Posted by u/small_gc_pnw
How do you handle change orders without pissing off the customer?
Answered by Ask a Shop Owner ·
Change orders always turn into fights. What is the system?
u/askashopowner Owner-operator advisor
Top answer
Written, signed, and paid (or scheduled) before work continues. No exceptions. The single rule that saves change-order pain: verbal is not a change order.
Use a simple one-page form. Description, price, schedule impact (this pushes completion X days), signature line. Deliver in person or via email with a signature request. Turnaround should be same day; work does not proceed until signed.
Price change orders at 1.5x your standard margin. Change orders are disruptive and eat schedule. Customers who understand the premium make fewer of them; customers who do not are paying you fairly for the disruption.
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