Terms and Conditions
Cleaning Services will be performed as outlined in your estimate and recurring service. Extra services and will be treated as an add on and will be at an additional cost.
Arrival Time: Due to the time-consuming and unpredictable nature of travel, an exact arrival time cannot be guaranteed. We provide a 1-hour arrival window for your cleaning and our technicians will send you an “On the Way” message to your cell phone to notify you of their ETA. You will not be able to send a reply message as it is an automated message from our scheduling system. Please call our office at (252) 571-1599 if you need to reach us for any reason, we are happy to assist you!
Tips to our Staff: Tips to our staff are a great way to show your appreciation, our staff work very hard! Cleaning is intensive work and requires a skilled technician. We encourage our customers to tip our staff, it is a great way to show your appreciation. Tips can easily be added to your credit card payment.
100% Satisfaction Guarantee/Reclean Guarantee: We guarantee our services, your satisfaction is very important to us! If we miss something at your cleaning, you must contact our office within 24 hours of your cleaning and send us a photo of the area to be recleaned. We will send a cleaning technician to perform the correction within 24 hours. We do not provide refunds or discounts, only corrections.
Effectiveness: Please have personal items cleared away and rooms ready to be cleaned. We can do a more thorough cleaning when your home is picked up and prepared for thorough cleaning. Please make a trip through your house and put away items such as dirty dishes, clothing, laundry, blankets, shoes, papers, dishes, food, mail, kid’s toys, animal toys, books, and games. If your home requires extensive pick-up to perform your cleaning, you will be responsible for a $25.00 pick-up fee added to your cleaning fee.
Cleaning Supplies and Sheet Changes: We provide all equipment and supplies for your cleaning except for your trash liners. Please ensure our office is aware of the location of your trash liners, trash receptacles and your personal vacuum in case you would like us to use your vacuum or if our vacuum breaks/malfunctions. If you have any special requests for the cleaning products we use in your home, you will need management’s approval prior to your cleaning. If you have us use a cleaning agent other than what we provide, please leave the product on your kitchen counter so it is visible to the technician. Additionally, Cleaning by Kate is not responsible for any damage to your surfaces when we use your product(s). If you have us change the sheets on your bed, you must leave a full set of clean linens on the foot of the bed. Our staff are not allowed to go through your closets and personal belongings to locate your linens.
Add-Ons: Any cleaning outside of our agreed-upon scope of work at the time of your estimate is an “add-on” and additional fees will be applied. Cleaning technicians are not authorized to deviate from your recurring service work order. All add-ons must be scheduled ahead of time and cannot be added on at the time of your cleaning. Add-ons include, but are not limited to, cleaning up renovation debris, inside oven cleaning, inside fridge cleaning, cabinet front door cleaning, sunrooms, or any additional tasks and rooms not included in your recurring service work order. An add-on fee may also be incurred if you host a large gathering, have guests stay at your home, adopt a new animal, or have someone new take up occupancy in your home. This can substantially increase the cleaning scope of work and thus require additional time to clean your home thoroughly. Please notify our office if any of the above have occurred prior to your next scheduled cleaning.
Lock-out Policy: Please ensure we have guaranteed access to your home when we arrive to clean. You may let us in, leave a door unlocked, provide a door code, a garage code, a lockbox code, or a hide-a-key location. If we arrive for your cleaning and are unable to gain entry, you will be responsible for the full price of your cleaning.
Payment: Payment is due at the time services are rendered. We accept credit cards and debit cards for payment. If we are unable to obtain payment for any reason, you will be charged a late fee of $35.00 dollars. Please be sure to update your credit card when applicable. If we are required to hire an attorney to collect any amounts owed by you, you will be responsible for all unpaid cleaning fees, late fees, add-on fees, court costs, expenses, and attorney fees incurred from collecting the balance owed.
