About a month ago I priced to remove a UPVC front door and replace it with a Howdens door and frame. Price was accepted and a date agreed, due to a job over running I rang the customer and told her that I would be a day late, they were not happy as a decorator had been arranged for the next day and that was the only day he could do - how you can get 5 coats on In a day is beyond me (it was water based and needed two undercoats and two top coats). To keep the job and the customer happy I said that I would paint the door at no extra cost coming in the morning and giving it a coat and then one in the evening for a couple of days. As usual once finished I left the customers a note hoping that they are happy with the work and leaving my email in case of any problems. The most amazing snagging list came through with "red dust on step" and other really minor things, in addition extra work was asked for. We met the next day and had quite a heated discussion regarding the fact that I had painted the door for nothing but was pulled up on such small snags, I said that if it was me I would have cleaned the dust etc off myself as I had got the door painted for nothing but this point did not seem to be accepted. So I did the snags and extras (my extras charge is £35.00 an hour and is in my T's & C's) and went home. Waited for an email the next morning - nothing so I sent my full invoice with a complete breakdown. I had a reply and opened it expecting complaints about the extra work charges but it was a very polite message thanking me for the work, saying that the invoice had been paid and telling me that they had paid £100.00 extra! Never, ever happened before.
I hope you replied thanking them? It's a strange one all right, but you don't know what's been going on behind the scenes. One partner could be reasonable but the other not so. Together they produce sparks, but once you are left to deal with the reasonable one on their own then all is well again. They (or one of them) clearly had time to think about it all, and was suitably contrite. That is very very rare as usually once peeps go off the deep end, they are too fragile-ego'd to back down and admit they may have over reacted. Enjoy this one while it lasts, as I doubt you'll see it again!
I think the key was that although you argued, you still did the snags. That, and the fact you made allowances, seems very professional. Don't do yourself down, the tip was well deserved.
Once fitted a solid oak door and frame to a house (replacement front door) Fitted the new frame up to the existing internal plasterwork. A few days later the customer phoned me saying they'd measured from both sides of the frame to the brickwork reveals and found one side was 2mm more than the other side.. Could I come back and re-fit the frame correctly. . Went back and moved the frame so the measurements either side of the brickwork were the same and re-sealed inside to the plaster. A week later they phone up to say the sealant between the plasterwork and frame wasn't equal on both sides.. (course it wasn't, there was an extra 2mm on one side. Told then to do one.
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