A rate card is a supplier's price list: what they charge you to take each kind of waste, and what they charge for extras such as delivery or standing time. Once a card is in place, you can pull a line from it into the Costs on a sale line instead of typing the price every time, and the card's reference goes with it.
Rate cards sit under Relationships in the sidebar, directly after Suppliers. They have no permission of their own: if your role can see suppliers, it can see rate cards, and creating or editing them needs the supplier create and edit permissions. Costing a sale from one needs permission to edit sales.
Before you start
Rate card lines pick from your reference data, so set these up first in References, which needs an organisation Owner:
- Containers, for waste lines.
- Extra types and Unit types, for extras.
- Waste types and Caveats, if you want to use them on lines.
You also need the supplier, and optionally the supplier's site. See Managing Suppliers.
Create a rate card
Start a new rate card
Click Rate cards under Relationships, then New rate card. If you start from a supplier's own Rate cards tab instead, the supplier is already filled in and locked, with the note "Locked to the supplier this rate card was created from."
Choose the supplier and, if needed, a site
Pick the Supplier. Under Site, choose a Listed site of that supplier or an Unlisted one by name, if the prices only apply to one site. Changing the supplier clears the site, because a card's site has to belong to its supplier.
Add a contact (optional)
Under Contact, choose a Listed contact or enter an Unlisted name, email and phone for the person who agreed the prices.
Fill in the details
Description is required: "Enter a description." appears if it is empty, and "Select a supplier." if you have not chosen one. Reference is yours to use, for example the supplier's quote number. Start date and Expiry date set when the prices apply. Leave a date blank for open-ended. Private notes are visible only to your team.
Add lines, then create the card
Use Add waste line and Add extra line now, or add them later. Click Create rate card. You will see the new card's number in the confirmation.
Add a waste line
Waste lines price a container of a given waste. Open the rate card and click the Waste lines tab, then Add waste line.
- Waste description says what the price is for.
- Container and Container quantity are required: the container the price is for and how many.
- Weight/volume unit and Unit quantity are required. If the unit is a volume, Specific gravity appears and is required too.
- Physical state, Waste type and EWC codes narrow what the price applies to. They are optional but are what you filter on later.
- Unit price and Price per set the charge. Price per is Container, Weight/volume or Fixed.
- Advanced pricing appears when the price is per container or per weight/volume, and covers allowances and minimum charges. Pick the Advanced pricing type where one is offered and fill in the figure it asks for.
- Switch on Price to be confirmed (TBC) when the supplier has not committed to a figure.
- Caveat and Private notes carry the small print.
Add an extra line
Extras price anything that is not the waste itself. On the Extras tab, click Add extra.
- Description, and optionally Extra type.
- Unit type and Unit quantity are required.
- Unit price and Price per, which is Per unit or Fixed.
- Price to be confirmed (TBC), Caveat and Private notes, as above.
Cost a sale line from a rate card
Open the costs on the line
On a waste line or extra on a sale, open Costs.
Click From rate card
Next to Add cost, click From rate card. The dialog Cost from rate card lists rate card lines grouped by supplier and card. Search, or filter by Supplier, Site, Container, Waste type, Physical state and EWC code.
Pick one or more lines
Select the lines you want and confirm. Each one becomes a cost row with the price, price basis and validity dates copied across, and the rate card number and description as its reference.
Only cards that are Active appear. A card that is archived, has not started or has passed its expiry date is left out, with all its lines. If a rate you expect is missing, check the card's dates first.
Check a card's status
The status pill on a rate card, and the filter on the list, show Active, Upcoming, Expired or Archived. Archive is in the same menu as Delete. Archiving takes the card out of the cost picker without losing it. People who can delete will also find removed cards under Deleted.
Open a card to see Details, Waste lines, Extras, Attachments and Activity. Use Attachments for the supplier's signed price list.
What to do next
- Manage suppliers and their sites
- Create sales and cost their lines
- Raise supplier purchase orders for the work you buy in
- Setup guide, step 8: Add your suppliers and transport if you are setting Paperwork up for the first time
Keep moving
Next steps
Explore further
Related Guides
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Invoice jobs, see how VAT and due dates are decided, authorise, send and credit invoices, and raise supplier purchase orders from a job's costs
Set up the lists Paperwork uses — tax rates, nominal codes, containers, departments, vehicles and more — and learn what depends on what
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