I have a cleaning service that takes care of my office space. They come in twice a week, Tuesdays and Fridays, to clean the kitchen, washrooms, the common areas and the board room. If any of the people who work for me wish their private offices cleaned, they know to put a sign on their door, like the ones at a hotel.

We have security cameras inside the office for various reasons, none of which were to “spy” on the cleaning crew when first installed. However, one of my employees came to me quite upset that some candy was missing from his office, and someone else complained that a glass figurine had been broken.

I decided to look at some of the footage to see what I could find. My heart sank when I watched the video. This cleaning crew changed almost every time, so there was no consistency at all. I saw one guy sit in my employee’s chair and eat several of his candy bars. I saw another employee drop the figurine, then put it back, balancing the pieces together. And I also witnessed that on several occasions, they came in, spent less than an hour, and charged me full price.

Obviously, I’m going to have to find a new service, but when I called the company, they refused to take responsibility, or refund me, even when I told them I had CCTV footage. Now what?

Cleaned Out

I’m sorry to hear that you’ve been taken advantage of. That’s an awful feeling.

First, file a formal police report for theft and property damage - they damaged property and stole (candy). Commercial cleaning companies carry general liability insurance to cover property damage. Send the cleaning company an email, with the police report number, and request their insurance provider’s name and policy number to file a claim for the broken figurine.

If possible, consider withholding final payment and send an itemized revision deducting the cost of the broken figurine, stolen snacks and deductions for the hours they billed for but didn’t work.

File a complaint with the Better Business Bureau detailing theft, damage and billing fraud and mention you have CCTV proof.  You could also leave a detailed Google/Yelp review to warn other potential customers.

Find a new cleaning service, one that comes with good recommendations from someone you trust and ask if they use dedicated teams rather than a rotating group of independent contractors. Oh, and change the keypad codes.

Over the weekend, while my neighbours were away on vacation, their house was broken into, ransacked and robbed. They took the two smaller TVs but not the huge one; the two laptops they found, but not the two desktops, and not the kids’ school computers. They didn’t find any jewelry, or maybe they didn’t care about it, and they took some new shoes and clothing.

But the worst part was what they did inside the house that has me completely freaked out. They defecated in the middle of the dining room, urinated all over the kitchen cupboards, and smeared food all through the bedrooms. The house is unliveable and will need some serious deep cleaning.

Why would people go to all that trouble? Break in, take what you want and get out. Why cause so much damage?

Next level Delinquents

Oh my gosh, that is horrible! What a violation! I can understand your anxiety and fear. The people who caused this damage displayed a level of disrespect and disregard that makes normally adjusted people fearful. It’s the fear of, if they could do that, what else would they be willing to do?

Someone who robs a house hoping to make some extra money may or may not be willing to kill for that money. But someone who defecates on your carpet seems more irrational and off the deep end. That’s someone who has no rational thought.

I suggest installing some cameras around your house, and an alarm system. I would also hire a security service, even just temporarily, while the fear is fresh and you feel vulnerable. I hope that their house gets cleaned up quickly and that they move back in.

FEEDBACK Regarding swearing (Oct. 27; Jan. 14; March 12; May 7):
Reader – “My wife and I have been foster parents with The Children’s Aid Society for 48 years with 132 children in our care during that time. Right now, we have a two-day-old baby in our home. Our children come from all walks of life and backgrounds.

“Years ago, we had a two-and-a-half-year-old street wise little boy, with a mouth of words that would make a sailor blush. My wife was desperate to try and stop his cursing
as our other children were being exposed to his swearing. One day she asked him if he thought he could spit all the bad words into the toilet. Sure enough he went and spit and spit. The truth is, after that day he never cursed again while in our care.”

Lisi – You must be very loving and caring people. Thank you.