Bill Negotiation Guide

I’ve written this short guide to share lessons I have learned in actual negotiations where I have saved money. For example, I negotiated my bill with my internet company, saving myself almost $20 per month for two years, meaning a total of almost $480 with a 20-min phone call! My goal for you is to be able to advocate for yourself as a customer and push back against the large corporations that provide many of these services. Many people see them as faceless monoliths that can just charge you whatever they want, but they’re not. They make their money from their customers. You have power as a consumer, and if you choose not to use it, you’re only hurting yourself and your fellow consumers. So take that power and use it to improve your life and save money!

Selling Yourself as a Customer

Before negotiating anything, you need to get into the right mindset. When you’re negotiating your bills with a service provider (insurance, internet, etc.), you need to think about it as selling yourself to them as a customer. You have money and consumption to offer them, and they need to pay you a price that satisfies you with discounts, benefits, customer service, or whatever else it is that you value. So before you pick up the phone, get into that headspace. Think about what you’re willing to accept from the provider in order to start or continue their service. Once you’ve got that number, don’t deviate from it. If the provider can’t give you what you need from them, go somewhere else! Most people have multiple choices for many different services, and that is the beauty of the free market. If one provider can’t or won’t get you what you want, you are free to make other providers compete for your business and make it worth your while. This is the concept at the heart of bill negotiation.

Determine Your Price

Whether you’re going to be starting a new service or trying to lower the price of an existing service, figure out where you want to land on price. First, determine what the period for the price is that you will be negotiating. For cell service, internet, cable etc., this will probably be the monthly price. For insurance, it could be monthly, semi-annually, or annually, depending on the company and type of insurance. Think about what price fits into your budget and consider the level of service you’re looking to buy or keep (unlimited data vs. 10 GB per month, 500 Mbps vs. 1 Gbps internet speeds). These factors will all influence what price you can expect to negotiate for yourself. One technique to figure out a good price is to do comps. Look up other service providers in your area and see what prices and promotions they are offering to new customers. Write these prices down or save them in another way, so you can use them as negotiating points later. Come up with a price that is aggressive while also being realistic. Then sit on it for a few days to make sure that it sinks in and cements itself into your subconscious. Once you’ve internalized your price, you can actually begin the negotiations.

Setting the Stage

Before you dial the customer service phone number, make sure you’re in the right environment for success. Give yourself at least 30-45 minutes where you know your surroundings will be reasonably calm and quiet. Additionally, if you are using a cell phone, make sure you’re in an area where your connection will be consistently strong. The rep cannot help you lower your price if they can’t understand what you are saying. Although it may be tempting to use a long car trip as your negotiating time, this may not be the best idea. Certainly if you are the one driving, you need to be focused on the road, and this will not allow you to devote the attention required for the negotiation. If you are a passenger, it may be more realistic, as long as the interior of the vehicle is relatively quiet and you know you’ll have good cell connection the entire way. Additionally, use the phone as a handset or with a set of headphones. Built-in vehicle Bluetooth systems can introduce a significant amount of noise into the conversation that is distracting and counterproductive on a call like this.

Additionally, make sure you actually find the right number. Many insurance companies have a separate number to file claims than the number for other types of customer service. You can usually find the right number by Googling “(example company) customer service.” Once you’ve got this all done, you’re ready to start your call!

Make the Call

It may be ideal to call during the week or two surrounding a holiday like Labor Day, Memorial Day, or New Years. Many companies run their best promotions during these times, so it is to your advantage to call during such periods. I have been told to call back during holiday weeks before, and the deals have been absolutely worth it.

Once you set the stage, you’re ready to roll! Dial the customer service number for the company you are aiming to negotiate with. If they have a number specifically for billing or retention, you may want to start with that number. Once you get on the phone, you need to find your way through their automated answering system to speak with a real person. It is very unlikely that any auto-dialing system will be able to give you a discount or a deal on your current service, so it is crucial that you speak with a live customer service representative. Getting through the answering system may take some trial and error until you figure out the right series of options to select in order to get to speak to a real person. If you don’t get it right the first couple times, don’t get discouraged. Additionally, once you get the right series of options, you may have to wait on hold to speak to a representative. Again, the wait will most likely be worth your while, if you’re able to get a discount that lasts multiple years. Once you speak with a person, make sure you let them know that you’d like to speak with someone who is in retention or loyalty or something to that effect. These are the people that are able to offer you discounts. Some companies may authorize all of their representatives to offer discounts, others may have a specific loyalty or retention department. Make sure you are speaking to the right person so you don’t waste time and energy repeating your requests. 

If you have any issues getting to speak with someone in customer retention or loyalty, the disconnect request is a very important tactic. Asking to disconnect the service or “set a disconnect date” will often get you transferred directly to the retentions department, because by making this request you have shown them you are serious about leaving the service, even if you haven’t said anything about asking for a discount yet. 

Making the Deal

Once you get on the phone with a retention representative, it’s time to sell yourself as a customer. There are several ways to approach this. Depending on your personality and how you approach social situations and making requests, you may choose any one of these starters, or craft your own depending on your unique situation.

“Hello, my bill went up $X recently. I’m considering switching to a different service provider. Are you able to offer any incentives to keep me on your service?”

“Y company is offering the same service I am getting from your company at a price that is $X lower than what I am paying currently. I would love to stay on your service rather than switching. Are you able to match the price that Y is offering?”

“I need to cut back on my spending budget a little bit. Your service is nice to have, and I’d like to keep it. Are you able to make it any more affordable for me?”

It is significantly more cost effective for companies to retain existing customers rather than acquiring new ones. This is why companies have loyalty departments, because in the long run, they want to keep you as a customer even if they have to cut into their profit margins by offering you a discount. If you keep this idea at the forefront of your mind, it will be much easier to structure your discussion to ensure that you get the discount you are looking for. You are the product, and they want you.

When negotiating, remember to always respect the human dignity of the representative you are speaking to. This negotiation is not a personal battle between you and them. They are simply a person with a job who is acting as a representative of the company, and are attempting to get you to stay on the service. Profanity and disrespect will never get you what you want in this situation, and will probably get you hung up on.

Follow Up

There are several reasons it may be important to follow up after your initial call. Perhaps the company didn’t have the kind of discounts you were looking for, but the rep told you to call back in the future because they knew they had deals coming up. If you had set a disconnect date and then later got to a price point you wanted, make sure you cancel your disconnect date so you don’t accidentally end up without internet or another critical service. Maybe you got excellent customer service, and the representative asked if you’d be willing to complete a survey for them. These surveys are often considered in their performance evaluations, so if you feel like they did a fantastic job for you, feel free to take their survey and show your appreciation. Or maybe, you didn’t get to where you wanted to be on price. If that’s the case, and you have a better option, take it! Loyalty means nothing in the world of these services, and you need to do what’s best for you.

Hopefully you’ve taken some lessons from this guide and are able to use them to save yourself some cash and level up your life. Thanks for reading!