HCT Business Operations & Ethics 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the purpose of general liability insurance for a house cleaning business?
- To cover the personal medical expenses of the technician
- To protect the business financially if a client's property is damaged or a person is injured during service (Correct answer)
- To guarantee all employees receive health benefits
- To reduce the cost of cleaning supplies
Correct answer: To protect the business financially if a client's property is damaged or a person is injured during service
General liability insurance covers claims arising from property damage or bodily injury that occur in the course of providing cleaning services.
Question 2: Why should a cleaning technician avoid using a client's personal cleaning products without explicit permission?
- Those products may be ineffective
- Using client products without permission may create liability and could violate professional boundaries (Correct answer)
- Professional products are always cheaper than client-owned ones
- Clients always prefer technicians to use company products
Correct answer: Using client products without permission may create liability and could violate professional boundaries
Using a client's products without consent can create disputes about damage or depletion and blurs professional accountability.
Question 3: What does it mean for a cleaning technician to be 'bonded'?
- The technician has passed a physical fitness test
- A surety bond provides financial protection to clients against theft or dishonesty by the technician (Correct answer)
- The technician is permanently employed by one company
- The technician holds a specific academic degree
Correct answer: A surety bond provides financial protection to clients against theft or dishonesty by the technician
A surety bond is a financial guarantee that compensates clients if a bonded employee is found to have committed theft or fraud.
Question 4: When a cleaning technician encounters prescription medication left in a visible area, the correct action is to:
- Move the medication to a safer location to help the client
- Leave it undisturbed and clean around it, respecting client privacy and property (Correct answer)
- Discard it if the container appears old
- Report it to authorities as a safety concern
Correct answer: Leave it undisturbed and clean around it, respecting client privacy and property
Touching or moving prescription medication without consent violates client privacy and could create liability for the technician.
Question 5: A technician disagrees with a coworker's cleaning methods. The professional way to address this is to:
- Loudly criticize the coworker in front of the client
- Address it privately or raise it with a supervisor through proper channels (Correct answer)
- Simply ignore it regardless of any impact on quality
- Post about it on social media
Correct answer: Address it privately or raise it with a supervisor through proper channels
Professional disputes are resolved through private communication or proper management channels, not public confrontation.
Question 6: What is the ethical obligation of a house cleaning technician when they observe signs of a potential safety hazard (such as a gas smell) in a client's home?
- Ignore it as it is not part of the job scope
- Notify the client or emergency services immediately and document the observation (Correct answer)
- Attempt to fix it independently to help the client
- Finish cleaning and mention it in the invoice notes
Correct answer: Notify the client or emergency services immediately and document the observation
Technicians have an ethical duty to report safety hazards that could endanger the client or others, even if remediation is beyond their role.
HCT Business Operations & Ethics 2
What is the purpose of general liability insurance for a house cleaning business?