Valuables, Breakages and Accidental Damage Policy

Client responsibilities before a clean

Clients should secure or remove genuinely valuable items before the clean, including cash, jewellery, watches, passports, irreplaceable family heirlooms, original artworks, valuable collectibles, and important documents. These items should be stored in a secure location, such as a locked drawer or safe.

Clients should identify fragile or sentimental items in advance. For example, antique vases, hand-blown glassware, and delicate ornaments may be skipped, dusted around carefully, or moved by the client before the cleaner arrives. Clients should also identify loose or unstable items, including lamps with weak bases, picture frames that are barely attached, and shelving that is not properly fixed. Clients should disclose particularly expensive electronic, audio-visual, or computer equipment that they would prefer the team not to touch.

Cleaner standards

Silverpoint Cleaning’s cleaners are trained to handle every object as though it were valuable, regardless of its apparent price. They move display items carefully when necessary for dusting and return them to their original positions.

Cleaners do not use abrasive products or excessive force on unfamiliar items. They stop and ask the client if they are unsure how to clean something safely. Cleaners do not touch, open, or move sealed boxes, drawers, safes, or items that appear to have been specifically stored away.

If damage occurs

If something is damaged or broken during a clean, the cleaner will tell the client immediately. If the client is not at home, the cleaner will message the client within minutes and leave a note. Silverpoint Cleaning does not conceal breakages.

Clients must report damage in writing within 24 hours of the clean, ideally with photographs. A WhatsApp message or email is suitable. Damage reported after 24 hours may not be eligible for compensation because it may no longer be possible to investigate reliably.

Silverpoint Cleaning will investigate and respond within two working days, usually sooner.

For items with a replacement value below £100, Silverpoint Cleaning will typically reimburse or replace the item directly without requiring an insurance claim. For items valued above £100, Silverpoint Cleaning may submit a claim through its public liability insurance. The claim may require receipts, proof of value, or, in some cases, an independent valuation.

Exclusions

Insurance and goodwill do not cover:

• Items that were already damaged or showing wear before the clean.
• Damage caused by pre-existing issues, such as a wobbly shelf that collapses when dusted, where the issue was not disclosed.
• Items left in an inherently unsafe position, such as a valuable vase on the edge of a counter in a household with pets or children.
• Sentimental value above market value. Compensation covers replacement or repair cost, not a sentimental premium. Clients should secure genuinely irreplaceable items before the clean.
• Cash, jewellery, watches, and similar items left in plain sight rather than secured. Clients are strongly advised to store these items away during cleans.
• Damage caused by faulty appliances, such as a washing machine that floods when used as instructed.
• Damage discovered or reported more than 24 hours after the clean.

Theft concerns, keys and access codes

Every Silverpoint cleaner is personally vetted, reference-checked, and known to the company. Theft is treated with the utmost seriousness. If a client genuinely believes an item has been taken, the client should contact Silverpoint Cleaning immediately. The company will investigate fully and involve the police if appropriate.

Clients are strongly advised to store cash, jewellery, and other small valuables out of sight before every clean. This protects the client and the cleaners from any suggestion of wrongdoing if an item is misplaced.

If a client provides a key or smart-lock code, it is stored securely and is not shared beyond the named cleaner assigned to the home. Keys are returned at the end of one-off bookings or kept securely for the duration of a regular schedule.

Insurance and photography

Silverpoint Cleaning holds public liability insurance and accidental damage cover for every job it undertakes. Insurance documentation is available on request by emailing info@silverpointcleaning.co.uk.

Questions

Call 0131 605 8789, message us on WhatsApp, or email info@silverpointcleaning.co.uk.