So, You Are Unhappy with Your Maid Agency?
It’s been a while since I write a post, and I do apologize if I didn’t response to your comments or emails. This is more like a hobby/passion blog, so I only write when I have a little bit of time. After all, like you, I am a full-time home maker and office worker. It’s busy, busy, busy…
I received an email from a reader about her maid agency (which is casetrusted) who cheated on the bio-data and provided poor services to her. The matter was brought up to CASE, and after a mediation session, she was still unable to get her money back. She was then advised by CASE to bring the matter up to the small claims tribunal.
While I do not have the full details to the case - it is always a case by case basis when there are disputes - I will attempt to give some guidelines or ideas as to how anyone with disputes with their maid agency can resolve the issue.
Needless to say, the first thing you must do is “prevention”. While there are many accredited agencies, there are still “bad eggs” in the basket. What really, really counts is the culture of the company. And, it always invariably starts at the top.
This, again, is a very hard thing to judge. But, you can always start by avoiding agencies who have bad feedbacks on the Internet. Again, bear in mind that people tend to “bash” agencies up when things didn’t work out. So, do read what you find with a pinch of salt. Nevertheless, if the agency you have chosen wasn’t “bashed up”, then your chance should be a little bit better.
Invariably, you will find that agencies which were “bashed up” have refused to refund their customers. That is why people spread bad news about them. Generally, people will let matter rest if they get their refund. For me, I have better things to do than to blog bad things about these agencies if they have returned my money to me.
While avoiding bad agencies is a way to start, you should also consider the agencies with outstanding (not just good), but outstanding feedbacks. Like my agency ;-) My boss’ policy has always been “no unhappy customers”. Even during my course for my MOM certificate, the MOM officer also told us to simply give the money back if your employers are unhappy. This will solve many problems for MOM, the employers and the agencies.
So, you see, it is always the agency boss and the company’s culture that will have an impact on whether you will get your money back. This, I must say is very, very difficult to see when you visit a maid agency even if it is recommended by your friends.
Coming back to my reader’s issue, I am actually quite surprised that she was unable to get her money back because ALL Casetrust agencies have a standard contract whereby the agency has to refund any unused maid’s loan. She should be able to get this portion back.
If she is talking about the agency fee and insurance premium, then those are different matters.
Let’s talk about the insurance premium first. Generally, if you return a maid within a 6 month’s period, there will be some pro-rata refund from the insurance company.
As for the agency fee, it is difficult to say. After all, the agency has already done the work for you even though it is not up to your expectation. It is like having a sales person making your customers unhappy, but you still have to pay him his monthly pay. But, you can always build a case for it and “fight it out” in CASE or small claims tribunal.
It’s been my experience that if our maids do not work out with our clients even after subsequent attempts to counsel them and find replacements, my boss is extremely happy to give a full refund of the agency fee and the unused maid’s loan. The maid insurance is pro-rated from the insurance company. That will solve the problem for everyone. Unfortunately, not all agencies think the same way. (By the way, I am not trying to sell my agency, it’s just a remark.)
What if all else fails? What else can you do to get your money back?
If you have complained to MOM, CASE and bring the matter up to the small claims tribunal, then, I think that you have basically exhausted all avenues. But, if you wish to push the case further, consult a lawyer on the case and see if you can “fight it out” in court or explore other alternatives.
In conclusion, I can only say that you will have to choose your agency carefully, not only in terms of good maids, but also consider whether the agency is likely to refund you. After all, the agency may have good maids, but not all maids may work out for everybody. As such, it is important that the company is not “money hungry” and is willing to give you a full refund. Perhaps, someone religious? But then again, you can read what is happening to charitable organizations in the news…
Mail this post
Hi,
I would like to seek your advise.
