DumpsterBossPro Blog — Dumpster Rental Software

Invoicing, Card on File and Auto-Billing for Roll-Off Rentals

The work is not done when the can comes back. It is done when the money is in the bank. For a lot of dumpster companies, the gap between those two moments is weeks, and some of the money never arrives at all.

Customers With Multiple Job Sites: Dispatching and Billing Each Address Correctly covered keeping job sites organized. This guide covers turning finished jobs into collected money.

The Invoice Builds Itself

In DumpsterBossPro, invoices come from the job. The rental, the size, the job type, the extra days at the daily rate and any tons over the included weight billed per ton are already on the job, so they are already on the invoice. Sales tax is applied. Nobody has to type it from scratch or dig for a scale ticket.

That means invoices can go out the day the rental closes, not at the end of the month when somebody gets around to it. The faster the invoice goes out, the faster it gets paid.

An invoice built from the job is also a more accurate invoice. The size, the dates and the weight on the invoice are the same ones the driver and office saw on the job. There is no second copy to get out of sync.

Card on File

A card on file makes collecting simple. Customers can keep a card on file through the customer app, and the office can charge it when the invoice is ready. No calls, no waiting for a check, no chasing.

For roll-off rentals, card on file is especially valuable because the final amount often is not known until the can comes back. Extra days and weight overages change the total. With a card on file, the final invoice can be charged without a second conversation.

Ask for the card at booking, not at the end. A customer who is excited about starting their project is happy to put a card on file. The same customer, two weeks later, looking at a bill with extra days on it, is much less eager.

Auto-Billing

Auto-billing charges the card on file automatically for customers set up for it. It works well for contractors on monthly billing and for repeat customers who want it to just happen. The invoice goes out, the card is charged and the customer gets a receipt.

Be clear with customers about when they will be charged and for what. Auto-billing works best when it is expected. Put it in your terms and confirm it when you set up the account.

Auto-billing also takes a task off the office's list every month. Nobody has to remember which contractors to charge, or when. The invoices that should be charged are charged, and the office can spend its time on the ones that need attention.

Online Payments

For customers without a card on file, online payment is the next best option. Customers can pay from the customer app or from the invoice they receive. Paying online takes a minute, so more customers pay right away instead of setting the invoice aside.

Every payment made online is recorded on the invoice automatically. The office does not have to match checks to invoices or type card numbers from phone calls.

Make sure every invoice tells the customer how to pay online. Customers who see an easy option use it. Customers who do not see one put the invoice on the counter and forget about it.

Deposits and Up-Front Payment

Many dumpster companies charge some or all of the rental up front, especially for new homeowner customers. Decide what your policy is, put it in your quotes and apply it consistently. A card on file at the time of booking covers both the up-front charge and any final charges for extra days or weight.

For trusted contractors, monthly billing on one invoice is usually better. They get one bill, and you get one payment.

Whatever your policy, be consistent. If one customer pays up front and another with the same type of job does not, it creates confusion in the office and resentment if customers compare notes.

Getting Paid Faster

The biggest factor in how fast you get paid is how fast the invoice goes out. The second is how easy it is to pay. Invoices built from the job, cards on file, auto-billing and online payments attack both.

Look at your receivables before and after a month of running this way. Most companies see unpaid balances shrink quickly, simply because invoices go out on time and paying is easy.

The next guide covers sales tax, online payments and the follow-ups for invoices that sit. To see how invoicing fits with dispatch and the driver app, visit the DumpsterBossPro dumpster rental software page.