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Creating Bill Codes

Bill codes are used to specify how or if a customer is billed for labor, parts, supplies, or travel charges on a service call as well as sales transactions. Bill codes are assigned to equipment and to service contracts. On a service contract a bill code can be assigned at two levels, the contract level and the equipment level. When a service call or a supply order is entered, e-automate looks on the service contract for an appropriate bill code if the equipment is covered on a contract. First it looks at the contract equipment level and then at the contract level. If a contract level equipment bill code is found, e-automate uses the bill code found, if not, it looks at the contract level for the bill code. If the equipment is not covered on a contract, then e-automate attempts to get a bill code from the equipment record.

The bill code defines regular and overtime rates for labor, as well as a base amount, hourly rate, or mileage rate for travel. The bill code can also identify which items are provided at no charge. The bill code uses service codes to identify groups of items that are covered or not covered under a bill code. When inventory items are set up, you assign a service code to the inventory item. By creating bill codes with service codes covered or not covered, e-automate knows how to tell which items are provided under contract. By including a service code on a bill code, you include all the items assigned that service code. In addition to identifying labor, travel, and item coverage, the bill code also identifies the appropriate accounts that should be used for labor, travel, and for covered items on a service call.

There are two different kinds of bill codes, Advanced Bill Codes and Standard bill codes. Advanced bill codes offer additional functionality not offered by standard bill codes. Advanced bill codes are composed of other codes in e-automate that you use to define your accounting, labor, travel, parts, and supply coverage. The following is a list of the codes that comprise an advanced bill code:

Billing Account Code: You use the billing account code to identify general ledger accounts and departments that are used when you post labor charges and costs, travel charges and costs, miscellaneous charges, and items costs. For additional information on Billing Account Codes, see Creating Billing Account Codes.

Billing Labor Code: You use the billing labor code to identify labor rates for regular hours as well as overtime hours. You can specify a minimum number of hours as well if you want to bill in increments after the minimum number of hours. You can also use the billing labor code to identify alternate rates for different activities that can be performed during a service call by using the activity code rate overrides. For additional information on billing labor codes, see Creating Billing Labor Codes.

Billing Travel Code: You use the billing travel code to identify travel rates for travel on service calls. You can identify a base rate which is a flat rate for the travel, an hourly rate, or a mileage rate. You can use any of the three or any combination of the three. You can also configure the billing travel code to bill in increments as well. For additional information on billing travel codes, see Creating Billing Travel Codes.

Billing Parts Coverage Code: You use the billing parts coverage code to identify parts categorized service codes that are provided under the bill code to which the billing parts coverage code is assigned. When you create billing parts coverage codes, e-automate lists all the parts service codes in the window. You identify which of the codes are covered and which are allowed. The ability to disallow is contingent on the filters that are used on service calls and sales transactions. In addition to identifying covered and allowed parts service codes, you can also identify item exceptions, which are items that would be charged to the customer even though the service code for the item is on the billing parts coverage code as covered.

Billing Supply Coverage Code: You use the billing supply coverage code to identify supply categorized service codes that are provided under the bill code to which the billing supply coverage code is assigned. When you create billing supply coverage codes, e-automate lists all the supply service codes in the window. You identify which of the codes are covered and which are allowed. The ability to disallow is contingent on the filters that are used on service calls, sales transactions and e-info. In addition to identifying covered and allowed supply service codes you can also identify item exceptions, items that would be charged to the customer even though the service code for the item is on the billing supply coverage code as covered. This functionality assumes you have organized your service codes to be able to take advantage of the ability of the billing supply coverage code to include or exclude certain kinds of items. For example, you may consider configuring your service codes to allow you to group OEM and compatible base on the contract you offer.

Prior to creating an advanced bill code, you should have created the prerequisite codes that comprise the advanced bill code. If you have not created the appropriate codes when creating an advanced bill code, you can create them on the fly using the down arrow menus available on the advanced bill code fields. Once you have identified all the codes on the advanced bill code, you can use the Test coverage codes button to test your defined coverage to assure that they meet your contract needs before putting your advanced bill code in production.

All the bill codes in e-automate can be considered advanced bill codes, but you can simplify your interface to bill codes by using the standard bill code. A standard bill code takes the complexity out of advanced bill codes and simplifies and hides the complexity of the e-automate interface. If you do not bill incrementally on labor and travel, or if you do not have item exceptions on parts or supplies, and you simply need to identify covered service codes, you can use the standard bill code interface. In the event that your needs change, you can convert a standard bill code to an advanced bill code, although once switched the bill code can never return to a standard bill code; you cannot switch back and forth between standard and advanced bill codes. When using standard bill codes, you are still required to identify the billing account code for the bill code but the other codes are hidden from view and filtered out so you do not have to see them. Once a standard bill code becomes an advanced bill code, e-automate automatically displays the constituent codes of billing labor code, billing travel code, billing parts coverage code, and billing supply coverage code in the e-automate interface as well as the appropriate list windows.

The best practice recommendation is that all equipment should have a bill code that is a time and materials configured bill code. Placing a time and materials bill code on equipment protects the dealer from equipment accidentally falling off a contract and not being charged. When you log a service call for any equipment, e-automate first looks to see if the equipment is covered under contract. If so, e-automate draws the bill code from the contract; if not, it draws the bill code from the equipment record.

Getting to the TransactionGetting to the Transaction

From the Tools menu, select Lists and Codes to open the Lists and Codes window.

In the Select a list or code type field, use the drop-down menu to select Bill codes.

Click [New] to open the New Bill Code window.

