Why your final bill exceeds the phone quote — and how to prevent it
Phone quotes in home services are often systematically lower than final
invoices — not because every contractor is dishonest, but because the
incentives reward quoting the narrowest possible version of the job. The
fix isn't finding a saint; it's changing what you ask for: an
identical written scope from every bidder, permits and disposal
stated, and a change-order rule agreed before work starts.
Where the gap comes from
- The scope shrinks on the phone. A "furnace replacement" quote may assume your venting, gas line, and electrical are all reusable. On site, any of them can become a line item. The phone number wasn't a lie — it priced a smaller job than yours.
- Permits and disposal ride outside the number. Gas work requires a permit pulled by a licensed contractor in BC, and old equipment has disposal costs. Quotes that exclude them look cheaper than quotes that include them — until the invoice.
- The visit is the product. In high-competition categories, a low phone number wins the in-home visit, and the in-home visit is where the real (higher) price appears — now anchored against your sunk time.
- Genuine unknowns exist. Some houses really do hide surprises. The difference between a fair contractor and the other kind is whether surprises are priced through an agreed change-order process or appear silently on the final invoice.
The six lines that close the gap
Ask every bidder for the same six things, in writing:
- Fixed scope description (equipment brand and model included);
- Permits: included or not, and who pulls them;
- Old-equipment removal and disposal: included or not;
- What common add-ons would cost if found (venting, gas line, electrical);
- Change-order rule: no extra work without written approval;
- Warranty terms — workmanship separate from manufacturer.
A contractor who answers all six quickly is usually a contractor whose final invoice matches the quote. Hesitation on item 4 or 5 is the tell.
What we're doing about it
We collect real quotes from Metro Vancouver companies using a fixed, identical scenario, and publish the ranges — so you know what the job should cost before the first phone call. See the cost guides (data collection in progress) and our methodology.