Handling rain situation

S

SubyDude

New member
I am wanting to find out from you pros what you do when rain gets involved in a detail. Lets say you have finished someone vehicle and moved on to the next, and a rain storm moves in and rains on the vehicle you had finished erlier. What is your policy for that? Weather can change in a hurry so maybe you finish a job while the sun is shining and it rains later. Also if it looks like it could rain at all do you do the job anyway or reschedule (even if it might not rain). I am just wondering how you handle this kind of stuff with your clients. I would think that after you are done that is it, but that would suck for the customer if they just had a full detail and it rains an hour later.



Let me know what you all do. :thx
 
I think someone mentioned doing this before on here, but I think a nice service would be to offer a free QD or wash on the car if it rains within 24 hours of a detail. Of course if you live in a rainy state like Washington, that might not be a good idea.
 
This happened to me once, I did the vette first, them moved onto the SUV and other cars, vette got rained on while sitting on the curb while the garage was occupied.



When finished with everything, I just pulled it back up, hosed it off and dry'd it again. No biggie.



I always take care of the customers first even if it's not my fault. It doesn't hurt to go the extra mile, ecspecially when they refer you to multiple other's who's cars you do.:heelclick
 
I like the idea of going back withing 24hrs of a rain to do a QD. I do feel that is a good idea to keep customers happy.

Any other ideas? Do you reschedule at the slightest sign of rain?
 
Unfortunately the weather is out of our control. I always keep a close eye on the weather to avoid things like this. Most of my customers will simply reschedule if there is a good chance for rain. If the weather turns bad during a detail, I will do everything I can to keep the car under shelter until the customer is ready for the car. In a extreme case of rain, I might advise the customer it would be better to complete the detail at another time. If the detail is complete, and it happens to rain after I am finished, I do not go back. I think most people would not expect you to, because it is out of our control.
 
Ditto. First thing I do every morning is check the weather.

If I detail a vehicle, and it happens to rain withing 24 hours, I usually re-wash at no charge.

If I have one scheduled, and there is a chance of rain, I ask the customer first, if they would like to re-schedule for the next day, or next available day. If not, I do not gaurantee a re wash. I hate doing a vehicle, knowing it is going to rain and will have to re wash...



This year, I think I am not doing re-washes. It takes away from my time and my profits.

I will simply ask the customer if they want to reschedule, and if not....oh well.
 
I check weather.com website for the hour by hour forcast and the radar. My schedule now is such that I only do regular customers which are weekly and biweekly with a few 3 and 4 weekers. I have no official rain policy. I tell my regulars if it rains and the car gets messed up, give me a call and I'll swing by and clean the outside again. In 16 years I don't think I've had a single call. I don't advertise that or promote it but if they are concerned then I offer it. If someone is having their car cleaned or detailed and it starts to rain on me and I can't finish then I reschedule. I've had that happen only a few times. It is rare that a week goes by without at least one day of rain here.
 
I check the weather and if there is a chance of rain, I will call my customers and give them the option of rescheduling. That way, if they go ahead and have their car washed/detailed it was there call.
 
Thanks Michael. I did find some of those. However most are older thoughts and I am interested to see what some of the new (to the forum) guys do and see if anyone has come up with a new idea that has not been mentioned.



Thanks to everyone for their input. This stuff really helps me a lot.



and one of the main things i wanted to know is about situations that happen right after a detail. Like many have said, the weather can change on a dime. So maybe it is brite and sunny and the wind changes and you have a rain storm right after you leave a detail.
 
You did the service right! so why shouldn't you get paid ? Its not your problem it rained you showed up did your work end of conversation. If you really want to give your clients extra value if they are steady give them some extra service at no charge, but do not through out the baby with the bath water. Your no different than the Mechanic who tunes up their car, no matter the weather they get charged just the same.



Bob Geco
 
Bob G said:
You did the service right! so why shouldn't you get paid ? Its not your problem it rained you showed up did your work end of conversation. If you really want to give your clients extra value if they are steady give them some extra service at no charge, but do not through out the baby with the bath water. Your no different than the Mechanic who tunes up their car, no matter the weather they get charged just the same.



Bob Geco
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I can agree with this.
 
I would agree that you don't owe anything, but in this customer service lacking society doing something extra would only help to set you apart from the competition. This could especially be key if you have several competing detailers in your area.
 
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