Service Agreement Contracts

[dawzie]

We are thinking of doing service contracts. Have any of you done this ?? Any input will be great.
Thanks in advance
dawzie

[iowa pumper]

i do the service thay are a grate way to keep money rolling in in the winter but thay do have ther down side some people think that it covers parts laber and pumping thay get mad when thay dont see u thay think there u are ripping them off i do my testing during the day i leave asticker on the door i test 2 times a year but thes tanks have there problems if thay dont test clean then u have to figer out wy then thay think its your fault we put in at stste spects on the sand fiters but in 1 year thay plug up and most of the time its what thay are using to clean with in the house i could go on and on but i think u got the idea

[txshriner]

in my opinion the only thing better than cleaning septic tanks is having your customers on a check list paying you to tell them when its time for you to pump it! but you MUST let them know when they sign up that ANY repairs or pumping cost additional money. other than that the only thing to avoid is the price war that idiots start. just do your deal and if the next guy wants to work for nothing thats his business.

[jack darling]

in my opinion the only thing better than cleaning septic tanks is having your customers on a check list paying you to tell them when its time for you to pump it! but you MUST let them know when they sign up that ANY repairs or pumping cost additional money. other than that the only thing to avoid is the price war that idiots start. just do your deal and if the next guy wants to work for nothing thats his business.

IF you are providing the best service in your area, you are giving your customers a free service contract free of charge. I guarantee my customer's septic system will pass inspection when they sell their home as long as they follow my usage procedures and pumping schedule. Not a single competitor in my Stae (MA) offers that. A new system can cost many thousands of dollars. I send out reminder cards. I have all the work I can do. I would like to tell everyone how I can offer to do this, but the real secret to success is not sharing your secrets. Maybe when I retire in a few years.

[txshriner]

IF you are providing the best service in your area, you are giving your customers a free service contract free of charge. I guarantee my customer's septic system will pass inspection when they sell their home as long as they follow my usage procedures and pumping schedule. Not a single competitor in my Stae (MA) offers that. A new system can cost many thousands of dollars. I send out reminder cards. I have all the work I can do. I would like to tell everyone how I can offer to do this, but the real secret to success is not sharing your secrets. Maybe when I retire in a few years.

there are all kinds of gimmicks to get work. and the promise of something for free sure perks up the ears of the uneducated. but my advice to anyone that is new to this or any other business is to join your local BBB, learn all you can about your industry thru trade publications, seminars & forums. then find the best people in your area in your field(the best ones WONT be the ones that are scared to death that you want their precious trade secrets) and develope a relationship with them. because literally if you are only looking out for yourself the chances are very good that you will be the only one looking out for you. i share this from experience! i bought my first truck from a competitor and we do business with each other on a almost daily basis! in the college station texas yellow pages there are 21 pumpers listed. im on a first name basis with all of them(owners & drivers). most of them have my cell# and i have theirs and we talk. most of them refer work to me because i provide services that they dont. most of them have called on me when they had major problems. i have repaired vacuum pumps for a few, pulled several out when they got stuck, replaced lids some have broken. im secure enough that i do all i can to help the people around me. and even generously hepling and sharing information with my competitors i amazingly have enough work that myself and my 7 employees stay busy and i even refer some pump jobs to other pumpers and refer installation and repair jobs to other installers.

[Mr Stinky]

I am in search of a good service contract that I can modify for our business. We clean and jet grease traps. I want a contract to make clear what we are offing / agreeing to cover in addition to locking our customer in. Some competitors play the under bid game to take business away. With a contract you at least have the loyalty of the duration of the contract time frame. An automatic renewal that can only to be canceled in writing within 2 weeks of the renewal date. The legal jargon is important in order to protect your business.

Here is my reason why: We clean a grease trap and jet the drain lines every other time. The restaurant had a back up (2 days prior to our scheduled cleaning) to where DEQ, VDH, Building Inspector and Fire Marshall were involved. After hours of work to please the the Higher ups and a bill well over $2,000. that the owner refuses to pay. He claims the back up is our fault. He wants to sue us for $7,000. of so called losses. These are things I want to avoid. So we need to make it VERY clear to what is our responsibility and what is not. We can not guarantee lines to remain open once they are cleaned not knowing what the customer puts down them after we leave.

Is there anyone out there that share a sample contract with me. I feel protection is very important. A contract would have most likely prevented the head ache of this legal battle we are dealing with at this time. My company is very professional, our Technicians do a great job and our reputation is excellent, but that does not protect us from clients such as this and they are out there in all our market areas.

[Trent]

Your best bet is to contact a lawyer with experiance in this area. Someone elses contract may be right for them and the laws in their state but not right for you.

Good luck!

Trent

[txshriner]

Your best bet is to contact a lawyer with experiance in this area. Someone elses contract may be right for them and the laws in their state but not right for you.

Good luck!

Trent

that says it. the only thing i can add to that is that free legal help and advice is more often than not worth exactly what you pay for it.