What To Do With A $20,000 Waste Bill
Just a few months ago, one of our clients got an unwelcome surprise. They got their hauler invoice for the month and found that their service rates had increased not 9, not 90, but by 900%!
As you can imagine, they were somewhat less than thrilled.
They didn’t have any service or equipment changes. In fact, nothing had changed.
And yet here they were.
Just a few months ago, one of our clients got an unwelcome surprise. They got their hauler invoice for the month and found that their service rates had increased not 9, not 90, but by 900%!
As you can imagine, they were somewhat less than thrilled.
They didn’t have any service or equipment changes. In fact, nothing had changed.
And yet here they were. They paid a little over $2,000 in April, but found themselves being charged over $20,000 in May.
So naturally, they got in touch with their vendor.
Now I wasn’t there but based on what they told us, I imagine the conversation went something like this:
“Hey guys, Apartment Complex X here. There’s got to be something wrong with our invoice this month - it jumped over $18,000! Can you tell me what’s going on?”
Hauler: “Hmmm. Um, it’s a rate increase.”
“A what?”
Hauler: “A rate increase.”
“You’ve got to be joking. What kind of rate increase entails a 900% jump? That’s ridiculous!””
Hauler: “ Well ma’am, standard price increases are typical and frequently occur after a certain period of time…”
I can’t tell you what I would have said to end this conversation. But I can tell you that Apartment X got in touch with us rapidly.
And their WCI project manager jumped in immediately.
He stayed on the the haulers like a hawk to get a sound answer. After several rounds of calls, the WCI project manager was finally able to speak to someone at this particular hauler’s office who could help. And - surprise, surprise - this person told tell him that the increase was indeed due to an internal error.
But the issue wasn’t all cleared up.
The next month’s invoice came out and was not quite as high, but it was still way off. It wasn’t until the following month’s invoice came out - 2 months after the $20K bill - that the pricing was finally corrected. Our project manager fought for the client at every turn and he didn’t stop until the issue was completely resolved.
What would they have done if they couldn’t have called us? Gone back and forth with their service provider for hours and days and weeks to try to reach a resolution? Paid the invoice? Filed a lawsuit?
But they did call us. They knew we had their backs. We fought on their behalf, and they didn’t have to pay the inaccurate invoices or even accept any sort of rate increase.
This is an extreme example of something that actually happens frequently. We find errors on client bills about 10% of the time. And when we do, we do exactly what we did here - we encourage the provider to correct the invoice.
What would your staff do with an error like this? Would they have the time and resources to devote to it?
We help companies eliminate their waste worries - and prevent overpaying on hauler contracts and invoices. Learn how we can help you by scheduling a free consult today!
Food Distribution Group Slashes Waste Spend by 50%
Not too long ago, Southern Foods was overspending by $38,400 on their waste disposal services.
Not too long ago, Southern Foods was overspending by $38,400 on their waste disposal services.
They didn’t know could add to their bottom line by adding a recycling stream. They didn’t know they were being overserviced. And they didn’t know they were being overcharged!
But they did know that too much time was being spent on monitoring invoices. And they knew that something had to change.
When we came on board, the first thing we did was perform a waste generation survey, or an audit. We looked at their waste sources, their vendors, their contracts, and their invoices. We looked at service levels, at pick-up frequency, and at the dumpsters and roll-offs on site.
Southern Foods was originally paying over $70,000 on waste. We were able to cut that down to $33,600 - a 53% reduction!
We found the gaps in their current waste management process and offered an implementation strategy for results-driven solutions. Our audit revealed that by diverting their recycling materials from their waste stream, they could recoup revenue. The audit also showed they were being serviced too much and were paying for more pick-ups than they needed.
We implemented cost-cutting measures and optimized their service levels, coordinating our efforts with site managers.
Vic Nussbaum was so relieved that his waste worries were gone, he wrote us: “Your thoroughness allowed me to spend time ‘managing’ the operations here at Southern Foods, instead of ‘managing’ our waste bills.”
Vic knew the value not only of protecting his bottom line, but protecting his time. He knew that his time was best allocated to real management. That didn’t include babysitting haulers or reviewing invoices.
He knew that he could trust us because our process was exhaustive. We found incredible savings - and he knew we would do our part to protect those savings by reviewing and monitoring all of his waste invoices.
We’ve helped companies in every industry find relief from their waste worries. Our work levels the playing field: you aren’t subject to price hikes, to contract auto-renewals, or to tacked-on fees. Budgeting for waste expenses becomes easier because you’ll know exactly what you’ll be paying. And ultimately, you have the peace of mind knowing that your resources are allocated appropriately.
How much savings are you sitting on? Find out for free - all of our consults and audits are free. Schedule a no-obligation consultation to see if our services are a fit for you.
What To Do With A $20,000 Waste Bill
Just a few months ago, one of our clients got an unwelcome surprise. They got their hauler invoice for the month and found that their service rates had increased not 9, not 90, but by 900%!
As you can imagine, they were somewhat less than thrilled.
They didn’t have any service or equipment changes. In fact, nothing had changed.
And yet here they were.
Just a few months ago, one of our clients got an unwelcome surprise. They got their hauler invoice for the month and found that their service rates had increased not 9, not 90, but by 900%!
As you can imagine, they were somewhat less than thrilled.
They didn’t have any service or equipment changes. In fact, nothing had changed.
And yet here they were. They paid a little over $2,000 in April, but found themselves being charged over $20,000 in May.
So naturally, they got in touch with their vendor.
Now I wasn’t there but based on what they told us, I imagine the conversation went something like this:
“Hey guys, Apartment Complex X here. There’s got to be something wrong with our invoice this month - it jumped over $18,000! Can you tell me what’s going on?”
