What are the going rates for emergency services? Namely fixing broken pipe, clean up water damage, remove water soaked plaster, haul away trashed materials, mold treatment etc.
We spent a day doing this, two skilled guys.
Philadelphia, by the way.
Thanks.
Edited 11/2/2008 11:39 am ET by USAnigel
Replies
What's your normal daily rate when you're working with your tools? Depending on the client, I'd be likely to add 25%-50% for responding to an emergency in a timely manner.
If it was on a weekend, I'd definitely bill it at overtime rates, 50%. Everyone understands time and a half.
We have been doing a lot of this kind of work lately.
If it is truely an emergency call, meaning they want me there 10 mins ago, we will show up for a price.
It is $100.00 per man plus 2 hours min billed at 1.5 normal rate, material is normally on truck and billed at 1.5 cost as well. If call is after 7:00am and before 5:00pm that is the way we bill it. So, a two man emergency call under 2 hours cost 200+(40x2x1.5)+(40X2X1.5)+(material x 1.5) not cheap but worth it. If call is not within the listed hours we are $200.00 to show up. I tell them all this on the phone and require a check or credit card when I show up if I don't have a standing agreement in place or know them.
The common call is something like a broken water line that floods a basement late in the evening. I get the call and go out alone most generally. I take a 2 pumps with me. I get there and shut off the water after a call to the city "meter man" to avoid me getting a $150.00 FINE. I then start pumping water with the bigger pump if possible, if not i start with the small one. While pumping I generall look for the source of the leak. When I know basement is safe untill morning I tell them, to save money, we will be back at 7:00a.m. If it is an "easy" fix, I just do it then, then come back in morn and get pumps.
These charges elimanate people who just want it now, for normal rates. I have about 6 service contracts that get different rates but they pay a monthly charge to have me at their beckon call.
Hope I helped.October 17th, 2009
Jeremy and Lisa
Was there ever any doubt?
For a regular customer same rates as always. True emergency meaning middle of night - double time or at least time and a half.
Basically, I don't want to make extra profit from somebody elses emergency, but it can take away from somebody elses schedule and cost both. It can cost me in health - like the day I spent in ice water up to my knees dealing with a flooded crawl space - and that was not a true emergency IMO, because it was CAUSED by ignoring my advice a year earlier
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and that was not a true emergency IMO, because it was CAUSED by ignoring my advice a year earlier
Some fool ignored the Oracle's advice? Must have been a New Yawker.
;-)
They find out insurance might not cover it because they did not take care of things.
Seen it happen!
close - NJ
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
Very much the same as Jeremy, actually.
Outside regular business hours, it's $200 just for me to show up and take a look at the situation. I guarantee to do what I can to stabilise the situation; I do not guarantee to do anything else for that price. This means, for example, if you call me because a tree has just come in to say hi thru your living room window, I will come out with a chainsaw and some plywood and sill-seal...but it also means if I don't happen to have enough plywood on hand at the time, I'll patch you up with old blankets and plastic sheeting instead until the lumberyard opens Monday morning (this kinda stuff always happens on Saturday nights about 11:30pm , didja notice...?).
Time and materials are charged at overtime rates from the minute I get on site until I get back to my shop, or until 7am, whichever comes first. After 7am, billing goes back to regular rates. Fair is fair.
Dinosaur
How now, Mighty Sauron, that thou art not brought
low by this? For thine evil pales before that which
foolish men call Justice....
Edited 11/2/2008 10:34 pm ET by Dinosaur
make sure the customer knows the deal is with them and
not their insurance company...
as the insurance company will likely want to negotiate any
emergency rates...
have had it happen...
regards
It should depend on the type of organization you have...
If you are an overhead door service company with a dedicated service department, then you should have a time of the day (for us it is 3:00pm) that any calls received after this time, that must be taken care of today, would be at time and a half. All calls after the office closes that requires a tech to respond immediately, is at time and a half with a four hour minimum.
If you do not have a dedicated service department, and you need to drop what you are doing to handle a problem, it should be based on your cost to disrupt your current project, and the added cost to remobilize later.
Explaining to a customer that the cost of your immediate response is $####.xx. Sometimes it is only an emergency, when it is you that will be inconvenienced, but when you shift the inconvenience to them ($), then they may be more willing to wait.
______________________________
Kevin
http://www.SouthShoreRemodeling.com
Add 30% for braving Philadelphia.
75% if it was down by where Girrard college used to be.
I know what you mean and that area is changing. I'm amazed at some of the prices of homes and only 2 block from nasty areas with drugs and the like.
In the neighborhood around my office you can still get a row home for $25K or less.
The city was also giving away Row Homes in the bad parts of the city.............without the usual requirement for the recipient to live in it.