ComplaintsforMerry Maids

• Initial Complaint

  04/01/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Date of transaction: Proposal date 2/21/22, attempted service date 2/24/22, date advised cleaning would be done correctly 3/24 (no email sent and no one came out, manager did not reach me when I left message providing my day off 3/25 to discuss or since). I called and set up the service with Steicy ****** and was overcharged from the beginning. I was set up for Deluxe service although I advised the representative that I had laminate flooring. When I spoke to the local office afterwards they advised me I originally reached their after hours location in Florida and was overbilled due to the rep not knowing the area and what is typically charged and I was advised that the standard service for 2 hours covers scrubbing of the floors and I realized Deluxe was not necessary. Two young ladies arrived later in the afternoon and one was on the phone. Their manager showed up later and they left within 2 hours. One appeared to be a helper but they were not experienced cleaners and did not appear to want to be at work that day. I took several pictures of all the problem areas that I noticed and even though they came back to try to address the concerns, they were not addressed. I was promised by the managers Anthony and Chris I believe that they would send a lady who is experienced and does well back out 3/24 and they were a no show and now despite leaving several messages via text and phone, no one is calling me back and no one has an explanation of the no show. At this point I want a refund. I have 5K friends on social media accounts and my next step is posting about my experience and advising others to 1.)not select a deluxe cleaning which seems to be a scam when standard cleaning covers the floors and if you have laminate flooring what hands/knees scrubbing are they doing anyways? 2.) be home to watch the cleaning crew 3.) request the more experienced cleaners with high reviews 4.) dispute when billed for baseboards, window sills and sofas being cleaned & they are not

