How do I check a cleaning company’s complaint history before buying?

Complaints rarely sit in one place. Ask for emails, texts, notes in the schedule and any insurance paperwork linked to damage or theft claims. Ask the office staff what clients actually say on the phone, because many complaints never get written down. Then read public reviews and see whether the seller replied to them, and how.

Look for patterns. One broken vase is a story; the same breakage across several crews is a training problem. Missed visits, late arrivals, supplies left behind and disputes over scope all point to different weaknesses. Ask what changed after each one, and whether the fix held.

Then examine the handling. Does the company have a way to log problems, make it right and keep the client? Check that insurance and bonding are in place and in good standing, and ask whether any claim is still open. Open claims can come with the business, so ask your lawyer how the agreement should deal with them, and keep copies of what you were shown. Ask the crew leaders as well as the owner, since the people on site often know about problems that never reached the office.

Key takeaways

• Request written complaints, claims and refunds with the outcomes.
• Read public reviews alongside the seller’s own records.
• Look for repeated causes rather than single incidents.
• Ask about any open claims and how the sale should treat them.