Billing Explanation

Sample Invoice

Click above image for a full-size example
in Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format.

Introduction

Our invoices were designed to be straightforward, clear and easy for our clients to read. Although we hope you will find our bills self-explanatory for the most part, we would like to provide you with the following detailed explanation for your reference.

Please note that the above invoice sample is meant only as an example. You will undoubtedly find that your invoice will differ from this sample, depending on the options and levels of service you chose when you signed up.

Billing Basics

Our service is offered on a month-to-month basis, with no long-term contract required. We send out our invoices towards the end of each month (usually around the 20th). Our goal is to make sure our clients have our bills in hand before the first of the month. The due date will be listed as the 10th of the upcoming month.

The base rate and any pagers or other fixed charges are billed in advance for the upcoming month.

Obviously, we cannot bill in advance for any variable charges (e.g., operator time, patched calls, etc.) because we do not yet know what they will be. And since our bills are usually printed around the 20th, we cannot bill our clients for operator time on a strict calendar month basis. Instead, the data for the variable charges are billed as accrued between the 16th of the previous month and the 15th of the current month (inclusive).

By way of example, a bill sent out on June 20th would include charges for the base rate in July and any operator time used on that account between May 16th and June 15th. The due date in this case would be July 10th.

We charge a standard $5 late fee for any payments received after the due date. If you receive an invoice which shows a $5 previous balance and you paid the last invoice in total, it is because we received your last payment after the 10th and the late fee was applied to your account. Please note that if your company has special circumstances which keep you from being able to pay by the 10th of the month, please contact us and we will try to work out an alternative payment schedule.

Line-by-Line Explanation

Invoice Header/Footer

On the top of your invoice you will find your account name and number, the invoice number, and the date the invoice was printed. Note that the difference between the invoice number ("2658" in our sample invoice above) and the account number ("3842") is important. The account number is a reference to your whole account, and will stay the same from month to month. The invoice number is a reference to this particular invoice and will be unique each month.

If you have a question on your account, please have either of these numbers ready when you call in and we will be able to look up your account quickly. However, when you send in your payment, please either include the payment slip we provide or write your account number on your check (bottom left hand corner, if you want to be extra helpful!). Our check entry system goes by account number, so please do not write the invoice number on your check.

Live Answer Base Rate

The Base Rate is the fixed amount you are billed each month for keeping your account open and able to receive calls. You are billed this amount even if you have no calls.

Voicemail Base Rate and other Fixed Charges

If you have Voicemail service with us, you will also be billed a base rate that will depend upon the type of service you have (Voicemail Only, Voicemail Tree, or Voicemail with Operator-on-Demand).

For both Voicemail customers and Live Answering Service customers who make use of voicemail, your base rate will include a certain number of boxes. If you have more boxes, you are billed a fixed amount per box each month. Both the number of boxes which are included and the charge for each box over this amount will be clearly itemized on your invoice.

Variable Charges

For Live Answering Service and Voicemail with Operator-on-Demand customers, variable charges will be billed in addition to your Base Rate. This charge based on how much work was involved in servicing your account for that period.

For most of our customers, this is based on Operator Time. Operator Time is tracked by our computer and is billed by the amount of actual on-line operator time only (calls are not “rounded up “). Thus a 12 second call is billed at 12 seconds, a 36 second call is billed at 36 seconds, etc.

If you'd like a rough estimate of how much an average call will cost, you can figure it as follows: The average call lasts about ½ minute, so if your rate is $0.95/minute (just an example, your rate may vary) this charge is roughly 47½ ¢ per call. Note that you are never charged for a call that lasts less than 6 seconds (1/10th of a min.). This is to avoid charging you for hang-ups, wrong numbers, etc. Additionally, you are not charged for any hold time, time our computer spends sending you faxes and alphanumeric pages, or access to our voicemail (if you chose to make use of it).

We also bill for Patched Calls. A patched call occurs when we have an urgent call for you and, due to your instructions or the fact that the caller is at a number he/she cannot be called back at, we hold the caller on the line then call you at another number and offer to “patch” the call through if you wish to take it. To avoid this charge, simply instruct us not to patch calls.

Pagers

Pager service from us comes in two forms: Lease; and Airtime Only.

If you lease a pager, you are paying for leasing the equipment (i.e., the pager) and a monthly service charge for pager airtime. When you lease a pager from us, we also provide service on the pager (exclusive of any abuse or misuse of the equipment, e.g., water damage).

If you pay for airtime only, you have bought and own the equipment and are paying for airtime only. We are not responsible for anything except making sure the pager number is activated and the paging company is transmitting the messages to it. Whether or not your pager is functioning is your responsibility.

Miscellaneous Charges

New accounts are billed a Setup Fee (currently $15.00), which is a one-time charge that only appears on your first bill. New customers may also notice a pro-rated amount for the base rate (and any pagers, if applicable) which covers a partial month (usually, from the date their free trial week ended to the end of the previous month). This will be clearly labeled as such, along with the dates covered.

Taxes and Assessments

Sales tax is applied to all charges for our customers in Texas. If you are outside of Texas, or are otherwise exempt from Texas State sales tax, please contact our billing department.

There are two other state taxes which may appear on your invoice. The Texas Telecommunications Infrastructure Fund Assessment is a tax on telecommunications providers (i.e., VLC) and we simply pass this cost on to you (The Texas Legislature gets to say they didn't raise taxes! Who would have thought producers would pass a cost on to consumers? What planet are these guys from, anyway?). The Universal Service Fund is a similar "stealth tax." Don't worry though, the State assures us the money is going to good causes.

Both of these are not applicable to live service (base rate or operator time), but are fully applicable to voicemail and pager charges.

Email our billing department if you have any questions not covered here!

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