# Commercial Guys, how do you invoice per push clients for more than one Plowing per event?



## CK82 (Sep 17, 2005)

Hey Guys,

For anyone on per push basis with commercial clients how to you go about invoicing for multiple services for one event? For instance, say there's a 6" snowfall over the course of 8 hours, there are always variables on what gets done. For retail our initial service, we plow drive lanes, etc, and clear of the store front and main walkways. For apartments/condos our initial service is plowing of the drive lanes, etc, and clearing of the main building entrances/walkways. Service completed could be 75% to 100% and anything in between, as far as the overall pavement areas that are cleared.

Curious how you go about invoicing your clients with the varying service that gets completed.

Thanks, Chris


----------



## RichardBongIII (Dec 8, 2021)

I would just itemize all the work done each time you came on site to move snow.


----------



## jonniesmooth (Dec 5, 2008)

I would charge whatever %'age of the full push price you did. But maybe time factors into this too? If they are open and there is traffic to deal with.
Maybe have a minimum charge also.
It sounds like the equipment isn't kept on site,so you need to cover the travel time for it too.


----------



## Mr.Markus (Jan 7, 2010)

I call it per service not per push. And that is how it gets billed, if I show up to service it gets logged and billed.


----------



## Mark Oomkes (Dec 10, 2000)

Quickbooks


----------



## WIPensFan (Jan 31, 2009)

I always had a predetermined specific amount figured for drive lanes, front walks and doors or whatever gets done when not clearing the entire place (salting as well). For the snow I always billed on a incremental basis, like 1”- 3.9” is regular rate and 4”- 7.9” is (1.5x)regular rate or however I had it set up. So however much snow I had at the account when I went to clear drive lanes and such, I billed that specific amount I had predetermined(a % of the whole) x wherever it fell on the scale of inches. So even if I went 2 or 3 times or more in a 24hr period, I billed each time according to how many inches were on the ground when I was there for that servicing. For salting, I knew how much the whole was for a full salting (But I had parking lots and sidewalks determined as separate prices for ease of billing when partial services were performed). That comes into play when you just salt the drive lanes, or clear snow off the front walks and salt, but no service on the walks that go around the perimeter of the account. So know how much you are charging for salting the lot and how much you are charging to salt the walks. Then you can easily take a % of that price for partial services performed. For instance: maybe the front walk up to the main entrance is 20% of all the walks and the drive lanes are 30% of the whole parking lot. 
Now when billing full services performed you can still just say for example: Full services performed( snow removal and salting) $500.00 
When I sent out my contracts, I gave a regular rate for plowing the lot, clearing the walks. With the per inch pricing scale. Also a rate for salting the lot and salting the walks. Then all the partial services charges were determined off of that. The client could then see, pretty easily, how partial services were charged. **3 paragraphs!**


----------



## DodgeBlizzard (Nov 7, 2003)

It's explained up front under the terms that when we show up, it's a flat fee. Not our fault there's cars in the lot during open hours. It's actually more of a risk and a pain when we deal with moving vehicles and pedestrians on the lot and on the walks. Normally I can zip at full speed while plowing and on the walks. During open hours, my head is on a constant swivel and a snail pace. We actually charge another full rate once they close, to go back and plow parking stalls and clean up the remainder of the lot.


----------



## WIPensFan (Jan 31, 2009)

DodgeBlizzard said:


> It's explained up front under the terms that when we show up, it's a flat fee. Not our fault there's cars in the lot during open hours. It's actually more of a risk and a pain when we deal with moving vehicles and pedestrians on the lot and on the walks. Normally I can zip at full speed while plowing and on the walks. During open hours, my head is on a constant swivel and a snail pace. We actually charge another full rate once they close, to go back and plow parking stalls and clean up the remainder of the lot.


Yep, me too. Full rate on the final service


----------



## MIDTOWNPC (Feb 17, 2007)

Some times it takes longer to plow lanes and shovel walks then it does to blow the walks when no cars and plow the whole lot.


----------



## Mudly (Feb 6, 2019)

Itemized list per service, billed monthly.


----------



## Chineau (Aug 24, 2010)

I aim to work with my bookkeeper twice per month invoicing, what machinery on site, date and how long billing for time.
sites per push, date work done.
as Mudly said itemize, so keep good notes.


----------



## Dsmits1984 (Sep 11, 2019)

So the way we do it, is that we charge full plow each time we show up, even if we have to skip around cars and stuff. If you factor in the time it takes to avoid people and plow around people/cars etc....you may as well have plowed the whole lot to begin with.

Salting is different, obviously if we show up post storm (following day or whatever) and spot salt, thats what we mark down, spot salt. It's a seperate price bracket.

Quickbooks, itemize it, quantity, and send. You can adjust prices on the fly and include notes if you feel greedy and want to lower your rate for random parking spots etc.


----------

