Pricing5 min read
Why small callouts lose money, and how to set a minimum fee
The callout that feels like it fills a gap in the week is often funding it instead. How to cost a callout properly and set a minimum fee that covers it.
- Updated
- 18 Oct 2026
In short
If you read nothing else.
- 01
A callout carries travel, admin and overhead that a small invoice cannot absorb.
- 02
Cost the whole callout: time on site, travel, admin and overhead per hour.
- 03
Set a minimum callout fee from that cost, and say so before you go.
In this guide2 sections +
It is not usually the big builds that lose money. It is the small callout: the leaking tap, the tripping breaker, the cupboard door that will not close. They feel like they fill a gap in the week. Very often they are funding it.
What a callout really costs
An hour on site is rarely an hour. There is the call itself, the travel there and back, the stop at the supplier, the invoice, and the follow-up when it is not paid. Each of those hours carries labour cost and overhead.
Invoice that callout at R1,450 and you lose about R200 every time. At eight a month, that is roughly R19,800 a year of work that made the business poorer.
Setting a minimum callout fee
The calculation
Minimum fee= cost per callout ÷ (1 − target margin)
R1,656 ÷ (1 − 0.25)= R2,208
- Publish the minimum fee on your price list and say it on the phone before you go.
- Include the first hour on site in the minimum, then charge per hour after that.
- Charge travel separately if your area is large, or zone it by distance.
- Track how many callouts turn into larger jobs. If many do, the fee can be credited against the bigger job.
General information, not advice. This guide explains the general position for South African businesses. It is not tax, legal or accounting advice. For your specific situation, speak to your accountant, registered tax practitioner or attorney.