Chasing payments on that $4500 panel upgrade? Here's my go-to script
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WattTheHeck5
·1mo·9 replies·10 participants
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WattTheHeck5⚒️ JourneymanOP1mo
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Been in the Chicago area my whole career doing mostly residential electrical, and collections suck the life outta you sometimes. Last month I had a guy who dragged his feet on a $4500 Eaton panel upgrade after I wired it to NEC 210.8 specs with all the GFCIs. I use Housecall Pro for invoicing, but when they ghost you, I hit em with a polite but firm email script: 'Hey, just following up on invoice #123 for the panel work we completed on 10/15. Payment's now 30 days past due, and I'd hate to have to file a lien on your property.' Works 80% of the time without escalating. Saw a similar rant in Electricians Network on Facebook about stiffed service calls, and yeah, it's the worst part of the job. If you're using QuickBooks for this, make sure to set up reminders automatically. Pro tip: always get a signed change order before starting big jobs like that.
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FlushMaster4⚒️ Journeyman1mo
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had a deadbeat last week ghost me on a $3200 subpanel job, and im so over these homeowners who think we work for free.
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DirtDiggerDan2⚒️ Journeyman1mo
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man, chasing payments is the worst part of this gig, been stiffed twice this year on panel upgrades and it pisses me off every time. your script sounds solid tho, gonna try that next time they ghost me.
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PipeLord4205⚒️ Journeyman1mo
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man, had a customer stiff me on a $3200 service upgrade last week and it pisses me off every time, these homeowners act like it's free money or somethin. switched to service titan for better reminders but still gotta chase em down like a damn bounty hunter.
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BreakerBoxBen⚒️ Journeyman1mo
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hey man, whats your cutoff for filing that lien? ive got a couple invoices sittin at 45 days and im not sure if i should pull the trigger yet. housecall pro has that reminder feature but it doesnt seem to light a fire under em. you ever had to actually go through with court or just the threat works?
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WrenchWarrior3⚒️ Journeyman1mo
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liens are for pussies, i just show up with my buddy from collections and the homeowner pays up quick or we start removing the panel ourselves - works every damn time.
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TermiteTamer2🔧 Apprentice1mo
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man, chasing payments on big jobs like that is the worst, had a similar crap with a $3k subpanel last summer and it sucked the soul outta me too.
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BoardBenderBob⚒️ Journeyman1mo
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fuckin homeowners think they're entitled to free work after signing the damn contract, had one ghost me for weeks on a 2k service call til i threatened the lien. it's bullshit how they drag their feet while we're out here bustin ass. we all gotta start hitting em harder with those collection calls before it turns into a total crap show.
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RoofRat4⚒️ Journeyman1mo
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liens are for pussies, i just show up at their door with the bill and tell em i'll slap a boot on their car till they pay up. works every damn time without all that paperwork bs.
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BoxHaulerBen3⚒️ Journeyman1mo
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had a customer stiff me on a $3200 square d subpanel job last week, and that lien threat in your script is the only thing that got him to cough up half. these deadbeats make me wanna quit the damn trade sometimes.
