Sat in tears at customer complaint

[FlawlessBeauty]

I think everything has been said really. I highly agree with Bagpus and Shedunlop.

Obviously you realise by now how important insurance is. I'm with professional beauty and i recommend them, they are pretty reasonable.

I too am confused by the nail polish remover? From now on, you should recommend that clients come to you for removal, especially if you have a complaint because you want to see the problem asap.

I'm sure that nothing you did could cause this woman permanant damage. Keep calm and professional and ask her to come and see you. It could be possible she has had some kind of reaction. You should also recommend that she goes straight to her GP if the problem is as serious as she is making out.

I'm not saying definitely, but she may just be pulling a fast one and hoping to get her money back. If this is the case, you probably won't hear from her again.

Oh and delete the facebook post if other people can see it.

Let us know how you get on. Good luck xx

 

[NailAddiction]

Hi everyone,


Just to confirm about the polish remover.. i thought i had been told that you couldnt buy pure acetone that it was only from wholesalers (have also learnt that today so i will remember that!)
I no i was very very silly and completely unproffessional not having insurance.. just got too ahead of myself wanting to use the money for other things. Lesson learnt again!

I have contacted the client and told her to come in and i will give her a full refund and that i will give her a free treatment as a good will gesture .. she then replied that this wasnt good enough that she has a meeting with a solicitor tomorrow. but then went on to send me three texts .. basically saying if i gave her a better price she woudnt take me to court.. so she is obviously trying her luck. She insists she has a meeting with her solicitor tomorrow so i will see..

but the fact she has been trying to bribe me of money and waited 4weeks to do something about the "mess i have done" makes me feel she wont get very far?!

I know i have been very silly and appreciate the advice you have all given and will definfately learn from this! I do think of myself as being very proffesional with my clients and feel very ashamed of myself at the moment.

Thankyou all for your support!

 

[happyfeet]

hey hun

she does sound like a bit of a chancer however i would advise keeping any text she has sent you and as someone suggested earlier keep notes on your conversations and interactions and if you still have that message on Facebook take a screen shot as previously mentioned.

Good luck hun, try not to panic, get some rest as tomorrow's another day.

Love n hugs x x x

 

[NailAddiction]

I did what somebody replied (sorry cant remember who it was) and i have wrote down excactly what has happened since she came in 4weeks ago. Ive also kept the facebook message and all the messages she has sent me today.
Can anybody tell me.. if she carrys on can i have her done for harrasment, if she carrys on saying she wont go to court if i give her a better price?

Thanks again x

 

[xxJackiexx]

I did what somebody replied (sorry cant remember who it was) and i have wrote down excactly what has happened since she came in 4weeks ago. Ive also kept the facebook message and all the messages she has sent me today.
Can anybody tell me.. if she carrys on can i have her done for harrasment, if she carrys on saying she wont go to court if i give her a better price?

Thanks again x

I would tread very carefully in telling her that (it may sound like a threat to her) , she sounds like a chancer but you really don't want to push her into carrying out her silly threats given your lack of insurance. x

 

[NailAddiction]

Oh no i dont mean threatening her with it.. i just mean if she doesnt go to the solicitors tomorrow like she is claiming and keeps on texting me about money and it carried on.. could i have something done to stop her? I am feeling very bullied by it all and dont really see why i should put up with it if she is just in it for the money! xx

 

[alldrick]

Please don't let this put you off doing nails.
one of my therapist was threatened with court action but nothing come from it.
I wish I was your boss as from what you have said re more money I think this lady needs taking in hand.
She is praying on your inexperience.
You have learnt alot from this always say to your ladies " any probs contact me so I can take a look "

I don't no if you are mobile but maybe working in a salon with other nail tec would give you more confidence/ guidance in this situ.
Good luck x

 

[sammi010]

Oh no i dont mean threatening her with it.. i just mean if she doesnt go to the solicitors tomorrow like she is claiming and keeps on texting me about money and it carried on.. could i have something done to stop her? I am feeling very bullied by it all and dont really see why i should put up with it if she is just in it for the money! xx

You don't have to put up with being bullied. If she contacts you again simply say you have made her an offer which she has turned down so you think the best way forward is for you to deal directly with her solicitor.

You can take control of this situation.

Do not get drawn into any other conversations. Just repeat the above, if that is the only reaction/response she gets out of you she will either get bored or have to put her money where her mouth is and go to a solicitor, who, to make any claim, will require her to get medical reports etc.

 

[Katelisa]

You don't have to put up with being bullied. If she contacts you again simply say you have made her an offer which she has turned down so you think the best way forward is for you to deal directly with her solicitor.

You can take control of this situation.

Do not get drawn into any other conversations. Just repeat the above, if that is the only reaction/response she gets out of you she will either get bored or have to put her money where her mouth is and go to a solicitor, who, to make any claim, will require her to get medical reports etc.

This is good advice in dealing with this kind of client. My only caution would be, if she's not bluffing and you have no insurance, what will happen?

You really need to see her face to face. Or at least ask her for pictures for you to keep and put with the rest of your 'evidence'

 

[me2u]

we always learn from our mistakes.
Im a new nail tech but just a idea i do client record cards plus i do nail information sheet that they have to sign and date.
just to say they was happy with my service, that they have to be rebalanced every 2-3 weeks and they must have them professional remove and so on...
Geeg kindy done a nail information sheet a long time ago and its been a blessing to me.:hug:
which i will kindly send to you if you wish.
As I'm new like yourself just don't want clients to take advantage of this.

