PlumbingBossPro Blog — Property Managers & Commercial

Card on File or Monthly Statement: Choosing How Each Commercial Plumbing Account Pays

Every commercial account eventually asks the same question: “How do you want us to pay?” The honest answer is that it depends on the account. A landlord with two rentals and a restaurant group with five kitchens should not be billed the same way. Picking the right method up front saves a lot of chasing later.

The Two Options

Monthly Statements for Commercial Plumbing Accounts: One Bill Covering Every Address covers how the monthly statement works. Here is how it compares with card on file in PlumbingBossPro:

• Card on file. The client's card is stored. Each job creates its own invoice when the tech taps Complete, and the card can be charged right then or on a schedule you set.
• Monthly. No invoice per job. Every job across every address goes on one statement each month, each line labeled with its address.

Both use your service list prices, line items and sales tax. Both let the client see invoices and pay in the customer app. The difference is timing and how many pieces of paper the client gets.

When Card on File Makes Sense

Card on file is the default for most small accounts and new relationships:

• Small landlords. Two or three rentals and a few calls a year. One invoice per job is not a burden, and they get paid-in-full receipts for their records.
• New accounts. Before you know how a client pays, getting paid at completion protects you.
• Independent restaurants. One location, owner-operated, often happy to have the card charged when the line is jetted.
• Small shops and offices. A retail tenant or a small office with occasional work.

The upside for you is simple: the money arrives when the work is done. There is nothing to chase.

When Monthly Makes Sense

Monthly is for accounts with enough volume and enough history:

• Property managers. Many addresses, many calls, and an accounting department that pays vendors on a schedule.
• Restaurant groups. Several kitchens on recurring jetting plus service calls.
• Building owners. Strip centers and small apartment buildings where costs are split between tenants or owners.
• Churches and nonprofits. A treasurer who pays once a month.

The tradeoff is that you are extending credit for up to a month. With an established account that pays reliably, that is a fair trade for steady work.

Starting on Card, Moving to Monthly

A good pattern for new commercial accounts is to start on card on file, even if they eventually want monthly billing. After a few months of smooth work, offer to move them to a monthly statement. Most managers will appreciate it, and you will have seen how they operate before extending terms.

Switching is a setting on the client. Jobs completed after the switch follow the new method.

The reverse happens too. If a monthly account starts paying late every month, moving them back to card on file is a reasonable step. Have the conversation first, and make the change in the software once they agree.

Questions to Ask Before You Decide

If you are not sure which method fits a new account, a few questions usually settle it:

• How many addresses will we be working at, and how often?
• Does your accounting team pay vendors on a set schedule?
• Do you need costs split by property, owner or location?
• Do you need a PO number on every bill?

An account with many addresses, a set payment schedule and a need to split costs is a monthly account. One that answers no to most of these is usually happier on card on file.

Getting the Card in the First Place

For card-on-file accounts, the card needs to be captured somewhere. A client can add or update their card in the customer app. When an account signs up through your website sign-up form, the card is captured with the form and lands in Form Responses, where one click turns it into a client.

Do not ask a manager to read a card number over the phone to a tech in a crawl space. Let them enter it themselves.

Mixing Methods Across Your Customer Base

Most plumbing companies end up with a mix: homeowners on card on file or paying invoices online, small landlords on card on file, and a handful of managers and restaurant groups on monthly statements. That is normal. The billing method lives on each client, so the office does not have to remember who pays how.

For accounts on either method, past-due follow-up catches the ones that slip. See Collecting From Commercial Plumbing Accounts: Past-Due Follow-Up Without the Awkward Calls for the next step.

For the rest of the commercial side, visit the PlumbingBossPro commercial plumbing software page.