Job cards and technician sign-off: proof of work that ends disputes
How Mauritian trades and service firms use job cards, photos, time, materials and the client's signature to prove the work was done and get invoices paid. A guide from Envoice.mu.
"Your technician was only here for an hour." "That part was already broken." "Nobody told me you'd replace the pump." Anyone who runs an air-con, plumbing, electrical or maintenance business in Mauritius has heard some version of these, usually about two weeks after the job, when the invoice arrives.
The work was real. What's missing is proof the client agreed to at the time.
Why disputes happen after the job
A technician finishes in Flacq at 5pm, the client says "ok, thanks", and the van leaves. Back at the office, someone writes the invoice from memory or from a note on a scrap of paper. By the time the client sees the bill, the hours, the parts and the extra work they asked for on the day have all become debatable, and you have nothing in their handwriting to show them.
Most of these arguments end in a discount. Not because you were wrong, but because chasing costs more than the difference.
What a job card should hold
A job card is the record of one visit or one job. A useful one shows:
- the client, the site address and what they asked for;
- who went and when they arrived and left;
- the work done, in plain words;
- the materials and parts used, with quantities;
- photos before and after, especially of anything already damaged;
- the client's signature on site, confirming the work.
That last line does most of the work. A client who signed for "replaced pump, 2.5 hours, 1 pressure switch" on the day has far less room to dispute it on the invoice.
The technician app
On paper, job cards get lost in vans, stained, or filled in at the office afterwards. Envoice's technician app puts the job card on the technician's phone. They take photos, log their time, add the materials they used and get the client to sign on screen before they leave.
Back at the office, you see the completed job with its photos and signature. You invoice with the hours, parts and signature in front of you, so the invoice matches what the client signed for.
Each technician logs in with their own technician role. Nobody borrows the owner's password, and the activity log shows who did what.
Planning the week
Work orders and the planner let you assign jobs to technicians and see who's where. When a client in Grand Baie calls asking when someone will come, you can answer from the schedule instead of three phone calls to the team.
Bigger jobs: deposits, stages and retention
For a contractor fitting out a shop or renovating a house over several weeks, a single job card isn't enough. Envoice's contractor projects handle a deposit at the start, stage invoices as work progresses, and retention held back until the end. Keep a job card for every visit along the way, so when a client questions stage three, you can show the visits behind it.
Which plan
Work orders, the technician app and team roles start on the Starter Plus plan; job costing and purchase orders come with Business. Prices are per workspace, before VAT; check envoice.mu/pricing for current figures.
Checklist
- ☐ Open a job card for every visit, not just the big ones
- ☐ Take before photos of anything already damaged
- ☐ Log arrival and departure times on site
- ☐ Record every part and material used
- ☐ Get the client's signature before the technician leaves
- ☐ Invoice from the job card, the same day if possible
- ☐ Give technicians the technician role, not full access
- ☐ Use deposits and stage invoices on multi-week jobs
Put proof behind every invoice
Try the technician app on your next job with the free trial, no card needed, at www.envoice.mu. Want to talk through how your team works first? WhatsApp +230 5881 9999.