  Business response

  04/18/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2022/04/04) */ We cleaned Ms. ******** home on 2/24/2022. Ms. ****** was home for the cleaning. After the team completed the cleaning, Ms. ****** contacted our office to let us know that several areas needed more attention. We immediately reached out, apologized and asked if we could come back to correct the areas of concern. Ms. ****** allowed us to return the same day, 2/24/2022, and with the manager assisting, the original team of two, recleaned the areas Ms. ****** was unhappy with. Ms. ****** was pleased with our response and assured us that everything was to her satisfaction. Ms. ****** purchased the deluxe package and that was the correct package for the level of detail she was expecting, explaining to us that her husband was very OCD. We spent a total of 10-man hours. The home was severely underpriced, but we stood by our fixed priced contract. Our employees are professional and well trained. We overlooked a few items during the cleaning, but we happily returned and corrected the situation. Approximately one month after the 2/24/2022 cleaning, we received messages from Ms. ******. She said that she expected us to return on 3/24/2022, but we never showed up. We thought that Ms. ****** had wanted to purchase additional cleanings, so we called her multiple times, left messages, but never got a return call. We have no idea why Ms. ****** expected us to return on 3/24/2022. On 2/24/2022, we satisfactorily completed the cleaning that Ms. ****** paid for. We have no idea why Ms. ****** filed a complaint with the BBB. Consumer Response /* (3000, 7, 2022/04/05) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) This response is a bold faced lie. Whomever is responding is either in sales or not connected to the local office and clearly did not speak to the managers Anthony or Chris. The girls that came out were in my home less than 2 hours and only returned for minutes. I did not want them back for yet a third time and was promised by the manager that although they would not offer me a refund, they would gladly send a more experienced lady out on 3/24 and that I was on the schedule. For the office and managers to act as though they did not tell me this is, is egregious. Someone was here with me and heard the conversation so they are lying. No one was in my home for 10 hours, that is a lie and if Deluxe was to be 10 hours we can go to court and they either refund me for the 8 hours they didn’t do or come back for 8. If they spent 10 hours then the house would have been done correctly. They should be ashamed lying on record like this. When they came back the second time, they were only here a few minutes. I was working so I called immediately back to state they missed many areas, never washed a baseboard, and didn’t scrub the tiles, didn’t use water or bucket and scrub any floors, especially on hands and knees. The comment about my husband being OCD was to show that basically the house was not dirty to begin with. The whole point of a spring deluxe cleaning as advertised to me was to do the additional tasks one would not normally get to along with regular cleaning. I was ripped off and when I requested a refund between the deluxe and the standard cleaning I was denied and the manager is the one who promised they would send someone out and now the company is lying saying that is not the case. I find it hard to believe there are no notes on my file unless someone deleted them. Instead of the customer service reps or sales responding to this complaint, try forwarding it to the manager who came out with the two ladies and he should be ashamed of himself if he acts like he has no idea of our conversation. He literally put me on hold and called me back with the solution which was a FREE replacement cleaning done the right way. He is the one who remarked” I asked them why it only took two hours to do a Deluxe” and the ladies responded they finished in that time. It is unacceptable for them to be on the phone and the point is I let someone know right away both times that the cleaning was not right!! The manager agreed with me and now everyone is acting like they don’t know what’s going on. I am a mother of 5 children with 4 in college and I was ripped off for 400.00. If the response is I was supposed to get 10 hours then they owe me hours or a refund. Just because they are a big name and I am one person, doesn’t mean they should treat a consumer this way. I will do my best to share my experience with everyone I encounter. Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2022/04/06) */ Every person involved in our response has been very involved with the cleaning of Ms. ******** home. Every person has been honest when describing of what took place on 2/24/2022. The Manager and Team Members that dealt directing with Ms. ****** in her house, state that Ms. ****** verbalized that was very happy with the final cleaning she received on 2/24. Again, we apologize that we had to return to reclean a few areas of concern. A return visit, even on the same day, is never what we strive for. After several attempts to reach Ms. ****** yesterday, we were able to have a conversation with her today and we agreed on a $100 refund to end the "back and forth". Consumer Response /* (4200, 11, 2022/04/07) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) 4/7/22 First of all the hours reported as time spent cleaning in my home was indeed fictitious. The manager did come to check on the one lady cleaning and her trainee or helper but again, he DID NOT CLEAN ANYTHING so I do not understand where Chris is coming up with 10 hours which is why I say that is a lie. The first contact was less than 2 hours and when they came back they were there for MINUTES not hours. No one ever heard me say “I AM VERY HAPPY with anything”. I said I was uncomfortable with them returning since I felt they didn’t want to be there in the first place showing up late in the afternoon for what