estimate check list

[Mike Kurta]

I just got my car back from the local body shop for some rust repair, and
the back of their receipt stated what you refer to:  "The above is an
estimate based on our inspection and does not cover any additional parts or
labor which may be required after the work has been started.  Occasionally,
worn or damaged parts are discovered which may not be evident on the first
inspection.  Because of this, the above prices are not guaranteed.
Quotations on parts and labor are current and subject  to change."
    Sounds like a disclaimer slanted in favor of the shop to me, maybe some
revision is in order for our field, but you get the idea.  Speaking from a
past life as an auto mechanic and shop owner for 30 years, menu pricing is
far more acceptable by the public.  Most customers want to know the bottom
line, not necessarily how you arrived at it.  There are those however, who
will question and want a more detailed explanation of charges.  The answer
to this is to prepare estimates carefully and completely, and be ready to
explain and justify each item listed.  The guiding principle that has served
me well over the years is " No customer likes surprises, especially where
money is concerned."    Mike Kurta
----- Original Message -----
From: "Dave Nereson" <dnereson@dimensional.com>
To: <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Monday, April 15, 2002 4:16 AM
Subject: estimate check list


>     I've tried making estimate check lists in the past, and have never
found
> a happy medium between simple and exhaustive.  If one lists only major
areas
> of service, such as "Case & finish", "Soundboard & bridges", "Keys &
> action", "Tuning, voicing", then details are liable to get left out when
> looking over the piano to do an estimate.  And some details can turn out
to
> be costly, time-consuming cans of worms.
>     Yet to cover any eventuality, all possible repairs, any likely or
> unlikely problems, you'd have to check every single part on the piano and
> list every possible procedure; the estimate sheet would be pages long.
>     I had a two-page one I used for a while that I thought was fairly
> complete, but would still run into things I didn't see in the home.
> (classic example:  after the action's already in the shop, you find out
the
> regulating screws are all "frozen" in the rail and the eyelets break off
> when you try to turn them)  So you either call the customer and tell them
> it's going to be more ("Let-off?  What's that?  Regulating screws?  How
much
> more will it be?  You didn't say anything about that when you looked at
the
> piano.") or you end up "eating" the extra time spent fixing the problem.
>     Sometimes I put an "allowance for unforseen problems" at the end of
the
> estimate, like for strings that break during a pitch raise.  But then, the
> bridge could roll, the soundboard could crack, the plate could crack, the
> pinblock could separate, the tone might be totally different after you've
> filed hammers or voiced, etc.  Then you need these professional contracts
> with disclaimers and waivers in legalese with signatures and dates and
....
> oh jeez, I'm not doing open heart surgery here -- it's just a piano, and
an
> old upright at that.
>     I've managed up to now but still don't have the ideal estimate form /
> check list.   --David Nereson, RPT, Denver
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