Well, not really but it may just as well be.
I did a kitchen for a lady last Oct with a guy i’ve known for 15 years (met at Church). About two weeks after the job, the lady calls and asks for my workers last name. Hmmm, wonder what that was all about.
Fast forward to today.
I get a call back for a small trim issue and I decide to ask her why she wanted my workers last name.
BAM, a rather large sum of money came up missing after the job. Were talking more than a grand. She need his name for the Poilce report.
I’m about in shock. Now my companies name is related to a police report in a pretty good part of town.
I’ve gone to great lengths to insure this kind of thing not happen and now here it is. She even told me shes not giving my card out because of this. Worse yet, she was a referal to begin with.
No one can say for sure who took the money, but we were alone in the house and I did leave a few times to get supplies and my buddy was very low on money about this time.
A few other interesting tidbits, she kept the house key in the garage in the butter tray, so its not like it would be too hard to find it. And did I mention she was saving this money to help pay for her sisters Cancer treatments?
What do I do here? I cannot afford and bad press on my company. I make it a policy to not even pick up pennies on a job site. Nothing in your house is worth my career. I even ask women to remove their purse if its left out in the open (if it isnt there there’s no chance we can get blamed, right?).
Anyone have this happen to them? Even if its not my guy, it will never matter. Regardless of what she says, she will always question my companies integrity.
Family…..They’re always there when they need you.
Replies
If your insured, you could possibly turn it in as a claim, that might do your company more damage than the "loss of reputation".
Odds are it is someone else, who frequents the house, and took advantage of the situation with a stranger being there.
I was kind of thinking the same thing. I find it hard to believe he would do this, but who's to say
Family.....They're always there when they need you.
She should have told you what was going on at the time. Now she's not giving your card out because of something your helper may have done? That's not very considerate of her.
Best thing for you is to just move on. It won't wreck your business.
~ Ted W ~
Cheap Tools! - MyToolbox.net
See my work at TedsCarpentry.com
She didnt come out and blame him, but we were named on the police report.
Family.....They're always there when they need you.
Tough call. The fact that you were not in on the police thing raises my suspicion. The cops never even called you?? Is there a police report? You need to see it.
If all inidcators point to the strong possibility that your guy stole the money, I might offer to recompensate her even if it took a while.
Sucks.
"When the spirits are low, when the day appears dark, when work becomes monotonous, when hope hardly seems worth having, just mount a bicycle and go out for a spin down the road, without thought on anything but the ride you are taking." — Sherlock Holmes, 1896
I was thinking about a trip to the police station. I'll probably have time next week.
Family.....They're always there when they need you.
YOu could pay her not knowing who took it...just trying to avoid a blackened name but...she'll probably never unblacken your name no matter what you do...who knows? It's nopt like it's "the right thing to do" to give her the cash back...you never took it.
Did you talk with your helper?
http://www.cliffordrenovations.com
http://www.ramdass.org
Got his voice mail. May mean nothing but he's been blowing me off lately. He was supposed to come by a month ago and, no call, no show.
Family.....They're always there when they need you.
Why is she blaming your worker instead of holding your company responsible?
Two weeks after the job, she finds money missing and fingers your helper?
Is she putting a claim in to HER insurance company, perhaps? Hmmm....
I know, the whole thing smells bad.
Family.....They're always there when they need you.
I am sorry to hear that this happened.
Hope it works out OK for you.
"If you have enough energy you can solve a lot of other problems." - Charlie Munger, Berkshire Hathaway.
We have an abundant supply of domestic natural gas. Let's get busy solving problems.
Thanks.
Family.....They're always there when they need you.
Years ago I had a similar situation.
Only involved a whole lot more $.
I found out a year or two afterward when the insurance company called me to close the case.
Owners never contacted me, nor fingered myself , my company or my help.
I knew instantly who was responsible, a crew member at the time who was a blatant liar and thief ( He got a number of my friends and myself as well). He had since left for parts unknown.
