TivloIt's 8pm on a Thursday. A client calls. There's been a flood in their server room, or a deep clean is needed before a board visit tomorrow morning, or a serious spillage that can't wait until Friday's scheduled service.
They need you now. You're about to move your evening around, call an operative, pay travel costs, and work outside your normal hours.
How do you price that?
Most cleaning companies handle emergency callouts one of two ways: they charge what feels right in the moment, or they undercharge because they don't want to seem difficult when a client is stressed.
Neither approach works long term. Here's a framework that's fair to both sides.
Define What Counts as an Emergency
Before you think about pricing, you need to know what triggers it.
An emergency callout should be a specific category in your contract or rate card - not a vague term applied differently depending on who calls and how stressed they sound.
A useful definition:
An emergency callout is a service request outside your scheduled visits that requires attendance within 4 hours of the request, or outside your normal operating hours (before 7am or after 7pm, Monday to Friday, or any time Saturday/Sunday).
Once you have a definition, apply it consistently. A client who calls at 5:30pm asking for a same-day clean gets the emergency rate. A client who calls on Tuesday asking for an extra clean on Friday does not.
The Components of a Fair Rate
An emergency callout rate should cover four things:
1. The base service cost
What would this work cost at your standard day rate? An emergency clean for a 200sqm office takes two operatives three hours. At your usual hourly rate, that's your base figure.
2. An out-of-hours uplift
Staff working evenings, early mornings, or weekends expect - and often contractually receive - a higher rate of pay. Your rate needs to reflect this. A 25-50% uplift on the operative cost is a reasonable starting point.
3. A short-notice premium
You are reorganising your schedule, making calls, and delivering something at short notice. That coordination cost is real and it should be priced. A flat call-out fee of £50-£150 on top of the service cost covers this without feeling punitive.
4. Travel and materials
If the callout requires special products (biohazard cleaning, flood response, specific chemicals) or travel outside your usual service area, cost these separately and include them on the invoice.
Setting the Rate Card
Your emergency callout rate should be documented before you need it.
A simple rate card might look like this:
| Service | Standard hours (7am-7pm Mon-Fri) | Out of hours | |---|---|---| | Emergency callout fee (per visit) | £75 | £150 | | Operative rate (per hour) | £25 | £38 | | Materials | At cost + 15% | At cost + 15% |
The numbers above are illustrative - your rates will depend on your location, staff costs, and market. The structure is the point.
Having this in writing, included in your standard terms, means you can send it to a client before they call and agree to it, rather than negotiating while they're panicked and you're trying to organise cover.
How to Present It to Clients
The phrase "emergency rate" can feel alarming to a client who is already stressed. How you present it matters.
At contract inception, include emergency callout terms as a standard section: "In addition to your scheduled services, we provide emergency callout cover at the following rates..."
This frames it as a feature, not an extra charge. The client knows it exists, knows what it costs, and has agreed to it.
When you send a quote for an emergency: "I've confirmed we can attend tonight at 9pm. The cost will be [£X], made up of the out-of-hours call-out fee [£Y] and operative time [£Z based on estimated 2 hours]. I'll confirm the final hours on the invoice."
Clear, professional, no surprises.
The Scope Creep Problem
Emergency callouts attract scope creep. A client calls about a flooded kitchen. You attend. While you're there, the facilities manager asks your operative to clean the carpets on the floor above because "you're here anyway."
Your operative says yes. You now have a client who assumes carpet cleaning is part of the emergency job. Your operative wasn't empowered to quote for it. And you'll have an awkward conversation about the invoice.
The fix: train your operatives to have one response to out-of-scope requests on emergency jobs: "I can note that down and pass it to the office for a quote, but I can't add it to tonight's job without authorisation."
On your side, when you confirm the job, list explicitly what is included. "Tonight's visit covers the affected area on floor 3 only - ground floor toilets and break room are not in scope for this visit."
When Not to Charge Emergency Rates
There is a case for not charging emergency rates to your best long-term clients if the issue is partly your fault or your responsibility.
If an operative missed a scheduled visit and the client needs a same-day make-good, charging the emergency rate is the wrong call. You attend at your standard cost and prioritise getting it right.
If the client caused the emergency (unexpected visitor, internal event they didn't plan for) and it's within your working hours, the line between "emergency" and "additional service" can be blurry. Use judgement.
The principle: the rate exists to cover your real costs and recognise the disruption to your operation. It is not a penalty for an inconvenient client.
The Documentation Side
Emergency callouts need good records. What was requested, when you arrived, what was done, how long it took, what products were used. Not just for the invoice - for the contract record.
If a client later disputes the charge, or if there's a question about what was included, the record is your evidence.
Many cleaning companies still manage this through WhatsApp messages and handwritten notes. That works until it doesn't.
Tivlo gives cleaning companies a place to log service records, upload post-visit reports, and keep everything visible to the client in their portal - so emergency jobs are documented the same way as scheduled ones.
See how your business processes hold up with our free Cleaning Business Scorecard.