test spots for the
possibility of removal, and some will even give you a free written
report. They should be frank and honest when setting your expectations
about how your carpet will look after it is cleaned and what stains may
not respond to professional cleaning techniques.
4. How do you arrive at your
pricing? There are different ways of arriving at an equitable cost
for cleaning your carpets. Many reputable firms will charge by the
square foot others by the room. There is no one right way. In
residential homes with average furnishings that must be moved and
average soiling, the square footage price could justifiably run up to 35
cents per square foot. This should include the following:
- Pre-inspect
all areas to be cleaned to uncover all customer concerns and set
reasonable customer expectations
- Pre-vacuum
all carpet to be cleaned
- Move
all movable furniture
- China
cabinets, book cases, entertainment centers, pianos, grandfather
clocks, waterbeds, beds with bookcase headboards, aquariums, and
other such items are not normally moved unless they are empty
and properly prepped
- China
cabinets, book cases, entertainment centers, pianos, grandfather
clocks, waterbeds, beds with bookcase headboards, aquariums, and
other such items are not normally moved unless they are empty
and properly prepped
- Pre-treat
the traffic areas with cleaning products that are designed to loosen
oils that are binding the soil to the fibers
- Clean
the carpet and carefully return furniture to its original location,
putting protective foil squares or plastic to prevent staining by
furniture legs
- Clean
all open areas
- Treat
all spots that haven't been removed in the normal extraction process
and re-extract
- Groom
or brush the carpet to set the pile on end
- Final
walk through with the customer to ensure satisfaction with job
The pricing for the cleaning usually
does not include:
- Deodorizing
- Carpet
Protectors such as Scotchgard
- Attempts
to remove permanent stains such as Kool-AidŽ, wine, etc. after
normal professional removal techniques have been utilized. This is
not the same as spot removal, which should be included in the
cleaning price. Please see the difference between a spot and a stain
in the section titled, "What To Do If You Have A Spill On Your
Carpet".
- Burn
spots, tears or rips in seams or other installation problems
How do you clean a 5th Generation Nylon? The majority of current nylon is 5th Generation or Stain Resist. This must be cleaned with cleaning compounds with a pH (a term to measure the alkalinity or acidity of a solution) of 10 or less. If your cleaning technician is not aware of this then he may not be knowledgeable enough to use the right cleaning products for your carpet. If your carpet is wool, then cleaning should be done with a solution that is a pH of 7 or should be treated with a pH balancing product to neutralize the cleaning solution (there is usually a slightly higher charge to clean wool carpets because of this extra step).
