MAD Light Design, LLC Billing Policies
Effective January 2021
LABOR
Standard
Day rates are for a full day (up to 10 hours). A half day rate (up to 5 hours) rate is available at 50% of a full day rate, if arranged during booking. If a half day is booked but work extends beyond 5 hours, a full day rate will apply.
Overtime
All overtime rates are based on the hourly rate (calculated as 1/10th of the day rate) and billed in hourly blocks. When a shift exceeds 10 hours in one day, an overtime (OT) rate (calculated as 1.5x hourly rate) will apply. When a shift exceeds 16 hours in one day, a double-time (DT) rate (calculated as 2x hourly rate) will apply. Overtime can be compounded by premium hours, turnaround or holiday pay, but DT is the highest level of overtime that will take effect.
Premium
Premium hours are those between midnight and 6:00 AM. Shifts starting during premium hours will be paid at the OT rate for the first 5 hours. Shifts that begin prior to premium hours will be billed at the next highest OT level from the rate in effect prior to midnight. When a shift exceeds 10 hours and continues beyond midnight, a DT rate will be in effect.
Turnaround
When time off between shifts is less than 8 hours but more than 4 hours, turnaround pay will apply. Turnaround will be paid by continuing the OT rate from the previous shift. For example, if a previous shift ends with an OT rate, then turnaround will be billed at a OT rate for the first 10 hours of the shift. If a shift in turnaround starts with an OT rate and then goes beyond 10 hours, a DT rate will take effect. If the previous shift ended with a DT rate, then a DT rate will apply for the entire turnaround shift. Turnaround will continue through subsequent shifts until there are at least 8 hours off between shifts.
Continuous
When time off between shifts is 4 hours or less, continuous pay will be in effect. The previous rate of pay will continue from the ending of the previous shift until the beginning of the next shift, at which time standard overtime calculations will take effect. If time between shifts is more than 4 hours but less than 8, OT calculations will continue from the previous shift.
Meals & Meal Penalty
A meal break should be scheduled every 5 hours. Proper meal breaks are either a 1-hour unpaid “walk-away” break or 30-minute paid break with a client-provided meal. A meal penalty will be in effect if one of these does not occur every six (6) hours. A meal penalty initiates the next-highest level of overtime and continues until one of the aforementioned breaks are provided. No more than one (1) hour will be deducted from the billable time of any continuous shift, no matter how many meal breaks are provided.
Travel
Travel days are billed at a minimum full day rate, unless other arrangements are made during booking. Travel-only days that last longer than ten (10) hours will then be billed at a regular rate in hour blocks. Billing for air travel starts two hours before takeoff and ends one hour after landing. If accomodations or a venue are more than 30 minutes from the arriving or departing airport and the travel day goes beyond 10 hours, time will be added in hour blocks. If travel occurs directly after or before a working shift, the hours will be billed continuously until the travel is complete. In that scenario, calculations for OT, DT or turnaround will continue during travel time, based on the start of the travel day or working shift.
Holidays
Any hours worked on a holiday will be paid at an OT rate one level higher than would have been billed on a non-holiday. For example: If a shift starts between 6 AM and midnight, an OT rate will apply. If a shift starts between midnight and 6 AM, or a the shift is in turnaround, a DT rate will apply. The highest rate to be charged is DT, in any instance. This is based on current listed US Federal Holidays of New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday, Presidents Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day.
Quotes
A quote with estimated billing charges can be provided upon request. The accuracy of an estimate is directly based on the accuracy of any schedule provided by the client before the quote is prepared. Actual hours, times and days worked will be the determining factors in calculating final hours and rates applied to the invoice.
EXPENSES
COVID-19 expenses will be billed at cost for any tests or supplies directly related to the project. This includes any onsite disposable protective supplies, required COVID-19 tests before & during a project and up to two post-project tests. [Update: the following quarantine charges expired on 2022-01-01 and no longer apply to current COVID-19 strains] For all projects (travel and local), the client will be responsible to provide safe and adequate lodging for 14-days and cover any additional travel fees following a positive COVID-19 test within the duration of the project. Day rates and Per Diem will continue for the 14-day period at full rate or for the duration of the original project dates, whichever is longer.
The client will be notified of a positive COVID-19 result ASAP, along with a reminder of the above policy. Any exceptions or alternate arrangements to the above policy must be requested via email within 12 hours of the positive test notification. Any alternate billing agreement must be agreed to by both parties within 24 hours of a positive test or the above COVID-19 billing policy will apply.
Mileage will be charged based on published IRS rates for the applicable tax year for work locations that require over 40 miles of driving from a home location. Any mileage expense will be based on actual miles driven to and from the location via a calculation of Mileage Rate × Total Miles Driven.
Per Diem will be charged based on published GSA rates for the applicable fiscal year (which begins on Oct 1 of the previous year) for a work location which requires overnight accommodations or daily trips greater than 40 miles. Per diem will be billed via a calculation of Number of Days in a City × Per Diem Rate of that City. The city will be determined by the zip code of the work location address.
Transportation (ride hail & taxi service) expenses will be charged at cost for all local transportation needs wile in a travel-based work location (where overnight accommodations are provided but a personal vehicle or rental car is not present). This includes transfers to/from lodging & an airport or transportation hub, daily transport to/from the work location & lodging, reasonable daily transport to seek meal accommodations, and all transport required and/or approved to fulfill project expectations. Transportation services and costs will be chosen based on passenger &
cargo requirements, plus timeliness. Every effort will be taken to utilize the most economical and safe transportation solution for any scenario.
