A pretty bad start to the week..

[CES]

I actually walked out of someone's house today during a quote. I felt sorry for his wife, they were both late sixties.
It started of pleasant enough but when the wife asked me if she needed new valves on her 40 year old radiators I said "erm... yes I would think so".
The old guy snapped saying "what kind of answer is "erm".
I replied "it was the start of a sentence", I then went on to explain that you cant get double entry valves anymore so I would need to extend a pipe below the radiator to the other side if I installed a new one.
He then went on to challenge everything I was saying to his wife, His wife was repeatedly telling him to shut up.
In the end I said "I'm sorry I cant provide a quote as I don't need the hassle or the insinuation that I am ripping you off. Clarification is one thing, challenging my trade knowledge and experience is quite another".
The wife said "Please don't go, your the third one that's left"
I just walked out the door while they started arguing, I could hear them still at it as I drove away.
Looking back I'm not sure if the old guy had the early onset of dementia or was just in a foul mood, or even he didn't want to spend the money in the first place.
The odd thing was I did work for them last year when I recommended they upgraded their rads.

Put me in a real downer of a mood today!..

 

[Barry98]

Chin up fella you did the right thing

 

[villa_tom]

Chin up mate.

Imagine the hassle if you'd won the work. He'd probably have been watching you like a hawk and telling you how to do your job. Probably best you did what you did.

Gid help the poor chap that wins the work 🙂

 

[SimonG]

Dodged a bullet there methinks. Had one similar, a bloke spent 15 minutes telling me how to fix his leaking shower. I said get on and left.

 

[Rickster123]

Could've been worse mate sounds like a lucky escape. Some people are just moody ****!

 

[Leo21]

It makes for an intersting day though. I walked of one last week, and it does ruffle your feathers. It's really hard work keeping a good reputation and giving good honest advise only to be basically called a liar.

 

[CES]

Yeah, I thought "Phew!", but I felt sorry for his missus.

 

[Dannypipe]

Don't let idiots like him get you on a downer. He's obvioulsy miserable, and wants everyone else to be in the same boat.

 

[erpkid]

Yeah, I thought "Phew!", but I felt sorry for his missus.

Understood but the only thing we can really help them with is their plumbing. I know it is hard but you did the best thing. I am sure eventually someone will give in, do the job, and regret the day they agreed to do it. Our business life is stressful enough without this sort of thing.

 

[stevetheplumber]

trouble is no one will quote him and he will wind up with some right cowboy who will rip him off then he will perpetuate the myth that all plumbers are robbing thieving scumbags

 

[SimonG]

karma

 

[dancinplumba]

No offence, think you should go back, this lady needs your help. You told her she needs new valves ??? My mum has dementia/Alzheimer's. Please speak to the lady 🙂

 

[TFGplumbing]

I went out to one the other week. LP cooker needed re-jetting too NG. They insisted they had all the jets require jets checked them, most were missing - fresh jet kit I said.

Pointed out to them that someone had installed the bayonet fitting the wrong way up.
Apparently a non-corgi person had extended the the gas pipe and installed the bayonet fitting.
Told them that the cooker needed to be restrained with a suitable chain.. They thought differently.

Rung them back not 2 hours later with a price, and they had someone else there looking at it "can you ring us back later as we got another guy looking at it" - NUH

 

[Dotty]

No offence, think you should go back, this lady needs your help. You told her she needs new valves ??? My mum has dementia/Alzheimer's. Please speak to the lady 🙂

And some people are just she-ites. Appreciate what you say Steve but there are people far more qualified than us to deal with people with dementia/Alzheimer's. My nan had it too. It's a horrible condition and incredibly distressing for the family.

This particular guy sounded a bad'un though.

 

[plumber0808]

I had one of them non productive days, loads to do phone kept ringing ended up doing not a lot and am now behind for the week.

fell out with the neighbour on the job as well, I Parked outside the house and opposite asked me to move down the road as it has taken them 5 mins to get off their drive. I said no I am back and forth all day and would park at the front door if I could. He went off on one I told him I'm not arguing about it and not moving the van and off he went.

