13 Clients Who Can Make You Live a Nightmare

In every profession, difficult clients can turn a routine day into an unforgettable experience. Here are some stories from our readers featuring truly unforgettable clients who made the workday anything but ordinary!

1.

I work as a nurse, and one day I had a patient who came in with a self-diagnosis from Google. He spent the entire appointment arguing with the doctor, claiming we didn’t know what we were doing because his research was “thorough.” He refused treatment, stormed out, and later left a terrible review online, saying we were “incompetent.” A week later, he was back—this time with an actual diagnosis that was far worse than what he’d originally thought.

2.

During one flight, a guy decided to propose to his girlfriend mid-flight. He got up, got on one knee in the aisle, and made a whole scene, which caught the attention of everyone.

The problem was his girlfriend. She shook her head and said, “No, not here!” He tried to laugh it off, but she looked mortified. They spent the rest of the flight in complete silence, and the whole plane was awkwardly quiet for a while after that.

3.

One day, a customer came into the store and started organizing the shelves. At first, we thought she was just being helpful, but then she began giving other customers advice and even tried to check someone out at the register. We asked her to stop, but she said, “I’m just doing my part to keep this place running.” We had to gently explain that she couldn’t act like an employee unless she actually was one.

4.

I was hired to design a website for a client who wanted everything pixel-perfect. I delivered mockups that were flawless, but he’d spend hours obsessing over details like a one-pixel shift in a button or a color tone he swore was “off.” Every revision took longer than the last, and after months of back and forth, he refused to pay, claiming it “wasn’t up to his standards.” I later found out he had the same issue with five other designers.

5.

As a freelance photographer, I was approached by a small business owner who loved my work. She asked me to do a full photo shoot for her new product line and promised that my payment would be in the form of “exposure.” I declined, but she harassed me for weeks, insisting that once her business blew up, I’d regret not getting in on the ground floor. Last I checked, she’s still selling the same three products on Etsy with zero reviews.

6.

I’m a plumber, and I had a client who called me for what should have been a simple job: fixing a leak in his kitchen. But when I got there, he kept interrupting, telling me how to do my job. He insisted on watching every step, pointing out how “his cousin could have done it faster.” It took twice as long because he kept getting in the way, and when I handed him the bill, he said he shouldn’t have to pay full price since he “helped.”

7.

I manage a small hotel, and we had one guest who was determined to find something wrong with her stay. First, she complained her room wasn’t facing the right direction (despite booking a room without a view). Then she claimed her bed was too soft, the breakfast was too hot, and the complimentary coffee tasted “too cheap.” She left a negative review and wrote a letter to corporate demanding a refund for a stay she had completely finished.

8.

I worked as a cashier in a grocery store, and one day, this guy came in already fuming about how long the line was. As soon as it was his turn, he started complaining about the prices of almost everything he bought.

When I told him there was nothing I could do, he snapped. He threw his groceries on the floor, knocked over the entire gum display, and screamed that the store was “robbing him blind.” He was eventually escorted out by security, yelling that he would “shut this place down.” He showed up the next day, acting like nothing had happened.

9.

I worked at a department store with a long, sloped parking lot. One day, a customer left her cart at the top of the slope while loading her car. The wind picked up, and the cart started rolling—fast. Instead of chasing it, she started shouting at me from the other end of the lot: “Catch it! Catch it!”

I sprinted after the cart, which was heading straight for a row of parked cars. I managed to stop it just in time, but instead of thanking me, she complained that I wasn’t fast enough.

10.

Yes, this actually happened. A passenger tried to bring a live peacock onboard, claiming it was her emotional support animal. When we explained that only certain animals were allowed, she argued that the peacock was “better trained than any dog” and that she needed it for “emotional balance.” We spent a solid half-hour trying to convince her it couldn’t fly with her, but she refused to back down until we got a supervisor involved. She eventually left, visibly upset, peacock in tow.

11.

I’m a gynecologist. I had a patient come in for what she thought was a routine prenatal checkup. She mentioned she’d been feeling some discomfort but didn’t think much of it.

After a quick examination, I realized she was in active labor—9 centimeters dilated! She had no idea. We rushed her to the hospital, and she delivered her baby within the hour. The look on her face when I told her she was about to have her baby that day was priceless.

12.

I worked at a flower shop, and one frantic customer rushed in, asking for flowers for an “emergency.” I assumed it was for a romantic gesture, but she explained it was for her mother’s birthday. She wanted the most extravagant arrangement, insisting that her mom was “allergic to everything except daisies.” I managed to put together a beautiful bouquet of daisies, but when she saw the price, she gasped, “For this much, it better sing ‘Happy Birthday’ too!”

13.

As a waiter at a fine dining restaurant, a couple came in and spent a good 20 minutes discussing their meal choices. Finally, they ordered a fancy dish but then asked if we could prepare it using “only budget ingredients” because they were “trying to save money.” I politely explained that the dish was designed with specific ingredients for flavor and presentation. They settled on the meal but kept commenting about how they could make it cheaper at home.

More curious stories you can find in our next article, “12 Companies Displayed What True Love for Clients and Employees Actually Looks Like”.