Got overspray on a customer's windshield and didn't catch it until they pointed it out

Was in the middle of a rush job on a black F-150 last Tuesday, some guy needed it done by noon. I masked everything I thought needed it but I guess I got sloppy around the windshield trim. Customer comes back at 3pm and shows me a little haze in the corner. Had to spend 20 minutes with a razor blade and some compound rubbing it off while he stands there watching. Felt like an idiot. Anyone else had a customer spot something you missed right after they drove off?

3 comments

3 Comments

jade7381mo ago

You said "Learn from it and double check the windshield before handing the keys back every time," and I get that in theory, but honestly I think that's oversimplifying it a bit. With rush jobs (especially when someone's standing there waiting), the pressure makes you human - you're gonna miss stuff, it's just how it works. Instead of vowing to triple check everything forever (which I've tried and it never sticks), I'd rather spend those 20 minutes after the fact knowing it was a one-off mistake. The guy watching you fix it? That's brutal, but it also builds trust if you're straight up about it. I'd rather own the screwup fast than pretend I'll never make another one, you know?

tylermurray2mo ago

My buddy Mark did this on a white Ram 1500 last spring. He got compound all over the windshield trim and didn't wipe it off because he was rushing to get to his kid's baseball game. Customer called him two hours later saying it looked like someone sneezed white paint all over their truck. He had to drive 45 minutes to their house and spend an hour with a heat gun and some goo gone getting it off. Mark said the guy just stood in his driveway drinking a beer and watching the whole time, not saying a word. He triple checks every bit of glass now even on quick jobs.

wesley_thompson2mo ago

Learn from it and double check the windshield before handing the keys back every time.