I don't think its over yet as I've got quite a bit of work on the job.

 

[vern]

Pagger him with the Yorkshire Minibore valve attached to a flex, then say look what you missing lol

 

[REDSAW]

I actually walked out of someone's house today during a quote. I felt sorry for his wife, they were both late sixties.
It started of pleasant enough but when the wife asked me if she needed new valves on her 40 year old radiators I said "erm... yes I would think so".
The old guy snapped saying "what kind of answer is "erm".
I replied "it was the start of a sentence", I then went on to explain that you cant get double entry valves anymore so I would need to extend a pipe below the radiator to the other side if I installed a new one.
He then went on to challenge everything I was saying to his wife, His wife was repeatedly telling him to shut up.
In the end I said "I'm sorry I cant provide a quote as I don't need the hassle or the insinuation that I am ripping you off. Clarification is one thing, challenging my trade knowledge and experience is quite another".
The wife said "Please don't go, your the third one that's left"
I just walked out the door while they started arguing, I could hear them still at it as I drove away.
Looking back I'm not sure if the old guy had the early onset of dementia or was just in a foul mood, or even he didn't want to spend the money in the first place.
The odd thing was I did work for them last year when I recommended they upgraded their rads.

Put me in a real downer of a mood today!..

cheered me up reading it though,lol.

 

[SimonG]

I had one of them non productive days, loads to do phone kept ringing ended up doing not a lot and am now behind for the week.

fell out with the neighbour on the job as well, I Parked outside the house and opposite asked me to move down the road as it has taken them 5 mins to get off their drive. I said no I am back and forth all day and would park at the front door if I could. He went off on one I told him I'm not arguing about it and not moving the van and off he went.

I don't think its over yet as I've got quite a bit of work on the job.

Don't you just love it. Neighbours and parking your van to be able to access or unload your materials and tools. I just tend to point to the tax disc and mention that it allows me to legally park where I want. I've had the 'your spoiling my view', 'I cant get off the drive', 'you've blocked the road' even though you could get a bus sideways through the gap.

I have an ensuite on Wednesday morning to fit out. I'm under instructions to park at the front of the house, not not to reverse the van too far into the courtyard or the next door neighbour will complain and make sure that the van is at least three foot from the house or the neighbour will complain. Luckily it's not a priced job, just to bill them on completion.

 

[on31ll]

im with dancinplumba. i wouldnt be surprised if the woman rings you and gets him out the way for a bit. everyone in my family on my mums side gets demetia etc so guess what im doomed and you think this man is bad i will be worse ! i did some work for my own aunty who has it she told everyone i was a con artist and i was stealing her wallpaper ! sometimes theirs nothing you can do !

 

[dancinplumba]

And some people are just she-ites. Appreciate what you say Steve but there are people far more qualified than us to deal with people with dementia/Alzheimer's. My nan had it too. It's a horrible condition and incredibly distressing for the family.

This particular guy sounded a bad'un though.

Don't

 

[dancinplumba]

Bunch of

 

[Rickster123]

Steady on dancin. You ok?

 

[villa_tom]

You ok Steve mate?

 

[vern]

Delete that Steve bud open forum

 

[Rickster123]

It's not its the arms and very out of character.

 

[vern]

It's not its the arms and very out of character.

Aww me bad got 2 tabs open lol

 

[CES]

Anyway if the woman rings me back ill go back, as I said I don't know what was wrong as he was pleasant enough last year.

 

[dancinplumba]

Sorry, CES ( Connor ) has told this lady she needs new valves, why ? They must be leaking ?? She has begged him to stay ?? Ffs !!! She clearly needs help doesn't she ? 3 have turned their backs ????! Are we all just cowboy money grabbers ? Her husband may have dementia........it's sad. YES I AM ANGRY and UPSET

 

[Dotty]

Sorry, CES ( Connor ) has told this lady she needs new valves, why ? They must be leaking ?? She has begged him to stay ?? Ffs !!! She clearly needs help doesn't she ? 3 have turned their backs ????! Are we all just cowboy money grabbers ? Her husband may have dementia........it's sad. YES I AM ANGRY and UPSET

That's fair enough Steve, and I do completely understand where you're coming from mate. I just need you to watch the the language.

