Customer who wanted the cheap option!!!

[heyskull]

Since about the may of last year this customer had contacted us to refurbish the sign on their shop.
At last in early December he gave us the go ahead.
The sign was a 36' x 4' light box with acrylic panels, but the 2 middle panels had been removed by the previous owner leaving 16' blank.
I quoted to replace the 2 panels and apply a digital print over all the panels.
Well he nearly choked on this!
So as the sign was no longer illuminated I suggested aluminium composite panels (being cheaper than acrylic but still keeping rigidity).
He still wanted cheaper!
So he opted for 5mm foamex even though this was unsuitable for the job he insisted I use it.
Well we duly fitted the panels and print and to be quite honest the job looked excellent.
He was told that I would give no guarantee with this and expected that.

Well over the Christmas period we had some fairly high winds and one of the panels blew out.
Well he is not happy he expected it to last more than 3 weeks.
I cannot say what the weather does.

What should I do as this numpty is insistent he does not pay for the replacement or my time to fit it?

It turns out I'm the baddy in all this and shouldn't have forced him into the cheaper material!!!!

Also looking back on the job it was under quoted just to get the job done and their is no way I will do this for free.

SC

 

[401Graphics]

he pays for everything! F him. cheap a$$ customer. personally I would have told him there was no way to go cheaper without the possibility of it falling out. and if he had a problem with it, he could go buy some card board and a marker.

 

[heyskull]

LOL that is exactly what I told him at the time of placing the order.
Previous to this it had 2 pieces of 1/4" plywood as a fascia!!!!
It is just a shame he thinks this is my problem.

SC

 

[shakey0818]

Doing cheep work just isn't worth it.He probably wont pay you for a quality sign now but i can guarantee he will bad mouth you.

 

[ddarlak]

It turns out I'm the baddy in all this and shouldn't have forced him into the cheaper material!!!!

You are at fault.

The customer may have been cheap, but you offered him a product that was destine to fail - all in the name of cashing in.

You never should have installed a sign you knew would fail, solely on collecting a check....

 

[signage]

You are lucky the panel falling out didn't injure someone or damage their property!

 

[DizzyMarkus]

You are at fault.

The customer may have been cheap, but you offered him a product that was destine to fail - all in the name of cashing in.

You never should have installed a sign you knew would fail, solely on collecting a check....

Knowing you offered it and it wasnt right, is much different than offering it and not really knowing any better :0)

Markus

 

[heyskull]

I can't force customers into spending more money I can only advise.
Yes I should of walked away from this job. But this guy was insistant and he knew the problems and issues cutting corners would raise. Sadly all they see is how much cheaper it is!
Luckily being foamex it caused no damage and it was late one night when it blew out.
I have all mine and his e-mails regarding this job so have some proof of his decisions and why they were made.

I don't want to ignore this job as it is more dangerous now having a panel missing!!

SC

 

[thinksigns]

Did you specifically say that this material is too flexible and is more likely to blow out in strong winds? If you just said a more generic "this is unsuitable", I think he has a case. He probably thought "unsuitable" only applied to longevity.

 

[GVP]

Regardless of the material, how were the panels installed? Did you still use hanging strips on panels? If the panels were just slid in to the frame without hanging strips, then you were asking for trouble, especially on a 4' high box.

 

[ddarlak]

I can't force customers into spending more money I can only advise.

you have to ask yourself, is the money you made on this job worth the hassle/stress it has caused?

do it right or don't do it....

 

[Si Allen]

 

[signage]

You are the professional, it was your responsibility to tell this customer what he was asking for was asking for trouble! Like I said earlier if someone would have gotten injured and was suing do you think the court would accept that you installed this because that is what the customer wanted?

 

[Fanaticus]

I don't want to ignore this job as it is more dangerous now having a panel missing!!

SC

This sucks, but, you might want to think about doing it again. Do it right. Consider it a lesson learned for the next time a guy walks in wanting something cheap as to why YOU shouldn't do it.

 

[CanuckSigns]

if you've been paid in full, i would tell him that you will not be doing anything for free, you told him it was the wrong material for the job, he chose to ignore you, not your problem.

I don't understand this mentality, If i hire a plumber to fix a leak in my house, I don't start telling him how to best do his job, I realize that I hired a pro, and they know what they are doing.

 

[mark in tx]

Your own damn fault for taking the money on a product that you knew was improper.

I know that not everyone can turn down a job in this economy, but you also don't have to tell the customer there is a cheaper way to do things.
Stand up for yourself or you might find yourself standing up before a judge who is deciding your liability if someone was injured.

 

[Gino]

I see all the posts so far are from America or Canada. Perhaps the reasoning in your country is different than ours, but over here..... for the most part, when someone wants cheaper and cheaper and won't give in and it's for an outdoor sign as you've described.... codes/laws won't allow you in the first place to do such a job.

Other than offering the kind of replacement panels which the cabinet was first made to accept, I don't see how you can retro-fit it with something nor designed for this job ??

My only question to you is..... how did this customer know of unsuitable substrates in the first place ?? Did he get this information from a competitor ?? Is he a frustrated sign person himself and has some inside knowledge or did you offer it up as a cheap option which you wouldn't stand behind.

Regardless, if you put the wrong substrate in a framework of a different design and didn't take added precautions to make sure this doesn't fly out in three weeks or three years, I would consider this your problem from a few angles.

I believe this has just become your problem and you better fix it regardless of whom pays for it, but you're e-mails are going to just make you look more guilty and out to get whatever money you can in hopes this guy just pays something and goes away.

Other than e-mails, do you have his signature that he understands in full you will not stand behind a faulty product ??

If so, then you admittedly put in... knowingly, an inferior product. :Oops:
​

 

[Z SIGNS]

I don't understand how using a cheaper substrate on a job like this could make the cost lower for the customer.You do the same amount of work no matter what material you use.So if you the signmaker spend $75 less on material.How much cheaper do you make it for the customer

 

["Deposit Please"]

..cutting corners to meet the cheap azzzz's budget...not good. It's like a tire shop mounting retreaded tires on your steering axle..or an electrician running wires without conduit ...it's just an accident waiting to happen. Do it right or don't do it at all.

 

[anotherdog]

Should have done it in Coroplast.
I would tend to agree that you offered him an unsuitable solution, you are the expert here.
That said I would do the job for the difference in cost between what you did the cheap one for and the Alu composite.
You will probably cover your costs and he will pay what he should have.

 

[threeputt]

Have to agree with many here.

No way we're going to "let the customer talk us into" using the wrong product for the job. Don't care how much they kick and scream. You're the pro, act like it.

Finally, here's something no one's mentioned yet. How many people saw your crew and truck there installing this mess and now see the result.

All the word of mouth advertising, shot to h*ll.