Guide
Forklift service contract or ad hoc: which works out cheaper
Updated
The right answer depends on how much a stopped truck costs you per hour, which is a number most sites have never worked out.
Work out your downtime cost first
Before comparing contracts, put a rough figure on what happens when a truck stops: idle labour, missed loading slots, a hire truck delivered next day, a late delivery penalty. If a stopped truck costs you very little for a day, ad hoc is defensible. If it stops a shift, you are buying response time, and the contract rate is not the number that matters.
The three shapes
| Shape | You pay for | Best when |
|---|---|---|
| Ad hoc | Call-out, labour, parts, and whatever the diary allows | One or two lightly used trucks and a tolerant operation |
| Planned maintenance contract | A fixed number of planned visits; repairs charged on top | Most sites: predictable servicing, visibility of what repairs actually cost |
| Full maintenance | A fixed sum per truck covering servicing, repairs and usually parts | Busy fleets where budget certainty matters more than the lowest total |
Where the exclusions live
- Tyres. Very often out. On rough or contaminated surfaces they are a significant annual cost.
- Damage and misuse. Always out, and the definition is worth reading. Mast damage from a badly stacked rack is not a maintenance item.
- Batteries and chargers on electric fleets, frequently separate.
- Attachments. Clamps, rotators and jibs are often listed separately or not at all.
- The thorough examination. Sometimes included, sometimes an extra line, and sometimes assumed to be someone else's job.
- Out-of-hours attendance. Check the rate before you need it at 2am.
Independent or dealer
Manufacturer dealers bring brand-specific diagnostics, warranty work and genuine parts, and typically a higher rate. Independent engineers cover mixed fleets, are usually more flexible on parts, and are often closer. Neither is automatically right. The questions that separate them are: can they get parts for your specific trucks quickly, will they honour any remaining warranty, and how far away is the nearest engineer on a Monday morning.
Questions that change the price
- How many planned visits a year does this price assume, and on what hours assumption?
- What is the guaranteed response time, and what is the remedy if it is missed?
- What is the labour rate and call-out charge for work outside the contract?
- What is the markup on parts?
- Are tyres, batteries and attachments in or out?
- Is the thorough examination included, and who carries it out?
- What is the term, the notice period, and is the rate fixed for the term?
Ask for a sample thorough examination report and a sample service sheet from any provider you are considering. Documentation quality is the cheapest available signal of how the work is done.