was supposed to be a Deluxe cleaning. I don’t appreciate the manager Chris telling me I am supposed to eat the $400 cost and that I was undercharged which I know is false because I hired cleaners not too long ago for my mother’s home in Cecil County (same office) and was charged 286.00 for a Deluxe cleaning of her entire home so I know that it is not supposed to be $200 per hour. Both times the crew left, I sent in messages and pictures which they verified they received advising my DISSATISFACTION. I put a post on their social media page, on my own social media page, and called back numerous times leaving messages and requesting a callback or asking for the corporate number. I requested the corporate number from them and was advised to call 1-800-Merry Maids which is not a number. I looked into the corporate complaints and saw there were many like mine with no response so I considered reaching out to ServiceMaster. It is a lie that someone tried to reach me several times yesterday or the day prior. I spoke to Chris for a resolution since the manager even said Deluxe should have taken longer than 2 hours and he asked the ladies how they finished that quickly. My actions above since the day this took place do not indicate anything about being happy so that was never expressed by me, quite the opposite. Chris definitely never heard me express satisfaction and the only reason I did not leave a poor review for the lady right away is because they promised to come out on 3/24 for a standard re-cleaning and show me what a cleaning should look like. As an unacceptable solution Anthony advised me that Chris said he would send someone to do the baseboards and under the sofa (work I did on my own since they did not) but that was not the totality of what was missed and that is not what was promised me when the original incident occurred. Chris said they must send someone back within two weeks but if that is the case, Anthony should not have scheduled 3/24 and told me I was on the schedule and even who would be coming out. When I spoke with him this week, he remembered the lady he was going to send out. I would not have known she had to come sooner. He should have expressed that versus them just being a no show. I did not accept a petty cleaning of baseboards and under the sofa because that did not encompass the work they missed and I was promised a standard cleaning on a later date so that does not compare. Anthony then said Chris offered a $100 credit and I said for him to put it in writing which he did. That in no way implies that I believe that to be fair and I am still pursuing additional recourse. Cleaning costs are 25-70 per hour on average and 120-280 average price per cleaning and I already explained what I spent on a Deluxe that was done correctly from the same franchise for my mother’s home just a different county so there is no way a standard 2 hour cleaning which is all I got at best should be 300-400 and so they are still getting over while trying to convince me it should have been higher which is out of their right mind. I can provide a detailed list of all the tasks that were not done to include-light fixtures in the bathrooms, dining room and kitchen left unclean, floors not swept or mopped, bathroom tile not scrubbed let alone on hands and knees, baseboards not clean, toilet not clean, under sofa cushion not clean, bathroom tiles not clean and I provided pictures. Nothing was dusted or moved and I don’t have anything heavy in my home. The house was straightened up and cleaned at the level of my toddler or maybe teenager cleaning which is why I said at best, I should only have been charged for a very basic 2 hours. Even 10 hours divided by two workers, one of which watched the other would be a 5 hour cleaning and that did not happen so that was a lie. Where is the checklist of what was supposed to be done compared to actual work done? Why are they counting a manager stopping in to check on the crew who wasn’t there with them initially as hours worked when he did not do ANYTHING at all in regards to cleaning and Chris knows this? I am not satisfied with the $100 but it was something for now and in no way did I state that I would cease trying to dispute the matter with that. I was lied to in regards to a second cleaning even though that was not a fair solution unless they were coming to do a true deluxe as they were supposed to. My solution was to only be billed for the service I got which was not worth 300.00. Clearly they do not vet or train their workers on the standard of cleaning expected from clients. I expressly told the manager I did not want them to keep coming back or for them to ever come back so if I requested a completely different lady, how is that indicative of me being happy and no I was not requesting the same two lazy girls to come back out a third time, hence the promised re-cleaning that was a no show on 3/24. I have proof and the note created in my phone on 2/25 as well as phone records and someone who heard Anthony set up the appointment so I don’t appreciate the lies now. Chris expressed for me to eat the costs because although the service was not properly provided, they provide bonuses and health insurance and benefits for their employees so they are more expensive. Those facts have zero to do with providing a correct service or taking ownership for dropping the ball. He had the nerve to tell me to take it up with Anthony who works for him. To be honest the final payment should not be taken until the customer is satisfied and they should have checklists and expectations explained to the customer and cleaner so everyone is on the same page. Once they did a crappy job I didn’t wish to go back and forth to tell them how to do their job. That is awkward and uncomfortable which I expressed to Anthony when he promised per Chris to send someone else out. If Chris cancelled my appointment because it was too far out, someone should have reached out to me to say they needed to send someone sooner. Period.

