Guide
Questions to ask before you sign
The same handful of questions surfaces the expensive terms in almost every category. None of them is about price.
How long is the contract, and what is the notice period?
Ask for both numbers and the exact date by which notice must be given. Long terms with short, strictly enforced notice windows are the standard structure in commercial waste, vehicle tracking and alarm monitoring, and missing the window by a week can roll you into another full term.
Write the notice date into a calendar on the day you sign. That single habit saves more money than any negotiation.
Does it renew automatically, and can the price rise?
Automatic renewal plus an uncapped annual increase is the combination to watch for. A competitive year-one price with an unlimited uplift clause is not a competitive contract; it is a competitive first year.
Ask whether increases are capped, and to what — a fixed percentage, or an index. Get the answer in the contract rather than in an email.
What is not included?
Ask it that way round. Suppliers describe what is included accurately and describe what is excluded vaguely. The expensive exclusions are usually: callouts, corrections, additional items, out-of-hours work, year-end tasks, and anything described as ad hoc.
Who owns it at the end?
This matters wherever hardware or intellectual property is involved. Who owns the tracking units, the alarm panel, the website, the domain name, the payroll data? If the answer is the supplier, you are not comparing like with like against a quote where the answer is you.
What happens if I want to leave?
Ask for the early termination charge, and ask how your data or equipment comes back. A payroll bureau should hand over your history in a usable format. A tracking provider should say whether the hardware can be re-monitored elsewhere or is locked to them.
Who are you regulated by, and can I check?
Whether it is the SRA for a solicitor, the HCPC for an audiologist, MCS for a solar installer, the NSI or SSAIB for a security firm, or Environment Agency carrier registration for a waste contractor, the register is public and free. Check the certificate, not the logo on the van or the badge in the website footer.
Can I have that in writing?
Every answer above. Verbal assurances during a sales visit are not terms, and the person giving them is frequently not the person who will honour them.
Common questions
Is it rude to ask all of this?
No, and a good supplier will answer without hesitation because they have answered it before. Reluctance to put an answer in writing is itself the answer.
What if the contract is a standard template they cannot change?
Often true, particularly with larger suppliers. It does not stop you knowing what is in it, and it may still be negotiable on term length or the cap on increases.
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