Rental Cars can be provided by the client or arranged directly and billed as a travel expense. When the estimated total cost of using local transportation (as explained above) for the duration of the project exceeds or meets the cost of a rental car (plus parking & fuel), a rental car may be chosen and expensed instead of using local services. Any savings to the client by transporting additional crew and equipment with the same rental car will be included in that calculation. In most situations, a rental car will not be chosen if it is a more expensive option than using local transportation for crew and/or equipment. In some situations, only a percentage of the total rental car cost will be billed in order to maintain cost parity for the client.
Miscellaneous expenses directly related to the operation of the project will be billed at standard fees (ie. MLD created materials such as labels, paperwork, truss tape and plots) or at cost (ie. materials obtained or created by a vendor such as hardware, printed plots, crew safety supplies, etc…). Expenses will only be billed for items that are necessary to guarantee project success, safety, OSHA standards (such as crew water) or that have been directly requested by a client.
PPE Gear requirements must be communicated at least 3 business days in advance of the first work or travel day. Specific PPE requirements of any venue, location, project or client must be explained in detail. Failure to do either of these may result in lost time onsite and/or last-minute PPE purchase costs being expensed to the project.
Basic PPE gear includes hard hats, steel toe boots and rigging harnesses. Usually, these items will not be billed to individual projects; it is the responsibility of individual contractors to provide their own basic PPE (unless not timely requested, as explained above). Any specialized or specific PPE requirements above and beyond the aforementioned basic gear will be provided by the client or expensed to the project.
TRAVEL BOOKING
Flights
It is preferred that all flights are booked directly by MAD Light Design, LLC. Clients may handle booking of flights upon request. All flights must be booked on Delta Airlines unless the contractor requests or agrees to another airline in advance. Clients who book flights through a travel agent will be charged a $50 fee¹︎ in the event that a change has to be made to the ticket for any reason.
Baggage fees will be charged based on the class of ticket purchased. Typically, this will include fees for three bags—personal luggage plus two work boxes. As of January 2021 this fee estimate is $40 for the 1st bag, $50 for the 2nd bag and $100 for the 3rd bag. Based on airline status, there may not be a charge for the first two bags below 70lbs. Non-Delta flights incur the highest baggage charges (Especially Southwest) as the bags are usually over 50 lbs.
Any flight longer than eight (8) hours must be booked in business class. Business class flights do not incur baggage fees for the first 2-3 bags.
¹︎Airline tickets purchased through a travel agent (such as Expedia or Trip Actions) incur a $50 fee in the event of any changes to the original ticket. This fee is automatic, payable to the travel agency and cannot be waived. For this reason, travel agency–purchased flights are not recommended.
For exceptions to labor and expense policies, see below²︎
Cancellation Policies
Cancellation Fee Schedule
10% of Labor Quote – Minimum fee after booking confirmation
25% of Labor Quote @ 45 days*
50% of Labor Quote @ 30 days*
70% of Labor Quote @ 15 days*
85% of Labor Quote @ 10 days*
100% of Labor Quote @ 5 days*
*Prior to first day of onsite physical work or travel to the project location.
Non-Refundable Labor Charges
In the event of a project cancellation, the following expenses will be payable in full after confirmation. The cancellation fee schedule above applies to site surveys separately from actual project or show dates.
• Charges for pre-production and design
• Charges for physical site surveys and related travel days
Non-Refundable Expenses
In the event of a project cancellation, the following expenses will be payable in full if purchased after confirmation.
• Non-refundable transportation or lodging fees
• Purchases for the project of any other item or service that is not fully refundable will be billed at the net cost after applying refunds
For exceptions to cancellation policies, see below²︎
Invoicing Policies
Effective January 2021
Submittal
Invoices will be sent to an email address as provided by a client or to a direct client contact. The date the invoice is sent will count as the date of invoice delivery. Calculation of other policies below are based on this delivery date.
Billing Terms
The full invoice balance is due no later than 30 days (NET30) from the original billing date of an invoice. Upon receipt of an invoice, a review of charges should be performed and any discrepancies should be communicated within 3-5 business days. Any adjustments to the invoice made during this review period do not change the due date. Invoice charges will be considered accurate and payable in full if not questioned within 15 calendar days of delivery.
Payment
Electronic methods of payment are preferred. This includes ACH, e-Check, Zelle, Venmo, PayPal, and Credit Card payments. Processing fees may be charged (at cost) if incurred for a selected payment method. Paper checks should be made payable and mailed to the name and address listed on the invoice (under “pay to”).
Late Fees
Non-timely payment of invoices often results in unnecessary operational penalties and financial expenses. As such, a late fee will be reluctantly applied to the balance when an invoice is 15 days past-due (45 calendar days after delivery), and again every 15 days following until the balance and all fees are paid in full. Late fees are calculated as 1.5% of the original invoice amount (rounded up to the nearest US dollar) and do not compound. Partial payments do not reduce the late fee amount.
²︎Any exception to the above policies must be requested and agreed to in writing by a representative of MAD Light Design, LLC prior to booking confirmation.