Skipped/Cancelled Cleanings: You must contact our office to make any scheduling changes, informing your cleaning technician is not acceptable to cancel or adjust your service. Our office handles all scheduling and work orders. Please provide at least 2 business days’ notice when skipping or canceling your cleaning. The 2-business day policy is for business days only Monday - Friday 8 am – 5 pm EST and does not include the weekends or nights when our office is closed. Recurring cleans are priced at a discounted rate based on the frequency you chose for your service: weekly, biweekly, or monthly. Deviating from your recurring frequency will require additional time to be spent when we clean your home at your next visit. You will incur a skip fee (please see below). 3 or more “skips” or canceled cleanings in a 12-month period will open up your scheduled time for another client. If your cleaning day or time needs to be modified for your ongoing recurring services, please provide at least 2 weeks’ notice to our office so that we can arrange a new day and time on our calendar that better suits your needs. Skipped or canceled cleaning fees are as follows:
| SKIPPED OR CANCELED CLEANING | FEES |
|---|---|
| Skip fees for recurring services | Weekly/Biweekly: $25 Monthly: $50 |
| 2 business days’ notice provided | No cancellation fee |
| Cancellations due to contagious illness in the home | No cancellation fee |
| Less than 2 business days provided | Full cost of the cleaning to be paid |
Deposits and Cancellations for Initial Cleans: A 50% Non-refundable deposit is required to schedule your first clean and reserve the time and team for your cleaning. If you choose to cancel your initial clean for any reason, you will not receive a refund of your deposit. Deep cleans require multiple cleaning technicians and a substantial amount of time on our schedule. The deposit pays our cleaners for their time for a cleaning spot that is now empty.
Payments Not Received for One-Time Cleans: Deposits and remaining balances for one-time cleans will be charged to your credit card. If we are unable to obtain payment for any reason, you will be charged a $50.00 late fee and you agree to the following: Consent is hereby given for filing a mechanic’s lien by any person who supplies materials or services for the work described in this contract on the property which it is located if he/she is not paid. If the work being performed is on the property owned by you, you understand that we may file a lien against your property in accordance with the laws of the state of North Carolina.
Suspension and Termination of Recurring Services: Services may be suspended or terminated by the client or by Cleaning by Kate for any reason. Please provide our office with at least 2 weeks’ notice to temporarily suspend or permanently terminate your recurring service. *Failure to provide 2 weeks’ notice will result in the client being responsible for covering fees/payments for the services falling within that period*. Likewise, if Cleaning by Kate suspends or terminates your service for any reason, we will make every effort to provide you with at least 2 weeks’ notice.
Disinfecting Cleans: We are professionally certified to sanitize and disinfect for COVID-19 and infectious diseases and we take this responsibility very seriously. Please know that disinfecting cleans are not guaranteed to prevent any cases of Coronavirus or COVID-19 or infectious illness in the home. Due to the nature of contagious illnesses, anyone can contract a virus by going into public areas and even being around someone with the virus. We cannot under any circumstances guarantee that a property will not experience someone who has the virus after a disinfecting clean.
Move In/Move Out Cleans: When we come to perform your Move-In/Move-Out clean, we need the property to be completely vacant of all furniture, persons, supplies and belongings. If we arrive and must pick up belongings to perform a thorough cleaning, you will be charged a
$100 Pick Up Fee. If we are unable to perform the cleaning due to excessive belongings obstructing our ability to clean, your cleaning will be rescheduled or cancelled, and you will lose your deposit which will be used to compensate our technicians.
What we do not clean: Per OSHA standards and our compliance with OSHA, we do not clean litter boxes, animal droppings, human or pet feces, dirty diapers, urine, vomit, soiled clothing, biohazards or properties with active bug or critter infestations. If possible, we will safely clean around litter boxes, animal accidents, or any biohazards present, and we will use your cleaning equipment to do so. Per OSHA standards and our compliance with OSHA we will not clean up any bodily fluids. If we are unable to clean due to biohazardous conditions when we arrive to clean, we will be required to cancel your cleaning. You will be responsible to pay the full price of your cleaning.
