Cancellations/No Show

[Automania]

Today consumers have become more and more inconsiderate not showing up for scheduled appointments or calling at the last minute to cancel.

How are you handling these last minute cancellations and now shows? Do you charge them a fee, do you call to remind them of appointments and do you have a limit of how many no shows/cancellations you will accept from a client?

[Deep Gloss Auto Salon]

My practice:

I charge a 20% no show fee

After the first no show I require a 50% deposit once the appointment is set.

If a second no show happens, I no longer will accept the business without upfront payment in full

[JohnKleven]

I don't think it's very feasible to charge a no show fee. If they decide they still want to come in after they forgot about their last appointment, they will not likely want to pay a extra fee for you to finally detail their car.

[Paul Sparks]

I don't see that my customers would be willing to pay a cancellation fee. I know my customers pretty well (the few I have being new) and can usually tell if its a BS excuse or not. If this happened more then twice with any one customer I wouldn't book them anymore. I'm starting to learn how to walk away from some jobs and keep clear of potential future trouble. Been pretty lucky so far .I believe in and use the old idea of treat people as you would want to be treated.

[Deep Gloss Auto Salon]

Detailing is not my main source of income... I have a finite amount of cars I allow myself to do each year. As a result, I am selective of the cars I work on and the people I deal with. More than likely, if a customer is coming to me, it’s because they not only need their vehicle detailed but, they want me (specifically) to do it. I have people drive several hours away, only reason I point this out is because I am sure there are plenty of people that could "shine up their car" that are closer to where they live but again, they want me to detail their car. I say this with modesty as I am not trying to come off as egotistical. With all of these variables in play, I have little to no cancellations and those that I have had understand my policy and have no issue with it as I make it 100% clear to them at the time of booking any appointment.

If this was my main source of income my standard operating procedure may be different.

[Thomas Dekany]

That is part of this business. I personally don't have that issue any more (and believe me, Oregon is the worst and used to have many cancellations) I now select what I want to work on. Interestingly no more cancellations.

[Richard Grasa]

This has been a big problem for me as well. I'm thinking about making anyone who books a detail for over a certain $ amount sign a paper that says if they don't show or they don't cancel with more than 24 hours notice, their credit card will be charged for 50% of the estimate.

Perhaps if they reschedule and show up the next time, all or some of that 50% will be applied towards the job. Though I have found that usually once they don't show, they aren't going to reschedule anyway.

[TOGWT]

Clients ‘missed’ appointment?

Its part of doing business, Dentists, Lawyers, Doctors, Hairdressers, etc, all experience it. When a customer does book an appointment, hold that appointment with a Credit Card. Holding an appointment with a credit card is something that almost all large service companies do, so if you are dealing with a customer that has money, they will understand. It’s beneficial to you in a number of ways.

It also shows the customer that you are serious about your time AND their time. It tells them “This time has been allocated to you and as such you expect me to hold it for you, I expect you to show up for it.” Tell them that you have a missed service fee that will be applied to the card if they don’t contact you and don’t show up for their appointment. Always keep in mind, business is business. Your time is valuable.

Send a polite ‘reminder’ text message a day before the scheduled appointment this should at least alleviate the forgetful client.

[VR8]

Its part of doing business, Dentists, Lawyers, Doctors, Hairdressers, etc, all experience it. When a customer does book an appointment, hold that appointment with a Credit Card. Holding an appointment with a credit card is something that almost all large service companies do, so if you are dealing with a customer that has money, they will understand. It’s beneficial to you in a number of ways.

Interesting. Maybe it's the area I'm in, but I've never heard of a dentist, lawyer, doctor, hairdresser, etc., ever holding an appointment with a credit card. It actually sounds a bit brazen to me. Maybe if you're a world renown detailer and people are knocking down your door to even GET an appointment, then you could charge for the privilege.

I'd rely on common courtesy and good business habits. 1) Call them at the beginning of your week to verify their schedule is consistant with yours.2) Let them know when the appointment is made that you only schedule one or two details each day so it is vital that they let you know in advance if their schedule needs to change. 3) Keep a list of customers that are flexible and can fill one of your "missed" appointments on short notice. No loss of income for that day.

[Automania]

Interesting. Maybe it's the area I'm in, but I've never heard of a dentist, lawyer, doctor, hairdresser, etc., ever holding an appointment with a credit card. It actually sounds a bit brazen to me. Maybe if you're a world renown detailer and people are knocking down your door to even GET an appointment, then you could charge for the privilege.

I'd rely on common courtesy and good business habits. 1) Call them at the beginning of your week to verify their schedule is consistant with yours.2) Let them know when the appointment is made that you only schedule one or two details each day so it is vital that they let you know in advance if their schedule needs to change. 3) Keep a list of customers that are flexible and can fill one of your "missed" appointments on short notice. No loss of income for that day.

The question was asked to see what innovative measures detailers use to reduce cancellations and no-shows.

For years businesses have been plagued with last minute cancellations or no shows that have adversely affected them. So doctors, lawyers, hairdressers and many other service businesses charge a fee for late cancellations or no shows in the No Va area and across the country to off-set loss revenue and to force customers to show up for their appointments.

To help reduce no shows I am looking at implementing phone txt reminders to remind clients of their appointments ...statistics show that more people open text messages vs ignoring calls or voice messages and if you get them to agree to receiving txt messages it is a good way to keep in touch to remind them to detail their vehicles.

[Nth Degree]

I like the idea of a deposit. I am currently in the process of planning my wedding and it is very common that each of the vendors require a deposit to reserve the date. Most are around $100 or 25% down. Too many people have little respect for how their lack of consideration affects others. I understand why it is a difficult thing for many detailers to do as you could be driving them to the competition.

As a similar issue I have considered charging a nominal fee for doing mobile quotes. Perhaps a $25 deposit to be applied to the price of the detail. This would weed out the "tire kickers" who are just wondering what it will cost before they take it to the local carwash to have it done.

[polishd]

As it stands we are moving towards mostly onine bookings which sends and email at 48hrs and a text meassage at 24hrs, plus the fact we are mobile leads to very few cancellations. I do however like the idea of a credit card to secure the booking so you can then charge a no show fee etc. most hotels I have ever stayed in do this, only concern I have is possible chargebacks etc you would need to have them agree to your term and conditions I would assume.

Car Detailing Adelaide