It’s understandable to want something done perfectly, especially if it’s something custom. But once it’s done, it’s done. You can’t really ask for a refund when a service has been tailored to you, because the business owner can’t really do anything with it; they’re lucky if it’s possible to upcycle into something.
The thing that the customer wanted to “return” in today’s story isn’t really recyclable, but more biodegradable. A customer said that she was happy with her new lawn, installed by the landscapers, until she suddenly wasn’t.
And since a “mowtual” agreement was impossible, the contractors came back to reverse their work.
Katelyn shared the entire ordeal of a client deciding that she didn't like the grass her company had installed nearly 2 weeks later
Image credits: @kslicksix
"I'm so [angry] right now. My boyfriend and I own a landscaping company, and we just did this job for this woman where we did her front and back grass"
"But she happened to want it done during the heatwave, so the grass has gone a bit yellow, but it shouldn't have, had she watered it the way she was advised to. So she paid the first half because we asked for it upfront, cause we needed to pay the men and supplies, and stuff like that. And I was supposed to pick up the check on Saturday for the second half, and she had a family emergency, and she couldn't give up the check for that reason, whatever."
Image credits: @kslicksix
"Okay. So then she's like: 'Oh, Monday, by 2pm, I'll have the check,' this and that, whatever"
"So I show up, and right away, she starts off: 'Look at my grass, I'm not paying for this,' and of course, she has water out now, but it wasn't [watered], I'm sure, from the time we laid the grass. So basically, I have one of our employees along with us to see where this is gonna go. So she's [complaining] on: 'Well, you know, it doesn't look good,' this and that. I'm like: 'Yeah, but you didn't water it. You were advised on how to cater for your grass, you didn't do it. And I'm here to collect the check today. You said it was Saturday, you're continuing to cause delays. This isn't how this goes, so you're gonna have to pay.'"
Image credits: @kslicksix
“'I wanted a paper invoice.' I'm like: 'I can send you it by email'”
“'I don't have a printer, so email is not gonna work.' Everything I said to try and be cooperative wasn't pleasing her. So I look at my employee and like, 'She's refusing to pay. So the second half of what she owes us is what we paid for our grass. So take up the grass.'
Let me show you. Here is what we've done so far. This is what she was complaining about. But if you look, a neighbor's grass is just as yellow because of the heatwave. So here we are, taking up the grass. He's doing the backyard right now. And I'll show you the final product."
Image credits: @kslicksix
"She's videotaping me even though she's the one refusing to pay. We've already called the police, so that's so fun"
"Owning a business is so fun. We're just gonna take this loss. Take this L. That's so good. I just don't understand people - you didn't water your grass during a heatwave. And you're gonna be like, “Well, I'm not paying for this, look at it, look at that.” Also, it's alive, so it's gonna come back - you're just being difficult on purpose. Anyways, I'm going to show you guys a part two of when that grass comes up because that whole lawn is being stripped today. I'm going home with my grass."
Image credits: @kslicksix
Watch the original video here:
Katelyn's story took 4 three-minute TikToks to tell in full, with her talking about how she had her legal bases covered
Katelyn Greene, the teller of this story, and owner of the landscaping business, is our protagonist for the day. For being a landscaping contractor, I can’t imagine a more apt name for her. Just imagine: “Greene Lawn-scaping,” with a pleasing green logo.
Oh. What? The article? Oh right.
Across the 4 epic updates, Katelyn describes the story of how she and her workers dealt with a customer who decided she wasn’t satisfied with her purchase way too late.
From the initial story, we find out that the customer became increasingly more upset with the service after the grass was installed, because it started yellowing. Katelyn pinned this on the customer herself, saying that she neglected to water it enough, if at all.
Excuses were piling up and up, and Katelyn decided she was done with the woman and told her employee “rip it up”. So, thus we get the glorious part 2 video, where a worker is lawn-mower-ripcord style ripping up neat little squares and rectangles of turf. The inflamed customer alternated between hiding indoors and telling passerby that she had “paid in full,” with more and more people coming over to check out the commotion.
In the later parts, she mentions that she was trying to be polite from the get-go, while the client was belligerent on her part, even if she hadn’t paid for about 1.5 weeks by then.
There were other signs that something was up with the lady, with her lying about random things and avoiding them. But as it turns out, she was warned several times that they would rip up the grass and give her the “discount” of not paying, and she told them to go ahead - perhaps as a part of a foolish bluff.
The lady also didn’t take care of the grass at all, with it being drowned or overwatered in some parts, while being burned nearly to a crisp in others.
Katelyn also mentions near the end that she didn’t want to film the whole ordeal to be malicious, but rather because the woman started filming first, especially filming her son who was with her, which Katelyn really didn’t appreciate - so she retaliated eye for an eye.
Image credits: @kslicksix
One myth we could address right now is that grass doesn’t burn if it’s watered in the sun, no matter what you’ve heard. People believe that the water drops concentrate sunlight, which scorches the blades of grass. Nope. Actually, watering during the hottest and sunniest parts of the day makes grass healthier.
But what can a business owner do, if they don’t get paid after everything has been said and done?
There’s many reasons why a client may withhold pay, according to Flexbase, from feeling that the work isn’t what was agreed upon at the start, the contractor was late, according to them, materials used were bad, or your work just didn’t cut it. They may also be secretly fighting for a special discount, hoping that complaining about something rudely enough will make the contractor drop the price somewhat.
The best course of action to take, even before work begins, is to document everything in detail. Save messages, discuss with clients in writing, draw up contracts, so if and when things go twisted, you can get your money back for your supplies and effort if you choose to sue.
So, while ripping it all up and just leaving a mess in an ex-client’s yard may be satisfying, it’s not the best, neither financially nor for your image.
The original two videos by Katelyn collected about 250k views, with 15k likes on the first vid and 1.6k comments on the second one, where the discussion was the most intense. The community was split in many ways: some said that she never should’ve done what she did, that they should’ve taken the grass, while others cheered her on and shared stories of contractors they know that have done pretty much the same thing.
What’s your opinion? Pen it below.
The community was split, with some people supporting her and others saying that they should have taken the high road