Basic InformationBasic Information

Complete the following fields as appropriate:

Bill code: Name of the bill code being created.

Description: Brief description of the bill code being created.

Billing account code: Use the lookup icon to select the billing account code to associate with this bill code. This code associates the appropriate general ledger accounts with this bill code. For additional information see, Creating Billing Account Codes.

Do ONE of the following:

To create a standard bill code, do the following:

In the Type field, verify the Standard type is identified. If necessary, use the drop down menu to select Standard.

Complete the following fields as appropriate:
Standard rate: Base amount per hour you charge for labor on service calls using this bill code.
Overtime rate: Amount you charge per hour for time outside the company hours code associated with the service call.
Note: The hours identified on the contract, technician record, or company options are used by e-automate to determine overtime status.
Minimum hours: Minimum numbers of hours for which the customer will be charged for a service call using this bill code, regardless of how long the technician actually spent on the call.
Note: E-automate still costs the call at the actual hours.
Base rate: Flat travel charge per service call.
Hourly rate: Amount you charge per hour of technician travel time on service calls using this bill code.
Mileage rate: Amount you charge per mile for technician travel on service calls using this bill code.

In the Service Code field, use the lookup to select a service code to be included when using this bill code.
Note: During a service call, inventory items that are used that have been assigned a service code appearing in the included service codes list, are not charged to the customer but posted as a cost to you. Items assigned to service codes not appearing in the included service codes list are charged to the customer.

Click [QuickAdd] to add the service code to the list.

Repeat steps c and d for each service code to be included when associated with this bill code.
Note: If a group of items is NOT covered, leave service code off the bill code so e-automate charges for those items. If this is a time and materials fully chargeable service code, leave all service codes off the bill code so e-automate charges for all items.

To remove a service code from the list, select the service code and click [Remove].

To create an advanced bill code, do the following:

In the Type field, use the drop down menu to select Advanced.
Note: The form changes when you select Advanced. Once a bill code is saved as an advanced bill code, it cannot return to being a standard bill code.

In the Billing labor code field, use the lookup to select a labor code defined how you want to bill labor on calls associated with this bill code.
Note: Before you can create an advanced bill code you must first create the billing labor code you intend to associate with the bill code. You can also use the down arrow menu in the Billing labor code field to create a new billing labor code while creating a bill code.

In the Billing travel code field, use the lookup to select a travel code defined how you want to bill travel on calls associated with this bill code.
Note: Before you can create an advanced bill code you must first create the billing travel code you intend to associate with the bill code. You can also use the down arrow menu in the Billing travel code field to create a new billing travel code while creating a bill code.

In the Parts coverage code field, use the lookup to select a parts coverage code. The parts coverage code defines which parts are chargeable and which parts are provided under a bill code.
Note: Before you can create an advanced bill code you must first create the billing parts coverage code you intend to associate with the bill code. You can also use the down arrow menu in the Parts coverage code field to create a new billing parts coverage code while creating a bill code.

In the Supplies coverage code field, use the lookup to select a supplies coverage code. The supplies coverage code defines which supplies are chargeable and which parts are provided under a bill code. Note: Before you can create an advanced bill code you must first create the billing supplies coverage code you intend to associate with the bill code. You can also use the down arrow menu in the Supplies coverage code field to create a new billing supplies coverage code while creating a bill code.

Optional: To review the details associated with a labor code, click the Labor tab to bring it forward for review. You can review the details for travel, parts, and supplies by clicking on the appropriate tab.

Optional: You can test your coverage codes after you have saved the bill code by clicking [Test coverage codes]. If you want to test this coverage code, save it, then select it from the list and click [Edit]. Click the [Test coverage codes] button.

In the Bill code field, use the lookup to select the bill code being created.

In the Equipment field, use the lookup to select the equipment you want to preview the billing coverage.

Click [Close] to return to the Edit Bill Code window.

Completing the TransactionCompleting the Transaction

Click [OK] to save the bill code.
Note: If you change any labor and/or travel rate information when editing a bill code, the system displays the message: "Existing transactions will use the previous billing configuration. All future transactions will use the new billing configuration." Click [OK] to acknowledge that the changes you made to this bill code will apply to any future calls created using the bill code but will not apply to any existing calls previously created using the bill code.

For more information on creating bill codes, see Additional Info - Bill Code Filter in Sales and Additional Info - Bill Code Selection Order.

TroubleshootingTroubleshooting

Customer Is Charged for an Item in ErrorCustomer Is Charged for an Item in Error

If a customer is charged for an item in error during a service call, check to see if the item’s service code is listed on the Standard bill code in the Service codes included in this bill code region of the bill code on the service call. If the bill code assigned to the service call is an advanced bill code, check the service code on either the parts coverage code or the supplies coverage code to see if the covered column is checked.

Customer Is Not Charged for Service on Equipment After the Contract ExpiresCustomer Is Not Charged for Service on Equipment After the Contract Expires

A selection order is used by e-automate for selecting a bill code for a service call. Occasionally dealers mistakenly put the same bill code on the equipment that they have on the contract. When the equipment comes off contract, e-automate does not charge because the equipment does not have a time and materials configured bill code. Best practice recommendation is that all equipment has a time and materials bill code on the equipment record.

Contract Bill CodesContract Bill Codes

If all equipment on a contract is covered in the same manner, dealers should enter one main bill code on the contract in the Contract bill code field. The Contract bill code field on the contract covers all equipment on the contract in the same way except for contract equipment with bill codes individually assigned. You should add an individual contract equipment bill code only for equipment covered differently from the contract bill code.