Please?

For me?

 

[dancinplumba]

Am in the arms, feel very strongly about this, your comment about him being shyte was out of order to John, said in jest, or otherwise.
If she was my client, I would have bent double to help.... They are in their sixties ffs !! And possible husband with dementia ? Come on........not just plumbers.........

 

[Rickster123]

I've got to be honest Steve if it was me my initial gut reaction would be to get out as soon as I could. I wouldn't even think of health issues because I haven't had the first hand experience of it. I would just view it as an aggressive customer and walk away. Not out of ignorance just the way most would react I would guess.

 

[villa_tom]

Am in the arms, feel very strongly about this, your comment about him being shyte was out of order to John, said in jest, or otherwise.
If she was my client, I would have bent double to help.... They are in their sixties ffs !! And possible husband with dementia ? Come on........not just plumbers.........

ive got massive respect for you Steve and fully appreciate your views and respect them all, however I disagree on your last part of your comment.

When I'm in someone's home, I am JUST A PLUMBER. Yes the lady may have issues with her husband and this should be reported to the relevant authorities if they are that bad.

When I worked at the council I saw all kinds of things and all kinds of people, some people should have never been able to have a house to them selves, but they did. I was there to fix the boiler/radiator/pipe etc, I wasn't there to advise them on the way they acted or the way they lived.

If I saw anything really bad I reported it, once I saw a woman eating from the cat litter tray, I reported that one, but it went no further. I never told her not to, or removed the tray. I just told the council.

There are people out there trained to deal with issues like this, and I'm not one of them. And if I'm perfectly honest, I don't want to deal with them, I'd have been a social worker had I wanted to.

If people want to step in and help them FairPlay to them, and if you do then Steve, your a bigger man than me and I'd fully respect you for it.

But when I'm at a property I'm a plumber, not a shoulder to cry on, a social worker or a marriage councillor.

 

[Dotty]

As I said to you in my pm. I know where you're coming from and why. I feel very strongly about it too. But automatically assuming that the guy has a medical condition because he was nasty to Connor is also wrong. Maybe he has. Maybe he hasn't. That's neither here nor there. You'd be prepared to work there and I fully applaud you for that. There are others who would have him against the wall, and again others who would just pack up and walk.

There are always two sides to every coin.

 

[on31ll]

think we can all understand and to be honest its the initial reaction for alot of people for instance the 3 others plumbers to just go screw this lets go ! but its what youve got to think about ! shes proberbly in need of sombody to do it and you will find out shes prob on her own as he cant go anywhere else as he will get confused and nobody will mind him so to speak ! its a horrible diesease and it does ruin some of the best people ! theres people in my family that dont even reconise daughters and get angry and fight with them when they try and help.

the lady knows what hes like and for one moment wont question what your doing. if you cant put up with an old man watching you and an odd comment then fair one dont do it but if you can just pretend hes the apprentice and you will make an old couple very happy and his wife very releived.

 

[dancinplumba]

Understand tom , adam and john, sorry 🙂 . work for myself, seen the ****... Walked in it...if woman needed help.....carnt help myself.. If tossers on the social etc understand, but lady clearly needed help......never mind.thank you and nite 🙂

 

[dancinplumba]

Anyway if the woman rings me back ill go back, as I said I don't know what was wrong as he was pleasant enough last year.

There you go...please do Connor .. Send me the bill 🙂

 

[villa_tom]

Understand tom , adam and john, sorry 🙂 . work for myself, seen the ****... Walked in it...if woman needed help.....carnt help myself.. If tossers on the social etc understand, but lady clearly needed help......never mind.thank you and nite 🙂

I don't think you need to apologise mate 🙂