Suspense (Stand Downs)

In specific situations, a user may want to give a customer time off on a rental (holidays, weather, etc.) This can be done either for a group of contracts, a single contract or a specific line item on a contract. Event contracts are excluded. Exemptions to this feature can be made by customer, item category, inventory item or rate engine level to prevent a Suspense from being applied

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1. Create/Edit Suspense Reason Codes

First, the user will want to set up the reasons that they might give time off to a customer.

App Configurations>Transaction Configurations>Suspense Reason

From here, the reason can be added, modified, and marked inactive.

Next, the user will want to make sure their customers, items, categories, and rate engines are configured correctly-whether that dictates how a suspense is calculated or if suspense does not apply at all.

2. Customer Settings

File Maintenance>Customer File

Search and choose the customer to define suspense behavior on. There are three options for customers.

Follow/Item Category- This will calculate suspense based on the exceptions set on items/categories.

All Rental Items-Suspense will be calculated on all rental items, even if there are exceptions set on the item/category.

No Suspense-Suspense days will not be granted to this customer.

3. Rate Engine Settings

App Configurations>System Configurations>Rate Engines

Choose the rate engine you would like to assign suspense to.

There are three options for calculating suspense on a rate engine.

Not Applicable- Suspense will not be calculated

As Part of the Calculation-Suspense hours will be deducted from the overall hours, and then a discount will be applied only if enough time is given to bump the rate down to the lower hourly tier.

Prorated After Calculation-Suspense is calculated for every day given. The hourly charge is divided by the number of days the unit is out and that amount is subtracted for every suspense day the item is given.

The rate engine hierarchy will dictate which suspense calculation method is used (if you happen to be using different ones). The hierarchy is as follows:

1. Contract Line - Special Rate Engine - This rate engine will override all the others - Defined in Contract Line Set Special Rate

2. Contract Rate Engine - If no Item Record Rate Engine, this Rate Engine will take over - Defined in the Contract Information Tab

3. Contract Line - Item Record Rate Engine - If no Special Rate Engine, this rate engine will take over - Defined in the Item Record.

4. Store Default Rate Engine - If no Contract Rate Engine, this Rate Engine will take over - Defined in Parameter Settings

4. Item Category Exemption

App Configurations>Item Configurations>Item Categories

Choose the category to exempt from Suspense calculations and check the box

5. Item Exemption

File Maintenance>Item File

Search for and choose the item to mark suspense exempt and check the appropriate box on the Options tab. If marked from a header, the user will be prompted to update all the serialized.

6. Mass Update Tool

From the left menu Configuration>Suspense Days

Searching by either Customer or Jobsite, a list of open contracts will be displayed. Suspense days can only be added to open line items. Contracts in Review Billing or that have been Called Off Rent are not eligible. The final suspense calculation will occur when the line item is closed.

At this point, the user can also de-select contracts to apply suspense days to by un-checking the box on the right. Once the desired selection of contracts is correct, suspense days can be assigned.

Enter the begin and end dates, the charge percentage (0 if you don’t want to charge anything, 0.5 if you want to only charge them half of the rate for those days, etc), the reason for the suspense, and notes. Once this is entered the ‘Set Suspense Days’ button will turn orange and become clickable. If the user were to come back and reenter the same suspense days on the same contract for a different reason or percentage, the original suspense days would be written over. An item on a contract can only have one suspense reason/charge percentage per calendar day.

7. Contract Update Tool

The user can also set suspense on a single contract. Search for the contract/customer in the search box at the top of the launchpad. Select the contract number to open the contract. On the left hand side of the contract, there is a tab for suspense days. Any suspense days that have already been assigned to this contract will be listed. They can be edited or removed. Any days listed for Line Number 0 will apply to all lines on the contract, otherwise the number listed will apply to that line on the contract.

Suspense dates can be created for the entire contract in this screen or on a particular item. The entry will also require a beginning and end date, a charge percentage, and a reason. Notes can also be added.

8. Rate Calculation

When a contract/line item is closed, that is the point at which suspense is calculated.

Sample Rate Structure:

As Part of the Calculation-Suspense hours will be deducted from the overall hours, and then a discount will be applied only if enough time is given to bump the rate down to the lower hourly tier.

Assuming $100 Day $300 Week $900 Month RER Rate Formula

Prorated After Calculation-Suspense is calculated for every day given. The hourly charge is divided by the number of days the unit is out and that amount is subtracted for every suspense day the item is given.

*Note-On exchanges, if there is a suspense day assigned to the original item, the calculation will occur when the exchange occurs because the line item is closing and part of the overall exchange rate allocation.

9. Contract Printing

The contract format will note that either the entire contract has been assigned suspense (by a message at the top) or under each of the lines individually that have had suspense applied. The reason and days will be noted. The messages ‘Charges suspended for:’ and ‘Charges reduced to:’, can be modified in Language Translations.