Nightmare Customers

[Craig-SM]

Unfortunately being an accountant we are governed by procedures including handling of clients. I've had one client for a few years that has been nightmare from early on. What should have been an easy client based on their business and small turnover ended up consuming more of my time than my largest client. Their personal financial nightmares became intermingled with the business with more of their personal expenses and debt collections going through the company than actual business expenses. Trying to separate the two was like pulling teeth as you tried to get information out of them, wasting so much time and effort with repeated chasing. Help and advice to get them more organised was constantly ignored.

I couldn't just remove my services otherwise I'd get the comeback if they failed to meet their statutory duties so you bill them on time taken and it was getting very expensive for them but they still wouldn't/couldn't separate their expenses from the business. It got worse with ridiculous loans they took out without any idea of the consequences i.e. credit card interest rates and then not even keep a copy of the agreement. Trying to keep accounts was getting near impossible and then they became VAT registered so needed even more chasing for information that would only come at the 11th hour. The stress wasn't worth the fee and it gave me a real insight into why so many accountants die from heart attacks.

I recently received an email stating they were changing accountants. Well they weren't doing anything until they settled their bills, finally after much dragging they were paid. I received the handover request, which I duly supplied. The relief was instant and so was the joy as their new "accountant" appears to be anything but and will be well out off his depth. With the extensive handover I provided I hope he realises so and refuses the job under false representation as I very much doubt they conveyed how badly they run the business or how much work would be involved.


What have been your worst customers?

 

[Blobber]

Not liked for the hastle but the fact you got rid of them
I had/have quite a few but try and help out depending on their attitude...
I only remember telling one to f**k off and get his stuff somewhere else

 

[Craig-SM]

I've always given advice and help for free to my clients, at the end of the day it's easier to do things right than correct them later, but some people will ignore it.

 

[Nomad]

I used to be a plasterer and often worked alongside a sparky & plumber (they did their thing and I helped, then I did my thing and they helped me).

Sparky got the job to rewire an Edwardian terrace (high ceilings, lath & plaster walls) - had to be done while the family were still living there which makes everything a lot harder.
Sparky found empty boxes from spotlights under the floorboards, neighbours told us the houses used to be a cannabis farm greenhouse (hot & humid)
Every time the sparky put a hole in the wall, chunks of plaster further along the wall dropped off. My to-do list just kept growing.
Lady (!) of the house told us it was ok to make a mess as the carpets were 'orrible and getting replaced as soon as we finished our work. Near the end of the job she told us we'd wrecked the carpets doing the rewire / plastering and we needed to pay to recarpet the whole house ...
That job destroyed the sparky and he had a nervous breakdown shortly after..

 

[Kayos]

I had an entitled person demand I changed an EPC recently

I did make a mistake on the floor area which I rectified but this only encouraged him

5 emails in 20 minutes, in the end I told him to go to the accreditation body, which he did and continued to complain

I told him I would redo it with evidence, as it is an evidence based survey

 

[frank horton]

I won’t work for accountants or lawyer's. Full stop…
Once bitten !!!!!!

 

[gaz1]

now you will wait for the return back to you to redoe there books as the last person wasnt good enough

though i do think the reply comment might be an interesting one

 

[Erie Fred]

As I compile my receipts for the upcoming Income tax fillings.....I try
to make them as simple as possible for my accountant.

My sister does book keeping for accountants, and I recall when she started many years ago, burning the midnight oil to the april 15th deadline, a late client brought
in his receipts all jammed in a used Pizza box.

So....she spent much time (billable) sorting thru (and she acts this out, holding up a receipt in mid air by the very corner) with pizza sauce dripping off.....

I always try to NOT be that customer to my accountants.....

 

[Norsk]

Gosh its hard to just point the finger on one,but here is my best .

A woman who owned a stately home has a gigantic Beech tree beside in ,inside a walled garden. I crafted an expensive quote to remove it,she used the quote to apply for a grant. In the 11th hour she retracts the idea and just wants it heavily reduced.

I told her we could call it phase one of the removal,it wont be pretty but there you are. Job took a week,gear lifted in and out with hi-ab. Cost £5k.

She refuses to pay,claiming the tree looked awefull and all the experts she had contacted agreed.A fact she knew full well.

