Every month you get an invoice for your maintenance agreement and it contains a lot of information! In today’s HQ How To, we are going to break down each section of the Contract Invoice, explain what it means, and show how you can customize it to fit your needs.

Let’s start from top and work our way through the sections. Bill To and Customer Name: If you have one brick and mortar location, generally the Bill To and Customer Name will be one and the same. However, if your accounting department is located off-site or even handled through a third party, we can send it directly to the separate location. Balance Due: Your balance due will always be highlighted at the top of your invoice and at the bottom of your invoice (photo below).  Your balance due is a combination of base charges (if any), cost per copy charges, and tax. Account Number and Contract Number: Account number refers to the company as a whole. You don’t need this number as a reference when you call in for service or supplies, but we are just designating it here. Your contract number refers to the maintenance agreement signed for the specific machines on the invoice. If you have multiple contracts i.e. signed maintenance agreements at different times for different machines, then you will be able to see that designation. In the detail portion of your invoice you will be able to see

• Each type of model
  • For each model, the serial numbers will fall under that grouping
• Each serial number
• How many copies were made on each serial number
• The cost-per-copy rate of each serial number
• The total monthly charge for each piece of office equipment

What are Meter Reads? The simplest way to explain a meter read is by relating it to a car’s odometer. For every copy you make, the meter clicks up a number, just like an odometer does for every mile driven. Your maintenance agreement is based off of the cost per each copy you make and a base charge. It is important to submit accurate and timely meter reads each month. Why? If your meter reads are estimated (indicated by a star by the number), we could be over charging you or even undercharging you. If we are undercharging you, then when your meter reading is updated, you’ll get a bigger bill than you were expecting. Even worse – if a current meter read hasn’t been submitted, it could stop supplies and service! Submit your meter read to avoid those headaches! At the end of your invoice, whether you have two machines or 200, your total is broken down by the subtotal and then tax is applied. Your balance is highlighted in yellow once again for easy reference. Need more assistance? Call our office at 818.874.1200 or 805.532.9977 and request information about your Monthly Contract Invoice!