Agreeing the work and the price · CONSTRUCTION AND HOME SERVICES
Agreeing the work and the price · DENTAL AND VETERINARY CLINICS
Agreeing the work and the price · ESTATE AND LETTING AGENTS
Agreeing the work and the price · GARAGES AND CAR SERVICING
Agreeing the work and the price · MANUFACTURING
Agreeing the work and the price · PROFESSIONAL SERVICES
Customers dispute what was agreed and what it cost.
‘We agree the price on site, and the argument starts when the bill goes out.’
‘Patients say nobody told them what the treatment would cost.’
‘Landlords and sellers dispute the fee they agreed to.’
‘We find something else wrong, fix it, and the customer says they never agreed to it.’
‘Quotes take days, and nobody can find what we agreed when the order changes.’
‘The client thought the fee was fixed. We thought it was an estimate.’
What Changes
The journey for agreeing the work and the price in a construction and home services business. Today: 4 steps you do and 1 times it waits. With the fix: 2 and 0.
Construction and Home Services: quote, extra.
The journey for agreeing the work and the price in a dental and veterinary clinics business. Today: 4 steps you do and 1 times it waits. With the fix: 2 and 0.
Dental and Veterinary Clinics: treatment plan, patient.
The journey for agreeing the work and the price in a estate and letting agents business. Today: 4 steps you do and 1 times it waits. With the fix: 2 and 0.
Estate and Letting Agents: terms of business, fee, landlord or seller.
The journey for agreeing the work and the price in a garages and car servicing business. Today: 4 steps you do and 1 times it waits. With the fix: 2 and 0.
Garages and Car Servicing: estimate, extra repair.
The journey for agreeing the work and the price in a manufacturing business. Today: 4 steps you do and 1 times it waits. With the fix: 2 and 0.
Manufacturing: quote, order change.
The journey for agreeing the work and the price in a professional services business. Today: 4 steps you do and 1 times it waits. With the fix: 2 and 0.
Professional Services: engagement letter, scope, client.
Today
- You: Price agreed out loud.
- You: An extra agreed partway through, written down nowhere.
- You: Invoice sent.
- Waiting: Customer disputes it.
- You: Argument, and you knock money off.
- Steps You Do
- 4
- Times It Waits
- 1
With the Fix
- Runs on its own: Notes and photos become a written quote the same day.
- You: You check it and send it.
- Runs on its own: Customer approves it online.
- You: A change comes up and you log it on your phone.
- Runs on its own: Customer approves the change before the work goes ahead.
- Runs on its own: Invoice is the quote plus approved changes.
- Steps You Do
- 2
- Times It Waits
- 0
- Notes, photos or a voice memo become a clear written quote in your format, the same day.
- The customer approves it online, and the approval is kept.
- Any change during the job is written down with its price and approved before the work goes ahead.
- The final invoice is the quote plus approved changes, and nothing else.
- Terms, warranty and contact details go out with every quote.
Illustrative example. Today: A text: “About £[x] all in.” An extra agreed on site on [day], written down nowhere. The invoice says £[x]. After the fix: “Quote [n] for [job]: [lines], £[x]. Approved by [Customer] on [date] at [time].” “Change [n]: [extra work], £[x]. Approved [date].” “Invoice £[x]: quote plus approved changes.”.
Illustrative. Your business carries your own details.
What It Costs You
Only 41% of home-repair customers got a written quote, and those who ended up paying extra lost a median £750.
Source: Citizens Advice, Built to fail, July 2026
What You Do
Sets the price list and quote layout, and approves each quote before it goes out until they trust it.
Illustrative example. Today: Treatment discussed in the chair. Fee quoted out loud: “About £[x].” Nothing signed. After the fix: “Treatment plan for [Patient]: [treatment], £[x], payable in [n] instalments. Plan and consent signed [date].” “Added: [item], £[x]. Signed [date].”.
Illustrative. Your business carries your own details.
What It Costs You
A full refund was the most common outcome of private dental complaints in 2024 (584 cases), and complaints about costs rose noticeably.
Source: GDC Dental Complaints Service
What You Do
Sets the fee list and plan layout. A clinician approves each plan before it goes, and the practice confirms the consent wording.
Illustrative example. Today: Fee agreed at the valuation visit: “[x]%?” Terms sent on [date]. No signed copy on file. After the fix: “Terms of business for [property]: fee [x]% plus VAT, sole agency for [n] weeks. Signed by [Client] on [date].” “Added: [service], £[x]. Signed [date].”.
Illustrative. Your business carries your own details.
What It Costs You
Instructions, terms of business and fees drew 2,001 seller and 1,660 landlord complaints to The Property Ombudsman in 2024.
Source: TPO Annual Review 2024
What You Do
Sets the fee scale and terms. The owner or their adviser confirms the wording.
Illustrative example. Today: Booked in for [service]. The mechanic finds [fault], fixes it and adds £[x] to the bill. The customer hears about it at collection. After the fix: “We’ve found [fault] on [Reg]. Estimate £[x] including VAT. [Approve] [Call me]” “Approved by [Customer] at [time].” “Invoice £[x]: booked work plus approved extras.”.
Illustrative. Your business carries your own details.
What It Costs You
The Motor Ombudsman names work done without the customer’s authorisation among the causes of its record 1,586 new service and repair cases in Q3 2024.
Source: The Motor Ombudsman
What You Do
Sets the labour rate and parts mark-up, and the amount above which a customer is always phoned.
Illustrative example. Today: Enquiry for [part], [quantity], received [date]. Quote typed from last year’s spreadsheet and sent [n] days later. A price change agreed by phone, not recorded. After the fix: “Quote [n]: [part], [quantity] at £[x] each, lead time [n] weeks. Accepted by [Customer] on [date].” “Change: quantity [n] to [n], £[x]. Accepted [date].” “Invoice matches the accepted order.”.
Illustrative. Your business carries your own details.
What It Costs You
In the government’s Made Smarter evaluation, small manufacturers describe quoting, delivery notes and invoicing run on hard-copy paperwork.
Source: DBT/Ipsos
What You Do
Sets the price list and margins, and approves each quote until they trust it.
Illustrative example. Today: Scope agreed on a call. The estimate says “£[x] to £[x], depending.” Extra work was done and first mentioned on the bill. After the fix: “Engagement letter for [matter]: [scope], estimate £[x]. Signed [date].” “Outside scope: [work], £[x]. Approved by [Client] on [date] before work started.”.
Illustrative. Your business carries your own details.
What It Costs You
In legal services, costs were behind 12% of the complaints the Legal Ombudsman upheld in 2025/26.
Source: Legal Ombudsman
What You Do
Sets the fee basis and letter template, and approves each letter until they trust it.
What It Runs On
Your phone, your invoicing or accounting system and an online approval.
Agreed Before We Start
Share of jobs with an approved written quote, number of price disputes and time from survey to quote, before and after.
What We Agree Before We Start
| Measure | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Jobs with an approved written quote | ||
| Price disputes | ||
| Time from survey to quote |
We fill this in with you before any work starts.
Questions Owners Ask
- Can customers approve a quote on their phone?
- Yes. They approve online and the approval is kept with a date and time.
- What about work quoted in the customer’s home?
- Customers then usually have cancellation rights, and those must appear on the paperwork. You or your adviser confirm the wording; we don’t give legal advice.
- Do I still check every quote?
- Yes, until you’re happy for them to go without you.
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