Forty minutes to look at a fuse board
The enquiry says 'Want a charger fitted, drive at the side, how much?'. You can't price it without knowing where the meter and board are, what the board looks like, the main fuse size, how far the cable runs and whether it goes through a wall or along a fence. So someone drives out, looks for fifteen minutes, drives back, and writes a quote. Half the customers go quiet.
In a busy week, those trips eat a whole day that could have been paid work.
Why a phone call doesn't get you there
Customers don't know what they're looking at. Ask about the consumer unit and you'll get a description of the meter box. Ask about the main fuse and they'll tell you the number on a light switch. Photos help, but untrained photos are often blurry, too close or of the wrong box.
What's missing is a way to ask for the right photos, one at a time, with an example, and to check they are usable before the customer sends them.
| What you need to see | What customers usually send |
|---|---|
| Consumer unit, cover on and off | Meter cupboard from the doorway |
| Main fuse and meter | Nothing, or the wrong box |
| Proposed charger location | The car |
| Cable route from board to location | A description |
| Earthing arrangement at the cut-out | Not asked for |
Timing matters too. EV enquiries often arrive in bursts, when a customer has just ordered a car and wants the charger fitted before it is delivered. A survey diary that is already full means they wait, and a customer with a delivery date will not wait long.
What free surveys cost
Every unnecessary trip is fuel, van time and an electrician not earning. Customers who were only price-checking get a visit they didn't really need. And the ones who were serious wait longer for a quote, which gives competitors a head start.
The survey we build
- Guided steps: the customer follows a phone page that asks for each photo in turn, with an example image and a line of plain instruction.
- Photo checks: an image model checks each photo is in focus and shows roughly the right thing, and asks for a retake if not. It doesn't judge the installation.
- Measurements: the customer draws the cable route on a photo or enters an estimated distance, and answers simple questions about the property.
- Estimator view: your estimator sees all photos, answers and a draft price built from your own rules for cable length, board work and charger model.
- Decision: the estimator quotes, or marks it for a site visit with the reason, and the customer is told which.
- Follow-up: quotes not accepted are followed up at the interval you set, and a booking link goes with the quote.
A day of site visits back
Most straightforward installs can be quoted from the office. Site visits are kept for the ones that really need them, and your estimator arrives already knowing what they're going to see. Customers get a quote faster, and time-wasters drop out before costing you a trip.
Your estimator still decides on every quote. The survey just gets them the facts first.
The photos also help on the day of the install. The electrician fitting the charger sees exactly what the estimator saw, so the right length of cable, the right isolator and any consumer unit parts are on the van before he arrives rather than bought on the way.
Does this match your enquiries?
- Most EV charger enquiries need a site visit before you can quote.
- Many surveyed customers never book.
- Photos customers send are unusable or of the wrong thing.
- Quotes go out slowly because the survey diary is full.
- Estimators price cable runs from rough guesses.