Original quite to fell £25,000
Pruning cost her £5000
Despite potentially pocketing £20k she tried to screw me over the job we did. Eventually we agreed on £4k.Or I never would have seen a penny

This is a woman who sold her holiday house for £8 million.

I had worked for her for years prior too,intill one day she turned on me.

 

[addjunkie]

in his receipts all jammed in a used Pizza box.

So....she spent much time (billable) sorting thru (and she acts this out, holding up a receipt in mid air by the very corner) with pizza sauce dripping off.....

Carrier bags seem to be quite common round here. Our guy showed me one of our local self employed accounting system….3 different coloured carrier bags, money in, money out, and bits hes not sure about.

Blows my mind how much some folk must rack up bills for simple data entry!

 

[MattF]

I had worked for her for years prior too,intill one day she turned on me.

Some people are simply despicable.

Just remember, everyone pays the piper, eventually. Their day will come.

 

[redlig]

Carrier bags seem to be quite common round here. Our guy showed me one of our local self employed accounting system….3 different coloured carrier bags, money in, money out, and bits hes not sure about.

Blows my mind how much some folk must rack up bills for simple data entry!

Had a quiet chuckle one day visiting a m/c dealer in darkest Cornwall. as I pulled up two guys in black suits and carrying brief cases left the premises shaking their heads and looking shell shocked. Went inside to find the owner in a flat spin in his office . On his desk was a number of carrier bags full of papers. evidently the guys were from the "revenue" and wanted to see his books so he just dumped the bags on the desk. They just said that they would be back in a few days. He then asked ME if I knew any good accountants in that area. I only lived about 300 miles away and had never been to Cornwall before. The joke was that he had a M/C dealership , a Coach co. and a farm and was in his 70's but had never used an accountant.

 

[addjunkie]

Had a quiet chuckle one day visiting a m/c dealer in darkest Cornwall. as I pulled up two guys in black suits and carrying brief cases left the premises shaking their heads and looking shell shocked. Went inside to find the owner in a flat spin in his office . On his desk was a number of carrier bags full of papers. evidently the guys were from the "revenue" and wanted to see his books so he just dumped the bags on the desk. They just said that they would be back in a few days. He then asked ME if I knew any good accountants in that area. I only lived about 300 miles away and had never been to Cornwall before. The joke was that he had a M/C dealership , a Coach co. and a farm and was in his 70's but had never used an accountant.

I remember the Vat inspector coming to see the old man at his shop, inspecting his books…this was years ago maybe early 80s. She asked for his till rolls, which apparently he had to keep….he had a TV box full of them. The rules didn't say filled in any order or labelled. She gave up after about 3 hours!

As for customers….never work with animals, children or members of the public!

 

[MetalMonkey]

I couldn't just remove my services otherwise I'd get the comeback if they failed to meet their statutory duties

I was under the impression that the buck stopped with the individual/company director regardless of what the accountant did?
i.e. they may engage an accountant on their behalf, but ultimately if it goes pete tong they are still the one responsible in the eyes of HMRC.

In which case I would have politely told them to go forth and multiply...

 

[Ubique]

While I was self-employed, I had mercifully few 'challenging' customers - but I worked on the basis of 'I can't fix stupid, but I can charge for it'.
In my employed / contractor life, I've learned to do as requested, but document the reasons why it's a bad idea...

 

[Dozzer]

My worst ever customer/client was when i first started my own engineering design business. he'd been one of the upper managers at MK electronics in Southend when the production moved to China, started up his own manufacturing business.
Did quite a bit of work designing his first products = electrical floor boxes, racking units, some electrical instrument housings etc. general moulding & sheet metal work.
it was going quite well for first 12 months or so, then was asked to do some concept renderings & drawings for him, FOC for an important contract into B&Q on the understanding that if he got the contract i would get the job of doing the drawing & engineering package etc. so took a punt. later said he didn't get contract. but i knew from local sheet metal company that i did work for, and did work for him, that he did!

