Hour & Day rates should I advertise them ?

[ppuch1]

Hi to you all,

This is my first post but I have been reading for a while all of the other subjects and posts.

Just wanted to get opinions on whether it's a good thing to advertise prices and rates. I know it is a difficult subject to cover but when someone rings up and asks "how much do you charge" I wonder if I should be charging a blanket rate for every area that I might cover (I live in south East Kent so can reach London within hour or two) or is it expected that rates for London will be higher.

Please be gentle with me as this is my first post.

Look forward to your opinions - both from customer and Electrician point of view

Thanks
Pete

 

[telectrix]

i'd give the customer a price for coming out, say £30-£40 for call-out including 30minutes time on site, then, hourly rate for additional time.

 

[ppuch1]

Thanks Telectrix,

This is what I have in mind. I was thinking along the lines of £40 amount for first hour then £25 amount for every hour thereafter (or whatever is the average local rate). Problem is if you have job that is going to last for longer than a day or two then how do you go about giving a 'Day' rate? Obviously a day rate would be a better price as this makes sense to the customer.
I have been trying to juggle about with prices and can't decide if I should have one rate or two rates (one for going into London) I am thinking of specifying that all parking and congestion charges will be added to invoices but it's giving me a bit of a headache. I don't want to outprice myself or undercut others. I am of the opinion that all Electricians should try and stick to a rate that is competetive but also right for the area.

I have got pricing sorted for things like PAT and PIR etc but Install and Remedial is a little more problematic.

Thansk in advance for any more replies.

Pete

 

[telectrix]

on a job that's going to take days rather than hours, i drop my rate then price for the job as a whole, rather than dsay rate. if i'm a bit out, when it's a few hundred i can stand it. and defffo add congestion/parking costs. don't affect me up here, it's rural.

 

[SirKit Breaker]

I used to work my pricing out on how long it would take me, material costs and travel expenses, and the add a bit of profit on, hey presto you have your price.

What you charge is up to you as only you know what your personal circumstances are financially.

I wouldn't show your prices publicly, but do tell your customers what you charge for call out type jobs and smaller jobs like replacing existing light fittings and such. For larger jobs go and do a free quote, not an estimate, this way you will make on most jobs, break even on a few, and lose slightly on a little, but on balance you will come out on top.

I used to work on getting about 75% of what i quoted for, if it started to drop a bit i dropped my prices, if i started to get too much i upped them a bit. Its all down to experience, but i was charging what you are proposing and i am in Leeds, so i would say that for south east england you may be a bit cheap.

Cheers........Howard

 

[garyb]

Hi ppuch1.. I dont think it would be a good idea showing your prices, like the others say different jobs usually call for different rates and besides some customers can fussy. i was told a chap that i had allowed a day to wired his garage... i finished a around 3pm wheras he produced some lamps and asked me to relamp his external lights to make up the time
Gary

 

[ppuch1]

Thanks for replies. I will rethink how I will do my charging. I think it is best to price each job after doing a survey, but someone will always want to know hourly/day rates but hopefully it will all balance out in the end.
I have phoned around a few local Electricians to get an idea of the average price banding for Hr/Day and was surprised at how readily I was given information. It varied up to £10/hr and £40/day difference. But I suppose I have to go by what my costs are and what I want to earn and find a figure somewhere in between.

Thanks again. It has helped me come to a conclusion.

Pete