Plumbing and HVAC service agreement builder

Key facts

• A membership turns one-off customers into a scheduled visit every season, which puts your tech in the home before the emergency call goes to whoever answers first.
• Many equipment warranties ask for proof of regular professional maintenance. A signed agreement and visit records give the homeowner that proof, so check what the brands you install require.
• Several states regulate automatic renewal: clear disclosure up front, notice before renewal and a simple way to cancel. Rules differ, so a local attorney should review your final wording. Source: Akin Gump: Automatic renewal contracts, changes for service contract sellers
• Owners on trade forums often say the plan itself barely breaks even and the value is the repair work and loyalty it brings. The builder separates plan fees from repair revenue for that reason. Source: PlumbingZone forum: Plumbing service contracts
• Every price, rate and default in this builder is an example you replace. None of it is an industry benchmark.

How to use the Service Agreement and Membership Builder

1. Pick your trade. Plumbing, HVAC or both. The builder loads a task list written for that trade and example tiers to edit.
2. Set up three tiers. Name them, set a monthly price, visits per year and a repair discount. Mark the one you want most people to pick.
3. Choose what each tier includes. For every task and perk, choose the lowest tier that gets it. Higher tiers inherit everything below.
4. Write the terms. Term length, renewal, cancellation notice, billing, exclusions and homeowner responsibilities.
5. Run your numbers. Enter your customer count, expected sign-up and cancellation rates and repair ticket to see members, monthly plan revenue and the tech hours you will need.
6. Print and review. Print or download the agreement, then have a local attorney review it before you sell a single plan.

What is an HVAC service agreement?

An HVAC service agreement is a contract where a homeowner pays a set fee and you maintain their heating and cooling on a schedule, usually an AC tune-up in spring and a furnace or heat pump check in fall. Most companies add member perks: priority scheduling in a heat wave, a discount on repairs and no overtime charge on weekends.

The homeowner gets fewer surprises and a company that already knows their system. You get recurring revenue, a reason to be in the house twice a year and a much better shot at the replacement when the system finally gives out.

What goes in a plumbing service agreement

Plumbing plans are newer and less standard than HVAC plans, which is the opening. A good plumbing service agreement names the checks your tech performs, so the homeowner can see what they are paying for:

• Water heater: flush the tank, test the temperature and pressure relief valve, look at the anode rod.
• Leaks and shutoffs: check supply lines and exercise every shutoff valve so it works when it matters.
• Pressure: test static pressure and the pressure reducing valve, a quiet cause of failed fittings and noisy pipes.
• Drains: run every fixture, and on top tiers, camera the main line once a year.
• Seasonal: sump pump test before storm season, hose bibbs before the first freeze.

Keep repairs out of the plan price. Members get a discount on repairs, not free repairs. That one line prevents most of the disputes owners complain about.

HVAC maintenance agreement vs maintenance contract

In practice the words mean the same thing. Homeowners search for both, and so do the lawyers who read them later. What matters is what the document says about five things:

1. Term and renewal. How long it runs and whether it renews on its own.
2. Cancellation. How much notice, and how a prepaid refund is worked out.
3. Inclusions. The exact tasks per visit, not "full inspection".
4. Exclusions. Parts, repairs, code upgrades, damage from freezing or misuse.
5. Homeowner duties. Access, pets, filters between visits, telling you about known problems.

The builder writes all five into your draft. The highlighted lines are the ones your attorney should finish for your state.

How to price a plumbing maintenance plan

Start from cost, not from what the shop across town charges. A visit costs you the tech's loaded hourly cost times the visit time, including the drive. Add the value of the perks you give away, such as a waived trip fee. The plan price has to cover that across the year, or you are paying people to be members.

Then decide what the plan is for. Some owners price it to break even and earn on the repair work found during visits. Others price it to make money on its own. Both work, but you need to know which one you are doing. The projection tab shows plan fees and repair revenue separately so you can see it.

Good, better, best: how many tiers to offer

Three tiers is the common setup for a reason. The bottom tier keeps the entry price low, the top tier makes the middle one look sensible and most people pick the middle. Mark the middle tier as most popular and make the jump between tiers visible: an extra visit, a bigger repair discount or the main line camera inspection.

Doing both trades? Bundle them. A combined plumbing and HVAC membership is harder for a single-trade competitor to match, and it gets your company into the house three or four times a year.

Selling a home maintenance membership without the hard sell

The best time to offer the plan is right after a good visit, when the homeowner has just watched your tech fix something and explain it. Give techs a one-page plan card and let them say what it saves this customer, using what they just saw in the house.

• Offer it on every invoice and in the follow-up email.
• Email past customers before each season with one clear reason to join.
• Put a plan page on your website with the tiers, the agreement and an easy way to sign up.
• Call members to book, so the visits actually happen. Members who never get a visit do not renew.

Field notes from our team

• Put the cancellation terms on the front page of the agreement, not the back. Clear terms mean fewer chargebacks.
• Record every visit with photos. Visit records are what members see when they decide whether to renew.
• Schedule spring and fall visits in waves by zip code to cut drive time.
• Give techs a small spiff for each plan sold. It pays back fast when members renew.
• Review your tier prices every year against your labor cost, not once and forget it.

Builder vs a free template vs a field service app

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• Akin Gump: Automatic renewal contracts, changes for service contract sellers
• PlumbingZone forum: Plumbing service contracts

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