Diagnosis is the skill. Free diagnosis means giving away the most valuable thing you do and charging only for the part a labourer could manage.
TL;DR Charge a flat diagnostic fee, disclose it on the phone, and credit it against the repair. That structure gets accepted almost universally and it eliminates tyre-kickers.
What the fee actually covers
Not “coming out.” Four separate things.
- Travel, both ways, at fully loaded cost.
- Diagnosis, which is your twenty years of experience compressed into twenty minutes.
- A written finding they can act on, with you or without you.
- Opportunity cost. That slot could have held a paying job.
Framing it as expertise rather than travel changes how it lands. “A trip charge” sounds like a toll. “A diagnostic fee” sounds like a service, and it is.
The structure that works
Flat fee, disclosed up front, credited to the repair.
Our diagnostic is $95. That covers coming out, finding the problem, and giving you a written price. If you go ahead with the repair, the $95 comes off the total.
Why this converts
- The number is known before anyone commits.
- It feels refundable, because functionally it is.
- It removes risk for them while removing free labour for you.
- It filters the people who were never going to buy.
Acceptance is high because the customer sees a path where they effectively pay nothing extra.
Setting the amount
Cover your real cost at minimum.
Drive time 50 min @ $57.80 = $48.20
Vehicle 22 miles @ $0.75 = $16.50
Diagnostic time 30 min @ $57.80 = $28.90
True cost ≈ $93.60
So a $95 fee breaks even and a $125 fee makes a small margin.
Then check it against your market. If local convention is $89 and you charge $250, expect to explain it. That is fine if the explanation is good, but know you are making an argument.
Crediting rules, decided in advance
Ambiguity here causes arguments at invoice time.
| Scenario | Policy |
|---|---|
| Repair done same visit | Credit in full |
| Repair booked for later | Credit when the work happens |
| Quote given, customer declines | Fee stands. They got the diagnosis |
| Multiple issues, one fixed | Credit once, not per issue |
| Nothing wrong found | Fee stands. Confirming it is fine has value |
| You misdiagnosed | Waive it, and fix the problem |
Write the policy down and apply it consistently. Case-by-case decisions under pressure always drift toward waiving.
Disclosing on the phone
The fee must be stated before dispatch, every time. A diagnostic fee that first appears on the invoice generates the complaint that costs you more than the fee.
The script
Before I book that in, our diagnostic call is $95. That covers coming out, working out what is wrong, and giving you a fixed price for the repair. If you go ahead with the work, that $95 comes straight off. Sound alright?
Then get a yes, and note it on the job. A confirming text before dispatch is stronger still.
Stopping free advice on the phone
The other leak. Twenty minutes on the phone diagnosing something for free, and then they fix it themselves or call someone cheaper.
A workable boundary
Happy to give you a rough steer. If it is doing [X], it is usually one of two things, and one of them is a quick fix you could try yourself. If that does not sort it, the diagnostic is $95 and I can be there Thursday.
That does three things. It gives genuine value, so you are not being unhelpful. It positions you as honest, because you suggested the free option. And it draws the line at the point where real diagnosis starts.
Keep it under five minutes. Then: “I would need to see it to say properly.”
Waiving it, deliberately
A waived fee is a tool if used on purpose.
Reasonable to waive
- For membership customers, as a stated plan benefit.
- Second job at the same address on the same day.
- Return visit on your own recent work.
- When you got it wrong.
Not reasonable
- Because they pushed back. Once you waive under pressure, everyone learns.
- Routinely, which means the fee was never real.
After-hours and distance variants
The base fee assumes standard hours and a normal radius.
| Situation | Adjustment |
|---|---|
| Evening or weekend | Higher fee, per your published premium table |
| Outside standard radius | Distance surcharge, published by band |
| Emergency dispatch | Higher fee, non-creditable or partially creditable |
Publish the bands. A distance surcharge disclosed on your website is legitimate. One invented on the call is not.
The written finding
The thing that justifies the fee in the customer’s mind.
Leave them with
- What you found, in plain language.
- Photos of it.
- What it will cost to fix, as a fixed price.
- What happens if they leave it.
- How long the quote is valid.
A customer who declines the repair but has a professional written report does not feel they paid for nothing. Some come back months later with that document in hand.
Publish your diagnostic fee on your website and put it in your phone script this week. The fee only works if the customer could have known it before they called.
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