2 months go by and he phones me up late in afternoon, can he come and talk about another big contract, i was going home in 20 mins, so he asked can he come round to my house to discuss!!
Tells me that its a really big contract for prestigious architectural design house in London for electrically opening skylights in a few new projects. needs before end of week.
Tell him it will not be like the last project, and will require some payment for my time as i have other clients. he argues that we should be taking the risks together!
Do some concept sketches & very basic drawing views, (had done load calcs, gear clacs but left out) so not enough detail for reverse engineering this time, hand over drawings few days later to lots of mumbling "there's not a lot of detail" mumble mumble, few weeks go by and get phone call from student at local tech collage who is working for him in the evening, X asked me to give you a call and explain how the design for the skylights would work, im doing the drawings.
Didn't shout at him, as he is just doing a job, but had a very frank, open and honest exchange of opinions with X next day.
His excuse, i was to expensive, and i should consider myself lucky to be getting any of his work, and why wouldn't i work with the student on the design!
He threatened me with "im very highly regarded in the manufacturing industry's round here, and if you don't help me out on this i wll ensure you dont get any further worK" he was told to jog on.
2 years later he went bankrupt owing a sh!tload of money to lots of differetn firms, and i had quite a nice business going!

 

[Jackimus]

Gosh its hard to just point the finger on one,but here is my best .

A woman who owned a stately home has a gigantic Beech tree beside in ,inside a walled garden. I crafted an expensive quote to remove it,she used the quote to apply for a grant. In the 11th hour she retracts the idea and just wants it heavily reduced.

I told her we could call it phase one of the removal,it wont be pretty but there you are. Job took a week,gear lifted in and out with hi-ab. Cost £5k.

She refuses to pay,claiming the tree looked awefull and all the experts she had contacted agreed.A fact she knew full well.

Original quite to fell £25,000
Pruning cost her £5000
Despite potentially pocketing £20k she tried to screw me over the job we did. Eventually we agreed on £4k.Or I never would have seen a penny

This is a woman who sold her holiday house for £8 million.

I had worked for her for years prior too,intill one day she turned on me.

It's people with silly money who usually are the biggest tightwads you'll ever meet. Crazy.

 

[500e]

Had a couple over the years but most were good.
What goes around comes around or something like that

 

[Porkypine]

When I was on the railway, we were doing various remedial / repair welding jobs on the assorted engineering kit and wagons etc they were using. Whatever they broke during the night we fixed it, could be literally anything when we rolled up at 7am
Anyway one day as a change from repairs, I'm given these 'chute with rollers' type things to make from drawings and dimensions, they were for the track laying train.
the 'customer' in this case being some suit, wearing a brand new hard hat and hi-viz he'd obviously just unwrapped from it's plastic bag.
Anyway after a shufti at the dimensions for these things I immediately see they obviously won't work as they are, ''these will hit the track'' says I, and briefly explain why.
This knob however won't have any of it and says 'make them anyway as per the drawings'' and I'm left with a pile of steel and fittings etc.
Fine thinks I, I'm getting paid so feck 'em.. so I fabricate the things fairly pronto ( everything was always a rush job) they're hefty lumps made of 1/2 inch plate and look very nice, other than the fact they'll never work ! They're taken away to be bolted to the relevant wagon.
Next day they're back, ''these hit the track..'' ''Yeah, just exactly like I told you they would '' says I !
Suit bloke.. ''Can you fix them ?'' My turn to do the old sucking air through me teeth etc ''Well suppose I can cut a bit off the sides and weld the bottom back on, bit of a bodge but hey ho..''
So I waste another day of their time butchering these things so they will actually work as intended. I'm assuming they must have likely lost a night's work on the track at some ridiculous £££ cost too.
Some people just won't listen

 

[Craig-SM]

I was under the impression that the buck stopped with the individual/company director regardless of what the accountant did?
i.e. they may engage an accountant on their behalf, but ultimately if it goes pete tong they are still the one responsible in the eyes of HMRC.

In which case I would have politely told them to go forth and multiply...

Correct, it is the directors signing off the accounts that is ultimately responsible. In turn they can take legal action against the accountant if anything was materially incorrect but the account have a page signed by the accountant basically stating it based on information provided. Audits are different but again directors are responsible but accountants verify the accuracy so carry more confidence to stakeholders.

Problem clients cause issues that they can report you to your governing body and cause investigations which take up lots of time and always end up with some kind of fine to cover the costs of them investigating you, a complete racket.
It’s usually better to out price yourself hoping they’ll go elsewhere. Crap service and telling the customer to do one just come back to bite you.