Cleaners

What to put in your job description

• A regular clean (how often) or a one-off, such as an end-of-tenancy or after building work.
• How many bedrooms and bathrooms, and anything extra: oven, windows inside, carpets.
• For end of tenancy: your letting agent's checklist, and the date you hand the keys back.
• Whether you'll be in, and whether there are pets.
• Whether you want them to bring their own products and equipment.

Don't put your name, phone number or address in the description: every trade who covers your area reads it. Your name, phone, email and address go only to the trades who take the job (3 at most).

Questions to ask before you hire

• Do you bring your own products and equipment?
• How do you look after keys, and who else will come in?
• What happens if something is broken?
• Do you have public liability insurance?
• If you take rubbish away: are you a registered waste carrier?

Registers and schemes to check

There is no register for cleaners. Agree in writing who holds your keys. Anyone who takes rubbish away must be a registered waste carrier. We don't check this for you yet.

What the job usually involves

• Regular cleaning: kitchens, bathrooms, floors, dusting, weekly or every two weeks.
• One-off deep cleans: inside cupboards, ovens, behind appliances, limescale.
• End of tenancy cleans, worked through room by room against the inventory.
• Carpet, upholstery and oven cleaning, often by specialists with their own machines.
• Who brings the products and equipment, which differs from cleaner to cleaner.

How quotes and visits work

Regular cleaning is usually priced by the hour; one-off and end of tenancy cleans often by the job and the size of the home. Say how many bedrooms and bathrooms, and whether the home is empty.

Ask for a written quote (a fixed price) rather than an estimate (a guess that can change), and for what it includes. If you agree a job in your home, you usually have 14 days to cancel under the Consumer Contracts Regulations; if you want work to start sooner, you may have to pay for what has been done.

Safety

• Agree in writing who holds your keys and how they are returned.
• Never mix bleach with other cleaners, such as ammonia or acid toilet cleaners: it makes toxic gas.

Insurance and TrustMark

Ask for public liability insurance before work starts. It covers damage or injury caused by the trade to you, your home or someone else. Ask for the insurer's name and the cover's end date; you can ask to see the certificate.

TrustMark is the government-endorsed quality scheme for work in and around the home. Its registered businesses agree to its code of practice, and you can look them up on trustmark.org.uk.

Guides for homeowners

• End of tenancy cleaning: a room-by-room checklist
• How to compare quotes from local trades

We take jobs from anywhere in the UK: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Trades choose the postcode districts they cover.

Cleaners by town and city

England

Scotland

Wales

Northern Ireland