I had a new customer do that and was surprised i didnt take cash right away. My new policy now. I like to do my business on trust and guess i am too trustworthy. I have some great customers thankfully.
Do you think he'll all for an order again? Don't wait until then to mention it. I would have gotten out of the truck and asked "what are you trying to do....pull a fast one?" Once you left the yard, he probably breathed a sigh of relief and thought "I got away with it." Does he give the impression of being poor? You're probably feeling bad about it since you chose not to do anything.
Not to beat a dead horse, but treat it like any cashier at a store does. Count out cash transactions in front of customers. That way any discrepancy can be addressed on the spot and there can be no denying how much cash is changing hands (or not changing hands). But by now, you already know this…
Reminds me of a recent situation. Coworkers daughter was told at the dealership she needed her spark plugs replaced. They quoted her 500$. He asked me if I would change them out. I said sure got the parts cost roughly 60 bucks. It’s about as straight forward as it gets inline 4 easy access. This guy has plenty of money. 2 houses. We didnt discuss the labor charge but since I was saving him 500+$ I figured he would treat me right. All said and done he hands me a ten dollar bill and says get yourself a 12 pack. 10 won’t even cover that. He made it onto the No more favors list. And I’ll be upfront about charges. Lesson learned. Make no assumptions.
Maybe, it’s not like we are good buddy’s or anything. Whatever it’s water under the bridge at this point. I just found it kinda insulting.
You didn't think he stacked up all that cash and bought 2 houses by being generous this whole time with his earnings, did you? I'm solidly in the middle class and still make it a point to take care of people that help me out. Eventually that stuff comes back around full circle. I know what it's like to be down to my last package of hot dogs and ramen noodles (still have plenty of beer in the fridge though, right?)
That sucks. People are cheap when it comes to paying others, but not if it involves fun events, food, or toys. I’m always upfront about my cost to do a job. I never work by the hour. I always figure a total job cost and the price is the price. No negotiating, and eliminates most future arguments.
I have done plenty of work for people that had less and they wanted to pay more than I asked… Part of the problem is I hustled trough it to get done so I could go home. But when you go to the doctor and they only see them for 10 min do you get a discounted price?
Called again today and the gentleman answered. He seemed to think it was $300 for the wood and delivery (60 miles each way).....We had 3 separate phone calls prior to delivery which I explained the cost each time. He knew he gave me $330. I said I could stop back on Monday (I dropped it off on my way out of town) and he oddly said you'll never catch me at home and wants to mail a check. We'll see if it shows up.
Now it sounds more like a pathological problem than a decent man fallen on bad times. My original empathy is now apathy for his situation. I hope he squares up with you.
I like / hope to see the best in people; I hope the check shows up.. I imagine it will; a lot of older people have memory issues.. pluses in his favor 1) He answered the phone 2) told truth; he didn’t say I gave you more. No proof of actual amount of $$ 3) tried to help.. stack
Yeah, I’ve found that whole “buy ya a case of beer” thing never worked out in my favor. Just ended up insulting someone without meaning to. I don’t do it anymore.
I also like to message them with the cost so it is in writing. This way there is no confusion. Have had a number of customers hand me less than we agreed upon and then went back to their phones to see the correct amount. Nobody ever got upset and I didn't take it as they were trying to short me intentionally.
