Sign Company and Customer Clash on “Minimum 2 Hours”

BUD DONALDSON COULDN’T decide whether his customer was being absurdly literal, obtuse or just a dick.

Four months earlier, Bud’s company, Printers and Beyond (PAB), provided a printing solution for Focus on the Clock (FOC), an out-of-town retail store. The solution entailed window signs, in-store banners, shelf and aisle signs and more — all designed for the customer to update the signage for new sales and seasons.

The printing solution was sold to FOC General Manager Gene Schmidt for an agreed-upon fair price. The onsite setup, installation and training of staff in changing out the various graphics were completed to Schmidt and FOC management’s satisfaction.

After the initial 90-day warranty expired, FOC required service. An employee had mistakenly caught a ceiling-hung banner in a moving lift and ripped it from its moorings. The store’s maintenance department handled the damage to the ceiling, but installing the banner cables into the ceiling had not been part of the training.

Schmidt requested a service call to FOC at the published and agreed-upon “onsite service/support at $200 per hour, minimum 2 hours plus parts and a travel fee.”
PAB dispatched Omar Marmoush, one of their service engineers. Onsite service was provided and the banner cables were successfully repaired. Everyone at FOC, including Gene Schmidt, seemed fine with the service. Omar later described it as “a milk run” — the job didn’t even take an hour.

An invoice with description and details of the repair was sent to Schmidt’s attention at FOC…

… subsequent to which Schmidt sent Bud an email stating that FOC was refusing to pay the invoice.

This came as a surprise to Bud, who had heard about the ease and approval of Omar’s milk run. He replied to Schmidt:

“Was the response time for dispatching the service engineer acceptable?” Bud wrote.

“YES!” came the almost immediate and surprisingly enthusiastic reply from Schmidt.

“Was the service engineer courteous and professional?”

“YES!”

“Was the problem resolved to your satisfaction?”

“YES!”

Bud felt he had made his case.

“If you are satisfied, why would you hold back payment?” he wrote. “Our published and agreed upon onsite service/support price states 2-hour minimum.”

“Because the service engineer only spent 55 minutes onsite,” Schmidt wrote. “The agreement reads ‘minimum 2 hours.’”

My thanks to Don Budde, CalComp Graphic Solutions (Cypress, CA) and a regular contributor of comments to Real Deal scenarios, for this idea. — Rolf L’mao

Paul B.
Brooklyn, NY

I have had a minimum service charge for over 44 years. It is 3-hour minimum, starting from my shop. I charge 3 hours if I am on site for 15 minutes or 3 hours, plus what needs to be done, parts, etc. You [the customer] are paying. No questions asked! You are paying for my service and my skills.

Customers don’t understand there are other costs involved: trucks, equipment, insurance, labor and travel. Who’s paying for the gas? When you go to a restaurant, you pay the price of the full meal. If you don’t eat the full meal, you still pay the full price.

Gary F.
Monticello, IA

The wording “minimum 2 hours” after the service line item could be a bit confusing, though we all know what is meant. The customer may think it implies the service will take a minimum of 2 hours. If I were Bud, I would send an invoice with 55 minutes of labor to make this customer happy, and then I would change the wording to “Labor: 2-hour minimum on all service calls.”

Robert B.
Oakdale, CT

I have been through this like every other seasoned sign guy. Sometimes you just can’t get them to understand it doesn’t mean 2 hours on-site minimum; it means a 2-hour minimum charge even if the job only takes 1 minute. Best you can do is wait for the next call and insist on payment in advance with the old invoice added in.
We are doing a job exactly like that now. The restaurant took six months to pay for the sign install and shorted us a few hundred for their own unreasonable reason. Now they have us taking down their signs, but paid in advance at a premium.

Steve T.
Needham, MA

2-hour minimum quoted or $400 minimum. What’s the problem?”

Steve B.
McDonough, GA

I would state, “Sir, with travel time to and from the project, we were well over the 2-hour minimum that we didn’t charge for.”

Drew D.
Houston,TX

I have dealt with this issue and it was frustrating. Imagine, the client was mad because we outperformed our promise! This led me to change the wording on my quotes/service agreements to read: $400 for up to 2 hours, each additional hour billed at $200. Problem solved!

Perry Y.
Kelowna, BC, Canada

Luckily, we don’t often direct-bill in this way, but I’m a big fan of improving communication! In this case, I’d bill Schmidt for exactly the 55 minutes, travel time, etc., to make him happy… this time. I think the problem may recur with other clients, if any job is less than two hours! The language on the service contract may have to be updated to reflect the cost of having a certified technician, fully insured service vehicle, liability insurance, etc., etc., on ‘standby’ for these emergencies! Lawyers figured this out a looooong time ago: It’s called a retainer! Now, no sign customer is going to pay for that, so let’s get away from the hourly rate that’s causing the problem. If the client wants to see an itemized bill, perhaps having a service truck call-out: $100. Technician site visit: $100… you get the idea, this removes the eagle-eyed guy with the stopwatch!

Josh
Beverly, MA

I would say the service engineer was prepping the install in their truck outside of the location before and after, and the customer might not have been aware of it. Then be sure to clarify the language for any new engagements.

Alfred P.
Patchogue, NY

By putting “minimum 2 hours” you leave the client an opening to debate. The language in the service contract should read, “Service Call: $400, plus travel time. Field Labor: $200 per hour after 2 hours. Parts billed separately.”