Two Types of Pricing
In the HVAC industry there are two main ways to set prices for the services we offer.
- Time and materials
- Flat-rate pricing
Time and materials is where we charge based on a slightly marked up price for the materials needed for the job, along with an hourly rate for the time it takes to do the work on your heater or air conditioner.
Flat-rate pricing is where we charge a flat rate for each service, predetermined before we ever show up at your home, based on all the costs associated with running an HVAC business, which includes the materials needed for the job along with the time needed to make the HVAC repairs.
Pros and Cons of Each
Time and materials has a few cons associated with it. First, you as the customer do not know what the cost of the repair will be until it is completed. This is because we don’t know how long it will take to do the repair. What if we run into unknown snags with your air conditioner? What if your furnace is particularly difficult to work inside? There is no way to know how long the repair will take. It also means that if you get a newer, less efficient tech that you pay more, since he isn’t as proficient as a more seasoned tech and has to analyze more and inevitably takes longer. You might have the same repair as your neighbor and you both pay different amounts because you had different technicians doing the work, one faster than the other.
With time and materials you, the homeowner, take all the risk.
With the flat-rate pricing model we take all the risk. Since we have predetermined the price of your HVAC repair before we ever showed up at your home we can give you the repair quote before we start servicing your heater or air conditioner. Regardless of how long it takes you know that you and your neighbor now both paid the same price for the same repair. You don’t have to wonder about how much it will cost or how long it will take. You can make an informed decision before you sign-off on the repairs.
If the air conditioner or heater repair takes too long we absorb the extra cost, so the efficiency of the technician is no longer your concern. Just to be clear, all of our techs are trained and certified and do great work, but it is a fact that the longer you do something the faster you get at it. Time on the job is what I mean when I say efficiency, not the quality of the repair. We warranty all repairs because we believe in our techs and the level of their training. You never need to worry about this.
In Summary
With time and materials…
- You don’t know the cost of your heater or air conditioner repair until it is completed
- You pay more if you get a less efficient technician
- You and your neighbor may pay different amounts for the same heater or air conditioner repair
- You take all the risk
With flat-rate pricing…
- You know the cost before you sign-off
- You pay the same price regardless of how long it takes
- You and your neighbor pay the same price for the same heater or air conditioner repair
- We take all the risk
For these reasons, to keep your best interest at heart, and to maintain total clarity on the cost of our HVAC repair services, we have chosen to use flat-rate pricing for our heater and air conditioner repairs.
For more information on how you can do some maintenance on your unit yourself check out our article here. And for more info on changing your filter (part of your job as a homeowner to maintain your unit) click here.