Pricing and quote factors · 5 minute read
What actually goes into a rental quote
If you have gathered two quotes and they are far apart, one of them is almost certainly assuming something different — not necessarily something dishonest, just unstated.
Here is what sits inside the number, so you can compare like with like.
The six variables
- Unit count — the largest single factor, and the one most worth getting right rather than low
- Rental duration — day rates, weekend rates and monthly rates are structured differently; a month is far cheaper per day than a weekend
- Distance from our Mentor yard — drive time on every delivery, service visit and pickup
- Servicing frequency — weekly is standard on long rentals; heavy use may need more
- Unit type — a standard unit, a deluxe flusher and a trailer are different products with different costs
- Site access — an easy drop takes minutes; a long walk, a locked gate or soft ground takes real time
How to compare two quotes
Put them side by side and check that both include delivery and pickup, both assume the same number of service visits, and both are quoting the same class of unit for the same number of days. Once those four things match, the comparison means something.
Be especially careful with servicing. A quote with fewer service visits will always look cheaper, and on a multi-month job site that difference is the entire gap between the two numbers.
Questions worth asking any provider
The first question is the most revealing. A broker cannot answer it cleanly, because the answer is that they do not know yet who is delivering.
- Are you the company that owns and delivers the units, or are you placing my job with someone else?
- Is delivery and pickup included in this figure?
- How many service visits does this assume, and what does a visit include?
- What would add cost after the job starts, and would you tell me before billing it?
- What happens if I need the unit longer than planned?
What can add cost after the fact
None of these should ever be a surprise on an invoice. Our practice is to raise them with you before they are billed.
- Extra service visits beyond the agreed schedule
- Rental extensions past the agreed pickup date
- Relocating a unit after placement
- Damage, tipping, vandalism or improper use
- A return trip when the site is blocked, locked or unreachable at the scheduled time
- Deliveries outside our normal service area or outside normal hours
Why we quote instead of publishing a rate
Because a single published number would be accurate for one scenario and misleading for the rest. What we can publish is the mechanism above — and then give you a specific figure for your job, with the assumptions written next to it, in about two minutes on the phone.
Want this applied to your job?
Describe the site and the dates and we will do the sizing with you, out loud, including the parts we are unsure about.