Maintaining the integrity of your surfaces: Cleaning is performed assuming that all surfaces are sealed, and all items are secured. This includes but is not limited to countertops, floors, stone, marble, quartz, wall hangings, loose personal belongings etc. If you are aware of any irreplaceable sentimental items, non-sealed surfaces, or non-secured items in your home, it is your due diligence to let us know prior to any cleaning so we may add it as a “Do Not Touch” item to your work order. If you do not let us know, Cleaning by Kate will not be liable for damages, repairs, breakage, or replacement. If we break something during your cleaning, our office will send you a photo of the item immediately and call you directly to ask if you would like us to replace the item.
Weather: Cleaning by Kate will be closed for business when severe weather causes dangerous driving conditions. We will give every concerted effort to reschedule your appointment as quickly as possible.
Holidays: Cleaning by Kate will be closed for the following holidays: If your cleaning appointment falls on any of these Holidays, we will contact you in advance so that we may move your cleaning appointment, or we will use your indicated cleaning day and time preferences on page 1 when we reschedule your cleaning.
2024/2025 HOLIDAY CALENDAR
| WORKDAYS BREAKDOWN | OBSERVED DATES | OBSERVED HOLIDAYS |
|---|---|---|
| Wednesday, Thursday and Friday | December 25, 26 & 27 | Christmas Holiday and 2 days after |
| Wednesday | January 1 | New Year’s Day |
| Monday | May 26 | Memorial Day |
| Friday | July 4 | 4th of July |
| Monday | September 1 | Labor Day |
| Thursday | November 27 | Thanksgiving Day |
| Friday | November 28 | Day after Thanksgiving |
| Thursday | December 25 | Christmas Day |
| Friday | December 26 | Day after Christmas |
Breakage/Damage: Our staff takes impeccable care when cleaning your home but occasionally accidents do occur. Our policy is to inform you immediately when an accident occurs via text and photo. If you notice a broken or damaged item, please notify management immediately so that we may take appropriate action. We are not responsible for hanging items on the walls and shelves that have not been properly secured to the wall. Please point out items that are irreplaceable due to sentimental or monetary value upon the estimate, we would prefer to avoid touching your items and taking any risk.
Rate Changes: Cleaning by Kate reserves the right to reevaluate and adjust rates at any time. Cleaning by Kate will contact you directly by phone or via email to notify you of any price adjustments. Rate changes are not to exceed more than one rate increase in 12-month period. However, rate changes will occur on an annual basis.
Customer Reviews & Customer Referral Program: If you are pleased with your service, please refer us to your friends and family and have them mention that they heard about us from you! Your referral is the most valuable testament of our services. When you make a referral to Cleaning by Kate and they receive their first cleaning, we will provide you with $25.00 off your cleaning!
Customer Non-solicitation Agreement of Cleaning by Kate Employees: All Cleaning by Kate staff are bound by legal non-compete and non-solicitation contracts upon hire. All Cleaning by Kate clients and staff are bound by non-solicitation agreements as stated herein. If you hire a present or past Cleaning by Kate employee within 2 years of their employment for any cleaning-related service outside of your agreement with Cleaning by Kate, you will be responsible to pay the $5,000.00 referral fee. This fee is due within 30 days of notification by Cleaning by Kate. If the fee is not paid within 30 days, Cleaning by Kate will pursue legal action. If we are required to hire an attorney to collect any amounts owed by you, you will be responsible for all unpaid cleaning fees, late fees, add-on fees, court costs, expenses, and attorney fees related to collecting the balance owed.
Insurance: Cleaning by Kate shall, throughout the duration of this Agreement, maintain insurance in connection with the performance of services under this Agreement as required by law. Cleaning by Kate shall furnish written proof of insurance certificates upon request. By agreeing to work being performed on the property, you are accepting the terms and conditions set forth on this page.
