Strange situation I have

Calendyr

Calendyr

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I did my first detail of the season yesterday. It was a simple wash, clay and seal job. I quoted him 4 hours and ended up taking 6 because his vehicle had so much contamination it would just not go away.

Anyway. Today when I talked to him he mentioned he had a piece of 3M clear bra material missing on his chrome trim on the front passenger door. He is supposed to send me pictures tonight.

Thing is, my pressure washer is busted. I had to use a water lance to wash and rinse the SUV. So I know there was no pressure applied anywhere on the vehicle. I did not clay the door where he mentions his chrome trim is. And I really doubt a microfiber wash glove can remove 3M clearbra.

What do you guys think? And what would you do? Has anything like this ever happened to you?

I am really baffled by this and don't know what to think or do... :(
 
Not to be mean in anyway so don't take it personally.Its kind of your fault by not detecting before the detail.first thing I do when I approach any vehicle is look at every panel carefully,when a customer is talking to me in the process I zone out not listening to what he or she is saying for the moment.you stated you lost time he deosnt care about that.so here are 3 solutions,either pay half or pay for the entire repair or walk away.
 
Why did he have clear bra on the trim on the passenger door? This sounds like the usual clueless customer who only looks at his car after it's detailed so he can blame you for something that you had nothing to do with.
 
I just removed the 3M clear bra off of the front of hood, front bumper & mirrors of my SVT Cobra because it obscured the natural shine of the paint & magnified any orange peel texture.

Its removal took lots of hours, lots of muscle, proper technique & heat to remove it. I have used the pressure washer on this car many times & it didn't lift the clear bra at all. It is almost impossible to imagine that a wash could loosen, let alone remove it unless it it was improperly installed and not properly adhered to the trim in question.
 
No inspection form? You set yourself up for a fall. Sounds like the owner is a snake but he will blame you in every possible way unless you pay to fix it. ?Tough lesson!
 
Don't forget to check the other door to see if it actually exists.
 
blkSRT said:
Don't forget to check the other
door to see if it actually exists.
Click to expand...
^^^ This is Great Advice! :props: ^^^

Not saying some people don't have
it done...But I've never seen PPF
appliqués on chrome trim pieces...
especially on chrome door trims!


Bob
 
Yea absolutely something that wouldn't just come off with a wash. Maybe show him videos of removal of film so he can see how it can't be an accident and agreed, yes check the other door.
 
You guys are funny ;)

Of course I inspect the vehicle before working on it. I noticed the clear bra on the Hood, side front pannels and mirrors. I did not think to look for it on a piece of chrome on the door ;) That piece of chrome is like half an inch wide by 6 inches long. So what ever. If I have to replace it I am expecting it to be pretty cheap. I was just curious if anyone had any had anything like that happen to them. I am 95% sure I could not have removed it by doing a simple wash. Will she what Customer wants when (if) he comes back to me. He gave me a 30$ tip so if he insists on having it replaced, I probably won't fight it. Just a silly situation ;) My first one in 4 years so I am not too upset about it either.
 
Without seeing it in person...I've seen quit a few of those little chrome pieces that have some sort of super thin "film" on them from the factory. Also seen MANY of them that are all flakey, much like peeling skin from a sun burn.

Seems like if there is one tiny fracture in this coating, water (or whatever) gets in and under the 'film' and the stuff starts flaking off.

Bill
 
I would ask him if he wants the other side taken off to match first.
 
Been emailing and talking to him a few time since yesterday.

Turns out the tape is black, not transparent. So I had a look at the pictures I took and there it is, chrome. So the tape wasn't there when I started working on the vehicule. I sent him 2 pictures and 2 zoomed pictures of the door where the tape is missing. Showed him the vehicule is dirty, dry and there is no water anywhere on the ground yet. These were taken before I started any work on his SUV. Hope this will settles things. If not, well I have proof the tape was missing so if he wants to sue, good luck to him. He was quite angry when I spoke to him last. Explained the situation and told him I would send him pictures to show him how the truck was. Really curious to see if he will appologize, not say anything or keep insisting I removed the tape. The guy seems intelligent so if he was in angry in good faith, I am thinking this will cool him down. If he was looking for someone to pay for a new wrap on his door, I think he will try to come up with excuses. Can't wait to see how it turns out.
 
Calendyr said:
Been emailing and talking to him a few time since yesterday.

Turns out the tape is black, not transparent. So I had a look at the pictures I took and there it is, chrome. So the tape wasn't there when I started working on the vehicule. I sent him 2 pictures and 2 zoomed pictures of the door where the tape is missing. Showed him the vehicule is dirty, dry and there is no water anywhere on the ground yet. These were taken before I started any work on his SUV. Hope this will settles things. If not, well I have proof the tape was missing so if he wants to sue, good luck to him. He was quite angry when I spoke to him last. Explained the situation and told him I would send him pictures to show him how the truck was. Really curious to see if he will appologize, not say anything or keep insisting I removed the tape. The guy seems intelligent so if he was in angry in good faith, I am thinking this will cool him down. If he was looking for someone to pay for a new wrap on his door, I think he will try to come up with excuses. Can't wait to see how it turns out.
Click to expand...
Dont answer your phone or contact him sounds like the wrong thing to do but on the other hand he trying to get over on you.
 
Good for you that you had "before" pictures. Hopefully this will be easily resolved, and this sounds as I originally stated that the guy never looks at his truck except he decided to after he had you detail it.
 
Yep. Always take before pictures. Of course they are good for before and after comparisson if I ever finish soon enough to take the after part, but they can be a life saver in a situation like this.

So he sent me a reply appologizing. He said his wife confirmed the tape was gone before he had the vehicle detailled. Happy it ended well. Gave his suggestions to contact the installer and see if there was any kind of guarantee on this. It should not be peeling off less than a year after installation.
 
Well, glad he apologized. Do you think you lost him as a customer over his embarrassment at being wrong?
 
Don't know. I did not press the issue and gave him advice to resolve it, so hopefully not.
 
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