 

[bombini]

I think you have done the right thing by offering a refund and a free treatment as this means you will see the nails for yourself and hopefully she will feel guilty for what she has done when she is face to face with you.

If you make any more contact with her I would either do it by phone or make it quite clear in what ever communication you make that your final offer is a refund and a free treatment as a gesture of goodwill.

I would also suggest that you speak to a solicitor or go to citizens advice as im really not sure how things would progress as you don't have insurance, so if she does make a claim im guessing she would sue you directly.

Good luck and keep us updated.

 

[unas escarlata]

The other thing that is handy is if you get a client who you are not sure about, maybe an offer or someone picking at everything you are doing. Take a photo of their nails before they leave or get someone else to have a look for you. Obviously don't do this in an obvious way, just get one of the other girls to ask to see them and say they are lovely. That way you have some sort of comeback if she is saying they are bleeding or whatever! You get a nose for the troublemakers eventually! :wink2:

"would you mind if I took a photo for my portfolio" usually works......

 

[TracyS]

So it's 4 weeks since the work was done and she's contacting you now? She has given you no chance to see or to rectify any perceived problem? She apparently has a meeting with a solicitor but wants to haggle over compensation?

No more contact, you've given what I believe is a very generous offer due to an error of judgement over insurance. If she is not happy to accept that, ask her to send in her complaint in writing so that your 'legal team' can respond appropriately.

Do not be bullied, do not be afraid. She will either respond with a 'fine, i'll take the free treatment' in a very snotty and holy manner or you'll hear nothing more would be my betting.

On the off chance a letter from her solicitor does land on your door, go off to Citizens Advice with all the information you have, correspondence, dates, sequence of events etc etc and get their help. If you can't get to a CA then you could try a local university that runs a law programme, they will quite often for final year students take on pro bono cases.

Don't loose any more sleep over it. Nothing you can do until you hear from her again

xx

 

[NailAddiction]

Hi everyone,

Thankyou for your advice I really do appreciate it!
I received another text from her today to say she had been to her solicitors and they think she could claim £800-£900 but if I give her a lump sum of £400 she won't take me to court. I have not responded to this as I think if she was so serious she would take me to court.. So let's wait and see if I get a letter from a solicitors!
Got a bit worried when I receive that text but luckily because I am currently on a massage course at college my tutors have been very supportive and made it all realistic to me and made me realise that yes if she does take mr to court she won't get very far as it's 4weeks ago.. After removing them herself she didn't contact me and there is no evidence!

Thankyou again!!

 

[Katelisa]

Hi everyone,

Thankyou for your advice I really do appreciate it!
I received another text from her today to say she had been to her solicitors and they think she could claim £800-£900 but if I give her a lump sum of £400 she won't take me to court. I have not responded to this as I think if she was so serious she would take me to court.. So let's wait and see if I get a letter from a solicitors!
Got a bit worried when I receive that text but luckily because I am currently on a massage course at college my tutors have been very supportive and made it all realistic to me and made me realise that yes if she does take mr to court she won't get very far as it's 4weeks ago.. After removing them herself she didn't contact me and there is no evidence!

Thankyou again!!

I wonder if it would be a reasonable request to ask for her solicitors details to deal with them direct? See of she is bluffing or not.

I don't really know how these things work.

 

[sammysammsam]

Reading this, you do realise this woman has no legal standing on this case, a solicitor wouldn't touch it, she's giving you the run around for her money back, offer nothing admit to nothing stay cool, nothing she can do what so ever at all.
Wise up get insurance and relax babe, this happened to me at the start of my career a lady wrote to me reckoned a triple bypass was quicker than me doing her nails I kept the letter three years later I am about to write back to her - nicely to tell her about my progression including teaching others on apply gels, manicures etc you will look back sooner than you think and remember that was the best lesson I ever learnt

 

[sammysammsam]

I wonder if it would be a reasonable request to ask for her solicitors details to deal with them direct? See of she is bluffing or not.

I don't really know how these things work.

She doesn't need to its a lie the woman is conning her into paying £400!!!

 

[Katelisa]

She doesn't need to its a lie the woman is conning her into paying £400!!!

No, I don't mean to actually contact her solicitor, I mean to ascertain wether she actually has spoken to anyone.

If The OP asks for their contact details, and she's lying, she's going to be caught out isn't she.

 

[NailAddiction]

I won't be contacting this lady again one no mater how many times she texts me as I don't want to give her an excuse to get into or try to get into a conversation with me. I have kept every message she has sent to prove she is basically in it for the money so let's see hey!

Oh don't worry! I have learnt my lesson well and truely and will never let myself down again like I have.. I have rang and got insurance with ABT insurance today and I am currently in the process if maki g much thorough consultation forms.
X

 

[Katelisa]

I won't be contacting this lady again one no mater how many times she texts me as I don't want to give her an excuse to get into or try to get into a conversation with me. I have kept every message she has sent to prove she is basically in it for the money so let's see hey!

Oh don't worry! I have learnt my lesson well and truely and will never let myself down again like I have.. I have rang and got insurance with ABT insurance today and I am currently in the process if maki g much thorough consultation forms.
X

Onward and upward!