Copier and phone contracts
Copier and phone contracts in Baton Rouge. Your contract renews unless you act first.
Owner-operated in Baton Rouge since 2003
How they renew
How copier, phone and internet contracts keep renewing.
Copier leases, phone system leases, phone lines and business internet often carry an automatic renewal clause (the fine print may call it evergreen). The contract never ends on its own: it ends when you give notice the way it says, by the date it sets.
| Where it shows | What the fine print can say | What it costs you |
|---|---|---|
| Renewal | The contract renews for another term, often 12 months, unless you send written notice before a deadline. | Another year of payments on equipment you meant to replace. |
| Notice window | Notice is only accepted inside a window before the end date, commonly 60 to 90 days out. | Send it too late, or too early, and the renewal can still go through. |
| Phone lines and internet | Service renews for a full new term, and leaving early brings a termination fee. | A fee for every month left on a term you never chose. |
| Phone system lease | You lease the desk phones and phone system for years, then the lease renews. | You keep paying for equipment you never own. |
| Machine size | The copier and its page allowance were sized for a different office. | You pay for capacity you never use, or for overage pages above the allowance. |
| Price increases | The rate can rise by a set percentage every year. | The increases compound for as long as the contract runs. |
| Returning the copier | You may have to get return instructions and pay to pack, ship and remove the machine. | Billing can keep running until the machine is returned. |
Before you renew, compare what the lease costs with what the machine is worth, and check that it fits how much you print.
The page counts on your invoices show how much you print. The contract shows how much you’re paying for.
From our work
Six months of lease payments would have bought a new copier.
We’ve seen clients leasing used copiers on terms like that, and others leasing machines the wrong size for how much they print.
Before the window closes
Find your dates before the notice window closes.
Do this for every copier lease, phone system lease, phone line and internet contract, even one that has run for years.
Checklist
01
Find the contract
- Find the signed agreement, every page of it, and your latest invoice.
- Search it for the words automatic renewal, evergreen, successive terms and notice.
- Note who you signed with. Copier leases are often paid to a finance company, not the dealer who services the machine.
02
Write down the dates
- The start date, the term length and the end date.
- How many days before the end date your notice window opens and closes.
- For a copier, the monthly page allowance next to the page counts on your invoices.
- How notice must be sent: in writing, by certified mail or email, and to which address.
03
Plan the replacement before the date
- Decide what replaces it before the notice window closes, so you aren’t choosing under a deadline.
- Any notice you send has to follow the contract: how, to whom and by when. If the terms are unclear, ask your attorney.
- Line up the replacement before the end date, so your office is never without a copier or phones.
Not sure what yours says? We read it with you for free.
For our managed IT clients
Once you’re a client, we watch the dates for you.
Your contract term
We put each date on our calendar
We find your contract’s end date and notice window, and remind you in time to act.
Your vendors
We handle the new provider
We handle the setup with the new copier, phone or internet provider, so you’re not the one on hold.
What replaces it
The replacement is yours to own
When the old contract ends, what replaces it is yours to own.
See managed IT and what happens when you join.
Free contract review
We read your contract with you, for free.
Bring your copier, phone or internet contract to an intro call. We find the end date and the notice window, and recommend a better setup for your office. There’s no charge.
We don’t cancel or negotiate contracts: that stays between you and the vendor. We read them as your IT company, not as lawyers, so for legal advice ask your attorney.
Planning what comes next? See copiers and printers and business phone systems.
Find out what your contract says, and what could replace it.
15 minutes
Tell us who your copier, phone and internet companies are.
Bring the contract, and we’ll find your dates for free.
If we’re not the right fit, we’ll say so.
