Copier Contracts and Upcharges

Are Contracts Really Honest?

I have been looking at some contracts from local companies here and have noticed a disturbing new trend.  In the old days it would seem there would be a disclaimer of some type which would essentially say, “We reserve the right to raise your contract rate by 5% per year to accomodate for inflation, etc…”  Anyway, the copier companies would pretty much ALWAYS charge the 5%.  Now 2 new things are beginning to show up.

1. Companies are increasing the small print rate increases from 5% to 10% or even 15% in some cases!  This is brutal because when you start at $200 a month during year one, the same copier can cost  $350.00 in year 5 for the same equipment!  What can you do?  MAKE SURE YOU READ THE FINE PRINT TO SEE IF THE RATES CAN GO UP…  IF THEY CAN, THEY GENERALLY WILL!
2. Companies have been warned a bit about #1, so some of the saavy copier people have tried a new trick.  They won’t put a number on the page, they’ll just say that they have the right to renegotiate the terms at the 3rd year.  Now, this is not as bad sounding, but what happens is they’ll come up with a new number and the likelihood is that it will be the same as #1, except now they can’t be accused of planning to charge a bunch more, they can claim it was “market conditions.”

Those are 2 scary new trends you as a consumer need to know about.  If you are looking for a simple copier buying experience in Denver, please give us a call!