# charging for snow stakes



## alkared (Feb 17, 2014)

How do you all deal with snow stakes/driveway markers. We are toying around with billing it to the customer but not sure how to do it fairly. We want to begin using them on most of our properties (lots of long, meandering drives as well as hoa's to contend with). We want to install them early and take them back up at the end of season. Do this as a rental or bill it outright? what about labor to instal/removel? A little guidance from those of you that use them would be great.


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## grandview (Oct 9, 2005)

You put them in for your protection not there's ,so you pay for them and see if you can hide in your costs.


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## NThill93 (Dec 14, 2013)

theyre there for you not the customer if you need them you pay for them. lol at renting them to the customer. they arent that expensive just leave them in.


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## thesnowman269 (Nov 7, 2009)

I charge only because I feel I'm not going to get them back either from people damaging them or taking them. I tell customers the fee is for the stakes,the install and removal at the end of the season. I only do this if they request stakes after giving them a price where they did not want me to supply stakes


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## Mitragorz (Oct 11, 2013)

grandview;1762485 said:


> You put them in for your protection not there's ,so you pay for them and see if you can hide in your costs.


Exactly.

Staking is included in my pricing. It's not a specified charge, but all my costs are factored into what I charge. A customer has to specifically tell me if they DO NOT want stakes. They don't get any kind of discount, I just have a clause that says if they refuse staking, then it limits my liability when it comes to damage.

I have a bunch of unspecified "hidden" charges. Fuel, insurance, labor, etc (as we all do). It's all factored into my final price. Stakes are no different.

Stakes are cheap. Increase your prices by a few bucks to cover the cost.


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## peteo1 (Jul 4, 2011)

We charge for stakes but our customers, the residentials anyway, get to keep them. We remove them at our commercial accounts because they are there for our convenience.


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## snocrete (Feb 28, 2009)

grandview;1762485 said:


> you can hide in your costs.





Mitragorz;1763515 said:


> . It's not a specified charge, but all my costs are factored into what I charge. A customer has to specifically tell me if they DO NOT want stakes. They don't get any kind of discount, I just have a clause that says if they refuse staking, then it limits my liability when it comes to damage.
> 
> I have a bunch of unspecified "hidden" charges. Fuel, insurance, labor, etc (as we all do). It's all factored into my final price. Stakes are no different.
> 
> Stakes are cheap. Increase your prices by a few bucks to cover the cost.


This has been discussed here before...and me being one who asked at one time.

The first time I ever even considered "charging for staking" was when a customer asked me what my fee was going to be....with that said I came up with a price of supplying,installing,removing them. They were very happy.

Now its part of my "fee" when you sign a contract that requires a lot of stakes. As mentioned above, factor it into your pricing somehow...it could be a retainer/service fee/etc that they pay at signing...just don't call it a "staking fee"!!! Its makes some guys upset when you do that


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## Plowtoy (Dec 15, 2001)

I charge for them. It is totally optional for the client. That being said, if they decline and install their own or dont install any, my contract states that I am not responsable for damages to the yard, sprinkling system, ect...ect...ect... 


Straight out of my contract... 

5.	Turf/irrigation system Repair. In the event that the contractor damages turf or a part irrigation system (sprinkler head) by snow plowing, the contractor will reinstall the turf or replace the sprinkler head as requested by the property representative, after all snow piles have melted in the spring. If client declines driveway markers at the time of signing the contract or installs their own markers, After Hours Snowplowing will not be responsible for above repairs.


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## STIHL GUY (Sep 22, 2009)

I don't charge for them. They are cheap and reusable and are there to help me


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