I employed a maid from this xxx agency. Was not satisfied, so return the maid to them after 2 mths, got back the pro-rated refunds etc. Waited 2 mths and the ‘replacement’ maid arrived. Her bio-data does not tally. But I was almost due for delivery, so accepted her. Initially she was okay, then she got lazy and had quite bad attitude problem. After tolerating, I am almost ready to return her to the agency. She has been with us 7mths, and her loan is 8mths. I plan to return her and engage another maid thru a different agency (since their maid quality is not up to my expectation).
Question:
1) MOM has this cap on max no. of maid change an employer can have. In this case, will I still be able to engage another maid?
2) How should I go about with this return and re-engaging? I am prepared to survive one day without a maid, nothing more as I have 3 kids at home and I am working.
I could have called my agent and find out these information from them.
But I prefer to do some background checking on my rights b4 I call them, just in case they are not honest with me.
Thank you for your time.
Linda
Hi, sorry for the late reply. I only update my blog when I have a little bit of time. I am sorry to hear about your plight. It is really tough to have 3 kids and a problematic maid.
To answer your questions…
1) The MOM cap is on having 5 different maids in a 1 year period. Assuming that the maid from a different agency is your third maid within a year, you should not have a problem. If you are onto your fourth or fifth maid, the MOM may wish to interview you, and you may have to retake the employer’s test. But, generally, if you can give them some good reasons, your employment should be fine. Nevertheless, it depends on a case by case basis.
2) I believe this is more a timing issue as to how to properly match one maid going out and another maid coming in. Generally, the agencies should be able to follow your timing as closely as possible, depending on the availability of flights and holidays. Sometimes, the logistics may be a bit off due to the agencies’ manpower or resource issues, but that is to be expected as it is sometimes difficult to have “perfect” timing.
As a side note about the “change” in your replacement maid from okay to bad within 7 months, it is unfortunate. Based on my experience, it is most likely that she wanted to get out of working with you. Hence, she purposely misbehaved. This change can be due to having scoldings from the grandmother or other family members who supervise her work and she could not take it any more or she could not endure the life of being a maid. I even had a newly arrived maid who had not even started work with my employer deciding to quit 4 days after arriving here! Tough.
I would like to ask for your kind advice. I employed a FDW from a AEAS accredited employment agency. Would their service agreement be similar to standard Case accredited ones? My issue with the agency is regarding the refund of loan monies. The FDW from this particular EA is firstly underaged, secondly she wad caught stealing in my house and thirdly the FDW admitted she had been getting paid for sexual favors to Bangladeshi workers in the vicinity. I reported this matter to the EA as soon as she admitted to the latter two, however the agent who liaised with me told me to go the police instead as they were closing for the day. Naively, I complied and the FDW was arrested and sentenced. But this FDW has only worked 4 weeks, and twhen I asked for a replacement or refund, I was told to my dismay I do not qualify as I did not return the maid to them. The agent totally denies asking me to go to the police and had the cheek to ask me why I acted so impulsively and foolishly? She said it was rare for any FDW to be so honest and I should have given her another chance..faint! Or at least return her to them!! I tried to negotiate for any amount to be compensated but was rudely declined. I approached AEAS but the EA was still unwilling to come to any settlement. The EA challenge me to go small claims saying confidently I do not stand a chance. I might go to small claims but cant help wondering if it is going to be only a losing battle. This has caused me so much stress, anxiety and phobia of ever taking a maid. I truly feel victimized for no fault of mine. Please advice, I would like to know your valued opinion. Many thanks in advance.
Hi Ida, I am sorry to hear about your case. It is most unfortunate. I list my answers/ remarks (according to what I know and I may be wrong) below for your consideration. Please note that I am not liable for any action/ outcome you take based on my reply.
1. The service agreement should be similar to Casetrusted agencies. It is pretty standardized.
2. It is a contravention of MOM rules to bring in an underaged maid and the MOM takes a very serious view of this on EAs who does this.
3. It is a crime for the FDW to steal and take part in vice activities. She will probably be jailed for them if convicted.