I went to the owners and apologized for bringing him around, offered restitution and to turn a claim in to my insurance company. They declined, said they knew it wasn't me and I wasn't responsible for the mans actions.
Friggin guy opened an outdoor crawl hole door, crawled 60 ft. under the house in an 18" crawl space and around all the mechanicals plus a sunken living room to a second trap door crawl hole hidden under carpet in the MB while the owners were gone. Only someone who worked the job would have even had the foggiest clue how to get to the trap door.
House had a perimeter security system , but no interior motion detectors so he went undetected and slipped back out again the same way he came in. Owners didn't even know how the entry had been achieved, I had to explain it to their insurance company and the cops.
Cleaned out the family jewelry collection, guns, cash .
Make an offer for restitution if you can afford it. Might just help with the PR and your insurance might help pick up the cost.
That's a good'un right there.
That guy was a character and an expert con man besides being a thief.
I could tell some stories about his shid that are truly outrageous. Borrowed $500 from his live in girl friend to attend his mothers funeral in S.F. Took off for a week and half, returns all sad faced and crying about his poor mom. Two months later the girl friend hears a knock at the door, opens it and there stands an older couple, guys parents, dad and MOM!! Alive and well! Mom was surprised to hear she had recently passed away. Girl friend confronts him and he just shrugs it off, told her he was an addict and he needed a fix. Said he was protecting her from seeing him drugged out him so why is she upset? Oh and BTW can I borrow another $100 for this weekend my dad is sick...
They can't get your Goat if you don't tell them where it is hidden.
If I had two dimes to rub together right now I would but i'm broke.
Family.....They're always there when they need you.
Many moons ago, over there in Bloomfield which is near you, I had a similar incident. The client, who was a lawyer, called me to tell me that they were missing one Mink coat from their basement storage closet. The only ones it could have been was me or the drywallers. I called the drywallers. They said that they didn't take anything.
The client wanted me to make an insurance claim. I told him that I didn't want to but I would pay the bill directly....after EVERYONE went and took a lie detector test. I offered to pay for the lie detector tests if any of us failed.
We never had another conversation about it.
When i had my roofing crew i did not allow Any body in the house which saved my butt many times as i had some unsavory characters working for me from time to time, Not that i wanted them i was stuck to get the job done, I know you have to have people inside if your working inside.
Sorry i know how this sucks, You work so hard to get a reputation and its stolen from you!!!.
I would maybe try and talk to this lady and maybe help her with a few small things.
Put his head on a pike in her front yard.
The awful thing is that beauty is mysterious as well as terrible. God and the devil are fighting there, and the battlefield is the heart of man.
- Fyodor Dostoyevski
If I ever found out he did it I would.
Family.....They're always there when they need you.
So you've never been contacted by the police, and the only way you know anything about this was that she told you, when she called you back?
I would have thought that the police would at least stop by to talk to you, especially if you are named in her report.
That doesn't make any sense to me at all.
She won't give you any referrals, because she doesn't trust your company, but yet she had you come back for some followups?
I wouldn't get too worked up about this right now. All you really know is that some money disappeared from her house - around the time you were working there.
The police have probably asked her for a list of everyone who was in her house in that time frame and you and your helper are just two of ??? people. You're probably "persons of interest" rather than suspects right now.
I think that I would contact the police and offer your total cooperation in their investigation then wait it out.
When did you guys finish?
Job started in Oct, report being filed now?
Somethings strange....
Questions I would have (but wouldn't approach her on yet:)
When was the loss discovered?
Why does she suspect the helper?
Be VERY careful not to argue with her - at least at this point.
As someone suggested - consider talking with the police - but talk to an att first.
"Ask not what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive... then go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive."
Howard Thurman
http://rjw-progressive.blogspot.com/
She filed the report right aftee we finished. She called me asking for my helpers last name but wouldnt tell why. I only found out when i spoke with her yesterday.
Family.....They're always there when they need you.