4 Tips for Managing Demand Billing In Your Rental Software

Arielle Cox

In the equipment rental world, daily, weekly, and monthly billing are the most common options – but there are times when customers don’t want to wait to pay until their next regularly scheduled invoice. In these situations, demand billing can come into play – and it’s crucial that both sales reps and rental coordinators understand how it works and when to use it.

What is Demand Billing?

Demand billing lets you generate ad-hoc invoices outside of your typical rental cycle. For instance, a 28-day billing cycle is a common example. If your contracts are set up for a 28-day cycle but the customer says they need an invoice for everything they have out on rent through the 15th of the month, demand billing lets you generate a bill before it is technically scheduled.

When Do Rental Companies Tend to Use Demand Billing?

There are a few main scenarios where demand billing comes in handy.

1. A customer is trying to get ahead on their Accounts Payable – For instance, their accountant may be going out of office for a few weeks and they want to have everything processed before taking time off.
2. It’s the end of the year - Some companies want all the revenue for that year to hit before starting fresh in a new year, even if December 31 doesn’t make for a complete rental period.
3. A sales rep found a reservation from two months ago – This contract will need to be backdated to get it up to date. The contract will eventually catch up to its original cycle bill on its own, but you don’t want to leave your customer in a bind or confused as to where this charge came from. One demand bill with a brief explanation gets all parties caught up and on the same page.
4. You’re trying to catch up on outstanding A/R – Perhaps a customer has a lot of outstanding contracts that they haven’t been paying, and now you’re escalating your attempts to collect. Using demand billing, you can produce a bill for all the unpaid dates for a long-term total.

What Sales Reps and Rental Coordinators Need to Know About Demand Billing

InTempo’s rental accounting software is designed to make demand billing straightforward.

1. The date you enter for the ‘Bill Through’ date will take precedence over the existing billing cycle. It can be 1 day or 1000 days – whatever the customer needs.
2. If billing past the current date, change the ‘Last Billed Prior To’ date. If today has already been billed for a specific contract, the system will not allow you to bill again for the same date. This ensures you don’t “double dip” and re-charge for the same period.
3. When you type in a customer’s name, the system brings up all the contracts that can be billed. You can select any combination of contracts to demand bill (for instance, if a contractor wants to pay all their open contracts for equipment at one of three different jobsites), or you can select them all.
4. Setting a control record allows you to set a limit to how many days forward or backward users can adjust their requests. Our team can manage this process for you to make your life easier.

Need Help Setting Up Demand Billing for Your Rental Business?

See how InTempo’s rental software can help you simplify demand billing and better manage your financials. Request a demo or contact our team to learn more.