4. Depending on your agreement, if you have a guarantee in place, you should be able to get a replacement. If you have an outstanding maid’s loan, as in this case, a refund of the unused maid’s loan should still be possible. However, there may be nuances in the agreement which may allow the agency some leeway - it depends on how the lawyers argue over the terms and conditions. You may wish to seek legal advice on the service agreement.
5. You may wish to seek advice from MOM about your case and see what they say.
6. You may also wish to seek advice from the Small Claims Tribunal and see what they say.
7. Personally, to minimize inconvenience for yourself, it is best to negotiate with the agency first (but you seem to have done it already, even with AEAS’ help). Tell them you will bring it up to the MOM, stressing on point #2 above if it is true. If all else fails, see point #8.
8. I feel that if you do points #4-#6, you should have a chance in getting your money back because the lawyer, MOM and Small Claims Tribunal should be able to give you a “3-pronged attack” on your case.
God bless, and I wish you luck on having the case resolved.
Hi i would like to have some advise from you. My maid ran away with someone while my family having holidays in malaysia. She only works for me for a week. We are shocked as she is in malaysia for two days and not familiar with the environment. From our CCTV it seems that everything is pre-planned, she had been waiting for someone to pick her. As such, i want the agency or recruiter to explain for her act. The agency also demand from us the placement fee (package is post-dated cheque). We think that it makes no sense for us to pay up, but she insists that the contract stated that we have to be responsible. Feeling doubtful, i went to CASE and they feedback that it is not stated in the contract and i was told to stop the cheque. CASE sent a letter to her to waive off the placement fee, but she rejected. So my case was brought to AEAS. Again the officer from AEAS called the agency and told her that both party should bear the cost equally, I agree but she rejected and wanted me to bear the full sum of $2980. Now i have stopped the cheque as CASE has instructed but the agency is going to take legal action against me. A Few enquiries:
1. On what stand that the agency sue me? I didn’t breach the contract.
2. If the agency sue me, do i need to engage a lawyer myself? How much is the lawyer fee?
3. What if i do not want to engage a lawyer?
4. Can i go to the tribunal court?
Hi Cheryl,
I am sorry to hear about your case. Please note that I am not a lawyer and I cannot be responsible for my advice. Here are my thoughts and I hope that it can help you.
1. There are a few issues here. The maid ran away with someone in Malaysia - it may seem pre-planned but how did the maid or the agency know where in Malaysia you intend to have your holiday and when? From the look of it, it seems more of the fault of the maid than the agency. I doubt the agency can explain it. To put it in perspective, if the maid agency was a dating agency, they cannot explain why the husband has an affair and runs away from home, and neither can they be responsible for it.
2. Because the maid is already legally under your name (in MOM’s records), you have to be responsible for her. Your $5,000 bond may be an issue even though the maid went missing in Malaysia. The next question is your responsibility towards the agency.
3. I believe that your contract should be a standardized agency contract. I don’t think the contract specifically provide for a resolution for a case such as yours. Generally, it goes along the line that if the maid does not work out, there will be some refund of the maid’s loan. In your case, the maid ran away - I would tend to classify it as “the maid does not work out” because when they do not wish to work, they will run away to the embassy in Singapore. For your case, she ran away in Malaysia.
4. The question is whether your case warrants a refund of the maid’s loan or placement fee as you call it. If it does, then you probably don’t have to pay a cent or you are entitled to a partial refund. The contract is vague specifically for your case. But, I do feel that point #3 above is quite valid, and thus the advice of CASE and AEAS to stop the cheque or bear half the cost.
5. So, to answer your questions. I feel that your case should be the other way around - you should be asking for a refund of the placement fee since the maid did not work out. In your case, you do not have to do that since you have stopped the post-dated cheques. If the agency sues you, I think it is a good idea to seek legal advice (sorry, I am no lawyer and there may be contentious clauses in the contract). To keep your legal costs down, it would be a good idea to go to the small claims tribunal court to settle the matter since CASE and AEAS did not work out. Generally, lawyers charge an hourly rate. Depending on the level of the lawyer, it can be $200 per hour, more or less.
I hope this helps.