Help me find a word for an estimate

[HappyGoDucky]

Hello,

New business so new to quotations/estimates. I'm looking for a word/sentence to cover possible breakages. For example job requires heavy use of a specific tool, its quite possible one will do it but also just as likely a part (think blade) will suffer breakage. How do we word the potential charge?

TIA

I would say as a customer that your quotes overall as an average should account for needing to swap the blade out on some jobs and that the unlucky customer of the job that the blade happened to break on should not have to pay for all of it.
I’d rather pay a slight premium each time for wear and tear and you just change as needed

I agree with PP. I don't think it's fair to charge one customer the breakage charge when it could have built up stresses from previous customers.

I agree with @Hermanfromguesswho

That's really odd.

If a carpenter uses a saw at 5 different houses and it happens to break at mine I wouldn't be paying for a new one, it would put me off hiring you as well.

Best to include potential breakages within your pricing imo.

Agree with PP I cannot think of a service where I would sign up for that and you need to build into your pricing structure

Thanks both and yes that seems fair enough.

WeDontShutUpAboutBruno , yes i understand that and don't want to upset clients. I was just wondering how to price it overall. My example of tool wasn't a good one though! The part that breaks would only be used per job but quite likely need multiples of them although if lucky could get through the entire job. Don't want to say what it is niche and very potentially outing, rare trade. Just don't want to charge for unused spares but also need to cost it in.

To use your example you could say "to hire one hacksaw, including one blade, is priced at £blahblah. If extra blades are required these will be charged at £blah per blade (or £blah per 2 blades)"

or if the blade is almost guarenteed to break each job then it would be fairer to say "including two blades". Less likely to annoy your customers, more likely to come back to you.

What determines whether you need one or more? Specific materials/user error/bad luck??

@MuggleMadness

What determines whether you need one or more? Specific materials/user error/bad luck??

@MuggleMadness , not user error mor luck and the material being worked on (stone) they blunt/snap easily with heavy usage so can't guarantee how many we will go through. You wouldn't start a new job on a worn one.

So I'm not saying if my handsaw broke on the job I would charge the customer directly. Breakage is quite likely- like the need for several angle grinding discs but we might just get away with one iyswim.

Quote for up to how many you think you need and one extra, and take it off the final bill. Or give a final estimate if between £x- &xx dependent upon materials required.

I would take an average amount per job/time used and charge each customer the same. Eg one blade per 1 hour of job. Then it will mean some customers pay slightly more and some pay slightly less than they’ve used on the individual job, but everyone shares in your materials fee equally

The part that breaks would only be used per job but quite likely need multiples of them although if lucky could get through the entire job ah ok in that case I'd quote for say 3 and say you'll knock off any that aren't used.

Yup, you can't operate a business like that.

You have to build all of your costs into one overall fee per amount of time, or material, or deliverables.

And this should include enough to cover all of the parts you'll likely need to buy over x period.

Go back to basics with your pricing and work out your hourly rate, insurances, materials, tools, professional service fees, etc etc.

I would add it into the hourly rate.

Average how many, on average, you use per hour, and do it that way.

We cost everything in, OP. One flat charge and to be honest, it evens out. Sometimes we'll use more labour/materials; others we don't.

We find variable fees just put people off.

Yeah, I'd just have an 'includes materials' price and include it in my general coatings. In the same way you'd cost in any other overheads.

I'm a suspicious type and would worry you might be breaking them either because you aren't properly trained or are rushing.....

However, I have dealt with tilers who charged extra for cutting certain types of tiles because they were more prone to breakage and used more blades....so I contradict myself!! They were upfront about this though.

Can you use the unused tool/part for the next job or are they job specific?

Isn’t it just a contingency?

You price for what you think will happen but contingencies are things that might potentially happen, that you are alerting your client to?

@Mumdiva99

I'm a suspicious type and would worry you might be breaking them either because you aren't properly trained or are rushing.....

However, I have dealt with tilers who charged extra for cutting certain types of tiles because they were more prone to breakage and used more blades....so I contradict myself!! They were upfront about this though.

Not too dissimilar to your example at Mumdiva99, basically intricate work on stone when I say breakage I mean wear as in go blunt quickly but hit and miss.

@Mumdiva99

I'm a suspicious type and would worry you might be breaking them either because you aren't properly trained or are rushing.....

However, I have dealt with tilers who charged extra for cutting certain types of tiles because they were more prone to breakage and used more blades....so I contradict myself!! They were upfront about this though.

Not too dissimilar to your example at Mumdiva99, basically intricate work on stone when I say beeakage I really mean wear as in go blunt quickly but its hit and miss.

@WinterSpringSummerFall

Can you use the unused tool/part for the next job or are they job specific?

No they are single use.