Getting a supplier price list or schedule of rates agreed
An agreed rate turns "that seems expensive" into "that's more than we agreed". A schedule of rates, or a price list both sides have accepted, is the one document that makes a supplier's invoices checkable line by line. Getting one is mostly a matter of asking, and knowing what to ask for.
In short
- A price list both sides have accepted turns "that seems expensive" into "that's more than we agreed".
- It needs each item and code, the unit, the rate and whether it includes GST, the dates it applies, price breaks, the charges on top and how prices can change.
- If the supplier won't write one, send yours, built from their recent invoices, and ask them to confirm it.
Why it's worth the effort
The guidance on business.gov.au suggests documenting the terms you negotiate with a supplier as a written contract, to minimise disagreements about each side's rights and responsibilities. For invoices, the term that matters most is the price. With rates in writing, a price above them is a difference you can show the supplier, not a matter of opinion.(business.gov.au: Suppliers)
What it should contain
A schedule you can check invoices against, line by line, has:
- each item, with the supplier's product code where they use one, so invoice lines can be matched to it
- the unit each rate is per (each, metre, length, sheet, bag, cubic metre, tonne, hour, day or week), for every item
- the rate, and whether it includes GST (rates excluding GST are easier to check)
- the date it applies from, and the date it ends or is reviewed
- any price breaks for larger quantities, and the quantity each one starts at
- the charges on top: delivery, fuel levies, small-order or minimum-load fees and pallet deposits, and for hire, the period each rate covers and any minimum hire
- whether the price changes by job, site or delivery zone
- rise and fall: whether prices can change during the term, how much notice the supplier gives, and how any change is worked out
Getting the supplier to agree it
Ask when you open an account or start a job, while there's work on the table to negotiate with. If the supplier won't write a schedule, send them yours: the rates from their recent invoices or their quote, set out as above, and ask them to confirm it. The schedule of rates guide covers building one from invoices you've paid.
Keep their acceptance with the schedule, whether it's a signed copy or an email saying the rates are right.
Holding suppliers to it
Check each invoice's lines against the rates in force on the invoice date, not the date you pay it. When a rate doesn't match, send the supplier the agreed rate, the line on their invoice and the difference: evidence they can check for themselves is the quickest way to a credit note.
When the schedule ends or the supplier gives notice of new prices, get the new rates in writing before they appear on invoices. An invoice dated after the old schedule ended has no agreed rate to check against, however close the old one was.
The same guidance suggests keeping records of your communication with suppliers, which help if a disagreement goes further. Keep each notice of a price change with the schedule it changes.(business.gov.au: Suppliers)
How CostCode uses an agreed schedule
Load a supplier's schedule into CostCode from an Excel workbook, a CSV, or a PDF price list or quote: you map the columns, review every row, and nothing is saved until you confirm. From then on each invoice line is checked against the rate in force on the invoice date, at the right price break, and the lines of an invoice dated outside the schedule's dates show as unverified rather than being held against an old rate.
A schedule built from your own invoices is checked against too, but it's your record of what you paid, not the supplier's promise, so what it finds stays with your team until the supplier has confirmed it. An owner or admin can ask the supplier to confirm it through a link CostCode emails them. That email goes only when that person presses the button, and only while supplier email is turned on.
A query about a rate quotes only what the supplier can check, such as the agreed rate and the line on their own invoice, and goes only when a person in your team reads it and presses send.
Questions
What's the difference between a price list and a schedule of rates?
A price list is usually a supplier's standard prices; a schedule of rates is the prices agreed for your business, often for a set period or job. Either works for checking invoices, as long as both sides have accepted it and it says what each rate is per.
What does rise and fall mean in a supply agreement?
A term that lets prices change during the agreement, usually with notice or by a method it sets out. If your schedule has one, keep each notice of a new price with the schedule, so you know which rate was in force on each invoice's date.
What if a supplier won't agree a schedule?
Send them one built from their recent invoices and ask them to confirm it. If they still won't, their invoices show what you've been paying, which is the next best thing to check against.