Business Technology Advisors
Copier Vendors Don't Want You to Know This
01
All Inclusive Agreement
Never agree to the "All Inclusive Agreement" A Sales Representative will sell you hard on how great their All Inclusive Agreement is and will not let up no matter how many times you tell them NO. The reason is this type of agreement is the copier industry's dirty little secrect because it is presented as a "Lease" however; it is really a "Rental"
We speak with clients every day who insist they have a Lease which includes all of the Service and Supplies but a closer look reveals they really signed an "All Inclusive Rental" and it is Non-Cancelable until the End of Term. Even worse, because it is a "Rental" it is subject to annual increases on the entire agreement for as much as 25%
The monthly payment starts out lower because the Term is usually 63 months(5 years) or even longer. We recommend 36 months(3 years) or 48 months(4 years) Terms.
02
Color vs Monochrome(B/W)
A color copier, often referred to as an MFP (Multi Function Product) may sound nice if you need to print in color however; if you only need to print in B/W (Black and White) then don't get color, its just that simple.
Copier vendors will explain their color copiers are no more expensive than B/W which just isn't true. They require four(4) seperate sets of color cartridges (Black, Cyan, Magenta & Yellow) along with four(4) sets of developer, etc... and if one is malfunctioning then typically the entire copier doesn't work.
Copier vendors always default color copiers to Color as they make higher profits on color prints by charging you for a color print (commonly referred to as a "Click") even if there is only spot color for a logo, website or email address. The print drivers loaded are also defaulted to color and before you know it, you receive your first invoice which has thousands of color click overages for hundreds or thousands of dollars.
A sales rep will explain how they can lock color out unless you have user codes setup which they will be happy to set up for you at an additional charge but you first need to pay your current bill or your entire account will be placed on "Credit Hold" Guess what, when your on Credit Hold, you won't receive any toner or service for your entire fleet.
03
The "Evergreen" Trap
The Evergreen Trap is buried in the small print of your All Inclusive Rental Agreement which automatically renews your contract for either another year or an entire term unless you notify both the Leasing Company and the copier vendor in writting. Usually you also must send this to them not more than 90 days before the end of your contract and no less than 30 days.
04
End Of Lease "Hidden Charges"
So you sent in your Notice of Cancellation to both the Leasing Company and your Copier Vendor...now the fun begins.