How to read a commercial waste invoice, line by line

A commercial waste invoice usually fits on one page. That is part of the problem: it looks simple, it gets approved quickly, and the same charges repeat month after month. Reading it properly means asking one question about every line: which clause of our contract allows this?

The service lines

Base service. The core charge for a container of a given size, emptied on a set schedule, for example a 6-yard front-load container three times a week. Check the size, the frequency and the rate against the contract’s service schedule.

Lifts or pulls. The number of times a container was emptied in the period. More lifts than the schedule calls for should match an extra-pickup request. Fewer lifts may be owed a credit.

Recycling. Often billed separately, sometimes with contamination charges when the wrong material ends up in the container.

Extra pickups and overages. Charges for service beyond the schedule, or for overfilled containers. They should be occasional, documented and priced as the contract says.

The percentage lines

Fuel and environmental recovery. A surcharge calculated as a percentage of the service charges. It may be allowed, capped or not mentioned at all in your agreement. Because it is a percentage, it grows every time the base rate grows.

Rate adjustments. Annual increases, often tied to a consumer price index or a fixed percentage. Check the increase against the contract’s cap and make sure it applies on the contract’s anniversary, not whenever the hauler chooses.

The fixed fees

Container rental. Rent for containers the hauler owns. If the property bought its containers, there should be no rent.

Administrative and paper invoice fees. Small monthly charges for processing or for mailing a paper bill. Small does not mean allowed: if the contract does not list them, ask.

Late fees. Should follow the payment terms in the contract.

The lines that are often legitimate

Some charges are required pass-throughs: taxes, and in some cities and counties franchise or regulatory fees set by the local government. The point is not that every fee is wrong. It is that every fee should trace back to something: the contract, or the law.

A simple worksheet

Invoice line	Contract clause	Allowed?	A month
6-yd front-load, 3x weekly	Schedule A	Yes	$1,236.04
4-yd recycling, 1x weekly	Schedule A	Yes	$286.00
Fuel and environmental, 18.5% of $1,522.04	None found	Flag	$281.58
Rate adjustment, 7.4%	Cap of 3%	Partly	$91.47 billed, $54.39 over
Container lease, 2 units	Owned containers	Flag	$90.00
Paper invoice fee	Electronic billing at no charge	Flag	$14.95

Illustrative figures from a sample invoice.

Right-sizing is a different question

Paying for a container that leaves half empty is not a billing error, it is a service decision. It is worth reviewing, but it should be kept separate from overcharges, because it depends on how the property actually uses the service.

Many of these lines are governed by the contract clauses worth checking. If this worksheet sounds like a lot of reading, that is the job we do. Send one recent invoice, and we will send back every line, the clause behind it and what any overcharge is worth to the building.

Questions