Hauler: “Hmmm. Um, it’s a rate increase.”
“A what?”
Hauler: “A rate increase.”
“You’ve got to be joking. What kind of rate increase entails a 900% jump? That’s ridiculous!””
Hauler: “ Well ma’am, standard price increases are typical and frequently occur after a certain period of time…”
I can’t tell you what I would have said to end this conversation. But I can tell you that Apartment X got in touch with us rapidly.
And their WCI project manager jumped in immediately.
He stayed on the the haulers like a hawk to get a sound answer. After several rounds of calls, the WCI project manager was finally able to speak to someone at this particular hauler’s office who could help. And - surprise, surprise - this person told tell him that the increase was indeed due to an internal error.
But the issue wasn’t all cleared up.
The next month’s invoice came out and was not quite as high, but it was still way off. It wasn’t until the following month’s invoice came out - 2 months after the $20K bill - that the pricing was finally corrected. Our project manager fought for the client at every turn and he didn’t stop until the issue was completely resolved.
What would they have done if they couldn’t have called us? Gone back and forth with their service provider for hours and days and weeks to try to reach a resolution? Paid the invoice? Filed a lawsuit?
But they did call us. They knew we had their backs. We fought on their behalf, and they didn’t have to pay the inaccurate invoices or even accept any sort of rate increase.
This is an extreme example of something that actually happens frequently. We find errors on client bills about 10% of the time. And when we do, we do exactly what we did here - we encourage the provider to correct the invoice.
What would your staff do with an error like this? Would they have the time and resources to devote to it?
We help companies eliminate their waste worries - and prevent overpaying on hauler contracts and invoices. Learn how we can help you by scheduling a free consult today!
WCI's Audit Process
We’re serious about finding savings for our clients. So our waste audit process is exhaustive. They show every aspect of a client’s waste spend, and they show us how where to look for savings.
We know that the more thorough the audit, the more peace of mind you’ll have.
Let’s take a few minutes to talk about what our audit process looks like, why it’s unique, and why it’s reliable.
We’re serious about finding savings for our clients. So our waste audit process is exhaustive. They show every aspect of a client’s waste spend, and they show us how where to look for savings.
We know that the more thorough the audit, the more peace of mind you’ll have.
Let’s take a few minutes to talk about what our audit process looks like, why it’s unique, and why it’s reliable.
WCI’s Unique Waste Audit Process
A big reason our waste audit process works so well is that our project managers have over 30 years experience between them in the waste industry. They’ve seen it all, and so they know where to look for savings opportunities.
Our teams leave no stone unturned - and we know they work. We’re disappointed if we can’t find at least 20% of savings on your annual waste spend.
This is where we can really offer value to you, our clients. We take on all the hard work to find you the very best waste management options available to you. And it works. (Tad saved over $6,500 a month on waste expenses!)
What Our Waste Audit Is
What exactly is so exhaustive about what we do? We go through your invoice history for every location for every piece of equipment.
We compile data. We record all benchmark service information, and perform history audits for every piece of equipment that is over 8yds long. We look for and record price fluctuation, increases, and fees. When all the data is in, we analyze. Our analysis shows:
where you’re overspending
what equipment is working and not working
identifies gaps in your service
Where there may be opportunities to introduce technology
the best way you can stop overspending.
Regardless of the whether you have 1 location or 100 locations, we will look at every invoice to make sure no savings opportunities slip through the cracks.
We talk with you. In order to serve you well, we ask you specific questions about how satisfied you are with your current waste and or recycling service levels. If you have a hauler with decent rates who just can’t seem to ever be available when you need him, or who consistently skips pick-ups, that’s not acceptable. In a scenario like this one, we would find a better hauler for you - one who can actually do what he’s agreed to do.
We scour the market. We’ve been in business over 17 years, so we know good hauler rates from bad ones. We know if you’re overpaying - and by how much. We know if we can find you a better hauler, and we know where to look to find them. (Just ask Lisa from Ardmore Residential!)
We scour your hauler contract. We know that areas most people overlook in their contracts. We look at whether your contract allows ancillary fees, whether it regulates price hikes, and how difficult it is for you to end your contract. The more we know about your contact, the easier it is for us to see what your next steps should be to eliminate your waste headaches.
Read about how the audit fits into our Six Step Process .
How Long It Takes
You may be thinking “Man, this must take a while!” And you would be right - it does. The average time for our waste audit completion is 60 - 90 days. We’re thorough.
We don’t do a rush job because that isn’t ultimately what’s best for you or your bottom line. And at the end, we can pinpoint your waste issues - and show you how to solve them.
Post-Waste Audit
After we’ve conducted the waste audit, we create a savings report called the Waste Savings Summary. It shows you exactly where you’re overspending and how we can fix those problems on your behalf.
We talk you through our recommendations, and why we think they would be the best choice for you. Nothing super complicated here - it almost always comes down to a matter of who can provide the best service at the most ideal price point. We never recommend our clients get cheaper haulers who are not, in fact, reliable and trustworthy. We never suggest that they sacrifice quality for price.
Once we’ve discussed the changes with you, we implement them. This means that we renegotiate contracts or find new haulers and services as necessary.
After the changes affect your invoice, we share in the savings with you at a rate of 50%.
Then, we audit your waste disposal bills to make sure they’re accurate, and continue to provide monthly reports that show the on-going effects of the service or contract updates.
Our Audit Process Will Solve Your Waste Headaches
Our waste audit process is thorough because it’s the very best way to end your waste worries. Whether you find yourself drowning in over-priced services, or harried by constant missed pick-ups, there is a solution to your problems.
Schedule a quick, informal call with our CEO, Tyler Brunson today to see how you can benefit from our services.