Cancelled 30 mins after they were meant to arrive

I booked two cleaners from Perfect Clean to come and do a 4-hour post-party clean up at our home in September, six weeks in advance of a small but very special event. They quoted me £180, including cleaning products, which I thought was a lot but also seemed fair as post-party jobs can be messy.

They were due to arrive at 9am that morning. At 9.30am there was still no sign of them. At 9.35am I got a call from the agency, saying they wouldn't be coming.

They said one of the cleaners was ill. They didn't explain why the other one couldn't come, and they didn't sound the slightest bit sorry. I was too surprised (and hungover) to press the issue, and I also understood that, hey, people do fall ill. I said I hoped she was alright.

But they weren't even vaguely bothered that they were pulling out of a contract we'd arranged over a month in advance, after the time they were meant to start, and without even attempting to make up for it. They made zero effort to stick to the contract we'd agreed and were laughing as they hung up.

It was truly shoddy service. Avoid.