• Initial Complaint

  01/18/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  My husband paid nearly SIX HUNDRED DOLLARS for a detailed house clean for my Christmas 2021 gift We did not get that, even after them being here twice. The first time they omitted many areas. The second time they only did the omitted areas and not the whole house. Plus it was just a "regular clean" not a detailed clean, but we never even got the WHOLE house cleaned. This is unacceptable especially for the price paid. What we got was not even worth half of what was paid.

  Business response

  02/08/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 7, 2022/01/24) */ ***Document Attached*** On 12/22/2021, Mr. ****** came into our office to purchase a gift certificate as a Christmas gift for his wife. He said he wanted to help her since they had had 3 dogs at the house and wanted to give her a break from cleaning. He had used our service before, so our Manager, Danielle, pulled up his account. The last visit was on 12/23/2019 and we only cleaned a few rooms, this time he wanted most of the house cleaned, because of the dog hair. Mr. ****** gave us a list of the areas that he wanted included and Danielle worked up a Deluxe (detailed cleaning) quote for him (attachment A). The Deluxe service quote was for $774.00 ($820.44 including sales tax). Mr. ****** said that the fee was more than he wanted to pay, so Danielle quoted him a Standard (non-detailed cleaning) for $551.00 ($584.06 including sales tax (attachment B)). Mr. ****** agreed to the Standard cleaning. Danielle prepared the gift certificate (attachment C). The standard service was completed on 01/04/2022. We were there from 9:03 a.m. until 2:22 p.m. Alicia, our Quality Supervisor, stopped in to check on the work. She noted that the house was very dusty and two showers had a lot of soap scum buildup. Alicia left before the cleaning was complete. On 01/05/2022, Mr. ****** came into our office to report that items were missed during the service. Danielle apologized and offered to return to take care of the missed items. Mr. ****** gave her a list. As Danielle reviewed the list with Mr. ******, it was obvious that he thought he had purchased the Deluxe cleaning, when he had actually purchased the Standard cleaning. Nonetheless, many items on the list should have been cleaned better than they were and we eagerly agreed to return to correct our mistakes. We wanted to schedule the return visit as soon as possible, but Mr. ****** would not let us return until 01/17/2022. We agreed to the date and Danielle explained that we would only be recleaning the areas that were not done well on the 1/05/2022 visit. We would be working from the list Mr. ****** presented to Danielle. We would not be recleaning the areas Mr. ****** was happy on the initial cleaning. Mr. ****** said he understood. On 01/17/2022, we recleaned the areas of concern. Mr. ******'s wife, ****, was at home and wanted us to reclean the whole house, not just the items on Mr. ******' list. When the ladies explained that the agreement was to work from the list that Mr. ****** gave to Danielle, Ms. ****** became angry. She stated that she expected the entire house to be recleaned, because of the inconvenience we had caused. Our staff contacted Danielle to try to defuse the situation, but Ms. ****** would not answer Danielle's repeated calls. Danielle left a message, but Ms. ****** did not return Danielle's call. We cleaned the home from 8:54 a.m. until 11:13 a.m. We asked Ms. ****** to check our work and she walked through the house with us. After the walk through, Ms. ****** told us that everything looked fine. In Ms. ******' complaint to BBB, she states that on 1/17/2022, we only recleaned the areas that were "omitted" on the initial clean, when she wanted the WHOLE house recleaned, but recleaning the whole house was not the agreement that Mr. ****** and Danielle came to. Ms. ****** also stated that she received a "regular clean, not a detailed clean, but Mr. ****** did not want to spend the money on a deluxe (detailed) cleaning and only purchased a standard cleaning. On 1/04/2022, we did not do our best work and we were truly sorry, but we returned on the day the ****** family requested (two weeks after the initial cleaning) and we corrected the areas of concern. When Ms. ****** inspected our work, she told us that everything looked fine. We do not think the request for a refund is reasonable Consumer Response /* (3000, 9, 2022/01/28) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) Hello, Some of what was written by MerryMaids is incorrect: - What calls did I not answer? I never received a single call from them. Not one. Other than possibly rescheduling due to an impending snowstorm. - Mr. ****** himself had never used their service. - Mr. ****** was under the impression it would be the whole house - not "most of the house" cleaned. When the ladies came to redo things, I was told the fee for the clean was high because they'd not been to our home before; yet her standing there was the 4th time MerryMaids was in our home to clean. So the price should not have been that high. And just think about the price. Almost $600 to not even get the corners of my kitchen floor cleaned nor the floor behind the toilets? What kind of clean is that? Only dust the front 3 inches of my furniture? Again, what kind of clean is that? That's not even a "light" clean when entire surfaces weren't done. I didn't have time to examine everything before they left. Overall it appeared fine. But my home always appears fine. But there were still some areas that never got cleaned at all such as my laundry room sink. Bedroom dresser mirror. And more. The point is I did not get my WHOLE house cleaned by them. Only half a house each time. So I will accept refund for half the amount. Thank you, **** ******

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