Scratched foil at nine in the morning
The team unwraps an anthracite grey frame on the drive and finds a long scratch through the foil on the outside face. Another frame has a sealed unit with a spot of debris inside the glass. The fitter rings the office, the office rings the fabricator, and the fabricator asks for the frame label, photos and the delivery note. The fitter has already binned the wrapping with the label on it, and the photos were taken on his own phone at an angle that does not show much.
The claim drags on. A replacement frame is ordered anyway, because the customer will not accept a scratched frame. Months later nobody knows whether a credit note ever came through.
Why factory faults end up on your bill
Fabricators generally accept genuine manufacturing and transit faults, but they want evidence, and they want it quickly. The fitting team is focused on getting frames in, not on documenting claims, and the office only hears about faults second hand.
- Frames are signed for on delivery without being unwrapped or checked.
- Frame labels and wrapping are thrown away before a claim is made.
- Photos are on personal phones and do not show what the fabricator needs.
- Claims are made by phone and not tracked to an outcome.
- Credit notes are not matched to claims, so unpaid ones are never chased.
What counts as a fabricator fault, and how long you have to report it, are set by your supplier's terms. The flow captures what their terms ask for and flags their deadlines.
What unclaimed faults cost
Every replacement frame or sealed unit you pay for yourself comes straight off the job's margin. A fault found late, or reported without evidence, is easier for the fabricator to decline. The fit is delayed or a return visit is needed while the replacement is made. And without a record you cannot show your fabricator how often a particular fault happens, which is the conversation that gets it fixed at source.
A fault claim flow the fitters can use in a minute
- When frames are delivered or unwrapped, the fitter's app lists the frames on the order and asks for each one to be checked, with a quick fault button per frame.
- Raising a fault prompts for exactly what that fabricator asks for: a photo of the frame label, close and wide photos of the fault, the delivery note and a short description from a list such as scratch, chip, unit fault, missing part or wrong spec.
- The claim is sent to the fabricator in their format, by email or through their portal, with the order and frame references filled in.
- The replacement is tracked like any other order line, and the fit plan is warned if it will not arrive in time.
- Claims show a status: reported, acknowledged, accepted, declined or credited, with reminders when the fabricator goes quiet.
- Credit notes are read from email or your accounts software and matched to the claim, so any unpaid claim is visible.
| Step | By phone | With the claim flow |
|---|---|---|
| Evidence | Whatever photos exist | Label, fault and delivery note captured on the spot |
| Reporting | Phone call from the office | Claim sent in the fabricator's format |
| Replacement | Ordered and hoped for | Tracked against the fit date |
| Credit | Assumed | Matched to the claim, or chased |
What changes with your fabricators
Claims go in on the day the fault is found, with the evidence the fabricator asks for, which makes them quicker to agree. Replacements are tracked, so fits are rebooked in good time. Credit notes are matched, and the unpaid ones are chased rather than forgotten. And a monthly list of faults by fabricator and fault type gives you a factual basis for the next account review.
Fitters benefit too. They are not blamed for damage that left the factory that way, because the photos and the delivery check show when it was found.
Is this where your margin leaks?
- You have paid for replacement frames that were faulty on arrival.
- Frame labels are thrown away before faults are reported.
- Fault claims are made by phone with no record of the outcome.
- You cannot say which claims were credited and which were not.