TowingBossPro Blog — Invoicing & Payments

Billing Commercial Tow Accounts: Body Shops, Dealers and Property Managers

Commercial accounts are the backbone of a steady tow business. They send repeat work, they don't shop you on every call and they usually pay. But they also expect organized billing, and an account that has to untangle your invoices will slow down paying them.

Here's how to bill accounts so they keep sending work and keep paying on time.

Set Up Each Account Properly

Prepaid transports from Prepayments on Vehicle Transports and Scheduled Tows are often for one-time customers. Accounts are different: an ongoing relationship with terms. In TowingBossPro, commercial accounts such as body shops, dealers, property managers, motor clubs and police or municipal agencies keep their calls and invoices under the account.

When you set one up, record the essentials: who sends calls, who receives invoices, how they want to pay and any agreed pricing. Put the terms in writing on the account so everyone in the office applies them the same way.

An account set up carelessly becomes a billing headache later, when nobody remembers what was agreed.

Agree on what goes on each invoice before the first call. Some accounts want a reference number, a work order or a unit number. Asking once at setup is far better than having invoices bounced back for missing information.

Body Shops

Body shops send vehicles in and often call for tows to their lot. They care about the vehicle details: year, make, model, color, plate and VIN, because they're matching your tow to a repair order. Put all of it on every invoice.

Decide with each shop whether tows to them are billed to the shop or to the vehicle owner, and stick to it. Mixed approaches cause disputes on both sides.

Vehicle photos at pickup protect both you and the shop when damage questions come up later.

Shops also appreciate speed. A tow invoiced the same day the vehicle arrives can be attached to the repair file immediately, which makes it much easier for the shop to pass it along and pay you.

Dealers

Dealers send transports, auction runs, service department tows and trade-ins. They're often a good fit for card on file and auto-billing at agreed prices, since the work is predictable.

Dealers may want the stock number or a reference in the notes. If they ask for it, capture it on every call; it's the difference between an invoice that gets approved in a day and one that sits until someone figures out which car it was.

Keep dealer calls under the dealer account so you can show them their full history whenever they ask.

Watch for dealers who bundle several transports into one request. Log each vehicle as its own call so each one has its own pickup, drop-off, vehicle details and photos, and the dealer can match every charge to a unit.

Property Managers

Property managers call for private-property tows, abandoned vehicles and sometimes resident breakdowns. The billing can vary: some private-property tows are billed to the vehicle owner at release, under local rules, while other work is billed to the property manager.

Note the property address and who authorized the tow on every call. If a resident complains to the property manager, both of you can see exactly what happened.

Private-property towing is often heavily regulated, so check your local rules on signage, authorization and what can be charged.

Payment Terms That Work

Accounts generally pay by one of three methods: card on file with auto-billing, invoices paid online, or invoices paid on agreed terms. Pick the one that fits the account and write it down.

Send invoices promptly, even if the account pays on terms. An invoice sent the day of the call gets into their system sooner, and their payment clock starts sooner too.

Automated payment follow-ups work for accounts too. A friendly reminder with a link to pay keeps invoices from sliding past the agreed terms.

For accounts on terms, track the agreed terms against how they actually pay. An account that agreed to pay in two weeks but routinely takes two months has changed the deal without telling you.

Reviewing Account Health

Every month, look at each account: how many calls they sent, what they were invoiced and what they still owe. An account that sends lots of work but pays slowly may be costing you more than it seems.

Look at which accounts generate disputes, too. A body shop that questions every invoice may need a different process, such as estimates approved online before transports, or simply clearer line items on every call.

Organized account billing is what keeps good accounts loyal. To see calls and invoices kept under each account, along with payment tools and reports, visit the towing invoicing software page for TowingBossPro.