ACT what do you think?

[Anonymous]

I am new to business of anykind.Do you think it would be a good idea for me to use a company such as ACT to do the billing, ,and they get like 15.00 out of the repair payment.I hear that at first it is a good idea.Let me know what you think.I am excited to get going and want to do it right.

thanks
tooldini (jeff)

[Anonymous]

tooldini,

If you don't mind giving up a portion of your hard earned dollars to a third party, then by all means this route will eliminate some of the aggravation and hassles you would be confronted with doing it yourself. It only takes a little extra effort on your part to do it yourself and be in full control of your bushiness and your profits. That processing fee could add up to a significant portion of your overall income.

I personally decided not to follow the path of least resistance and do it myself with direct billing. I sure am glad I did. It was not easy and I stumbled a few times but the learning experiences are invaluable. I work to hard for my money to take the easy way out when it comes time to collect it. This was just what I thought would be best for me. You will have to decide what best meets your needs. Remember if you try to do it yourself and find it to be to much of a hassle you can always fall back on having a third party do it. If you go with a third party or network first you may be bound by a contract to certain criteria such as duration of said contract and pricing. This may hinder you ability to fall back on doing it yourself later. Good luck with which ever method best meets your needs.


Pay it foward,

Brian
www.safeglasstechnologies.com

[email]"info@safeglasstechnologies.com"[/email][/email]

[Anonymous]

You make some good points I had heard from somebody on here that if your new to the business sometimes insurance companies don't wanna pay.Is this true?I will check into the billing company some more to see about contracts or what ever may be involved.You may be right that 15.00 per job can really add up.

thanks
tooldini(Jeff)

[Guest]

At the risk of starting another insurance billing debate, there are other options besides direct billing and ACT. You could check out datatranz for example, which is only about $1-$2 per repair...

There are a few of them out there, and they vary from extremes. On one extreme, there is ACT, which is expensive but very simple, all the way to direct billing, which is free, but can be time consuming.

There is no one right answer, just different options based on what you are looking for.

Jeff Higgins
Delta Kits, Inc.
[email]"jhiggins@deltakits.com"[/email]
www.deltakits.com

[Anonymous]

tooldini,

Delta Kits is correct. There are two ends of the scale with options in between and as I stated you will have to decide what best meets your business plan. Direct billing is the route I thought would provide my company with the most flexibility if needed in the future. It has and continues to work well for me so I will not try to reinvent the wheel just yet. My main goal was not to guide you in a paticular direction or format of billing. It was to supply you with some food for thought becuase what might be right for you now might not be right for you tomorrow and that same choice that you make now might affect you ability to shift gears tomorrow limiting your flexibility. Explore all your options and make an educated decision based on your current needs while trying to envision what the future might bring.

PS. My answer to your question is " I don't think the insurance companies care if you are new, old or their best friend...they don't like to pay period." Don't take it personal, its business and emotion or feelings are not part of the equation. It is sad but it's that simple. The days of handshake contracts and your word is your bond are all but long gone. Not trying to be negative just realistic.

Good luck with your decision.


Pay it foward,

Brian
www.safeglasstechnologies.com

[email]"info@safeglasstechnologies.com"[/email][/email]

[Anonymous]

I have been using Data Tranz for the last 6 weeks...............Between wsr and replacement they have processed atleast 65 or 70 invoices for me................I am very very happy with them.

[Anonymous]

IF the insured, calls their insurance company, reports the damage, receives a claim # and informs the insurance company that I will be doing the repair, would not this claim # (in essence) be construed as the equivalent of a Purchase Order #?

[Anonymous]

DaveC,

I guess you could look at it that way or consider it a pre approval work authorization. Remember though, in most cases when the customer calls their so called insurance company (Allstate, State Farm) they are really talking to a representative that portrays themselves as their insurance company but it is really the network that has been contracted to handle and process their glass claims. (Safelite, Lynx)

There might be some small insurance companies that have not opted to use the networks to process their glass claims though and the insured might actually get a claim number from the company that issued their insurance policy.

PS. The only dumb question is the one that does not get asked.


Pay it foward,

Brian
www.safeglasstechnologies.com

[email]"info@safeglasstechnologies.com"[/email][/email]

[Anonymous]

be it a safelite/lynx/company issued number, provided my invoice ultimately winds up in the right place, with the right information, I can only assume that I will eventually either get paid, or be notified of a reason for non-payment?

My concern is really not acceleration of receivables. In my "full-time" business I am used to running a range of anything from pre-paid to 180+ days (the Federal Government, of course

As an aside, whilst I am in process of packing up my household, office and critters for relocation to Tennessee, would you have any objection to my (in my spare time) creating an online database, based upon the info/list that you gathered and posted here at Deltakits? I would certainly keep it as public domain, but it would be very easy to instantly search/update/modify/delete records.

[Anonymous]

DaveC,

Yes, that is correct with what ever method you chose for billing. If you have all the information they need to accurately process your invoice, technically it should be paid with no hitches. That is not always the case though, they love to sit on their money as long as they can. (Interest my friend,interest).Since you are used to waiting for your money I have found most of my invoices to be paid between 30-45 days.

Aside from the typical invoice information I suggest you add your EIN#, and a customer satisfied signature. This will help eliminate any unnecessary kickbacks.

As far as that Insurance list is concerned. I cannot take credit for compiling it, only posting it. The man who created the list "Rock Chip Rich" has taken a different career path and there was a demand for the list so I posted it for all to benefit from. DELTA KITS has put it on their website as public domain.
I don't use the list as I usually get my insurance information of the customers insurance card. The list is old and probably needs some updating so by all means if you want to enhance the list go for it as it will help many.


Pay it foward,

Brian
www.safeglasstechnologies.com

[email]"info@safeglasstechnologies.com"[/email][/email]