The job card, from inspection to invoice

What does this tour show?

It shows a car going through bay 1, from the moment the fitter checks the tyres at ten o'clock to the invoice fifty minutes later. The job card holds the whole visit: tread on every corner, which tyres come off the rack, the quote the customer approves on their phone, and the invoice at the end.

The job card solves the hardest part of tyre work, which is not fitting tyres but agreeing what to fit. A customer who drops off the car and goes to work does not want a phone call that starts "we found some problems". They want to see why, see the price and say yes or no in their own time. The fitter, meanwhile, needs to know approval came before the old tyres come off.

What does the job card show for this car?

The fitter's readings for the sample hatchback, size 195/65 R15:

And the quote that goes to the customer:

The sample business is not VAT-registered, so its VAT line is zero. A registered centre would see its own rate worked out on each line.

Step by step

1. Open the job card for the car in the bay. It shows the bay and the vehicle. Everything that follows is recorded on this one card.
2. Inspect every corner. For each wheel, save the inner, centre and outer tread in millimetres, with any damage notes. It takes a minute with a gauge and makes the quote easy to justify.
3. Read the marks. Each tyre shows Good, Watch or Replace. The two fronts at 2.1 mm and 2.4 mm are Replace; the rear right at 3.1 mm is Watch. The customer sees why, not just a price.
4. Choose the tyres to fit. Under Tyres to fit, the front axle takes two tyres. The job picks from the oldest DOT lot, DOT 1825, and copies that date code onto the record.
5. Check the other lots. Other lots on the shelf (DOT 0326 and DOT 2226 in the sample) are listed. They wait their turn.
6. Build the quote. The tyres, fitting with balancing and valve, and disposal of the old tyres, with the total.
7. Send the quote by WhatsApp or SMS. The customer gets a link, ticks the work they want and approves it on their phone. The card shows Quote approved, sent by WhatsApp and approved from the link.
8. Fit the tyres. Only now do the old tyres come off. Fit, balance and torque the wheels in the usual way.
9. Create invoice. When the work is done, the job card raises the invoice from its lines. Print job sheet is there too if the workshop wants paper.
10. Take payment. Once the invoice is paid, the job moves to Paid and the bay is free for the next car.

Why get approval from a link instead of a phone call?

A call interrupts the customer, relies on memory and leaves no record. A link lets them look at the readings and the price when it suits them, approve only the work they want (perhaps the fronts now and the rear right next month), and leaves a clear record that they said yes. If they ever question the bill, the approval is on the job card. It also speeds up the bay: the fitter can start the next inspection instead of waiting by the phone.

What if the customer approves only part of the quote?

Fit only what they approved, and note the rest. In the sample, the customer might approve the two front tyres today and leave the rear right, marked Watch at 3.1 mm, for another visit. That is a perfectly good outcome: the urgent work is done, the customer did not feel pushed, and the reading on the card is a reason to get in touch later. Because the approval came from a link with the lines ticked, there is no confusion at the till about what was agreed. The invoice is raised only for the approved work, and the job card keeps the inspection, so whoever serves the car next time can see what was recommended and when.

Tips in the bay

• Take readings from three points across the tread. Uneven wear tells you about alignment and pressure, which is useful advice for the customer.
• Mark the rear right as Watch and mention it. A customer told today comes back in a few months.
• Do not start removing tyres until the card shows Quote approved.
• If the customer approves only part of the quote, fit only that part. Untick nothing on their behalf.
• Create the invoice as soon as the car is down off the lift, while the details are fresh.

Common mistakes

• Quoting without readings. "You need new tyres" is easy to doubt; "2.1 mm on the front left" is not.
• Taking the newest tyres from the rack. The oldest lot then ages until it is hard to sell.
• Starting work on a verbal yes. Without the approval on the card, a disputed bill is your word against theirs.
• Writing the invoice by hand later. Lines get missed, especially disposal and valves.
• Leaving the job open after payment. The bay view shows a car that has long gone.

What should you do next?

The car is done and paid. The next tour in the day, goods in by DOT date, shows the afternoon delivery arriving and joining the back of the queue behind DOT 1825. To keep payment quick at the end of each job, read how to get invoices paid faster. For setting fitting and disposal charges that cover your time, see how to price products.

How EasyTaskr helps

EasyTaskr's tyre job card records tread on every corner with Good, Watch or Replace, picks tyres from the oldest DOT lot and copies its date code, sends the quote by WhatsApp or SMS for the customer to approve from a link, and raises the invoice from the job with Create invoice.