Repair Tech
MacBook liquid damage — when do you stop quoting?
Hi everyone, I run a small repair shop and recently had a customer bring in a MacBook with significant liquid damage. After assessing it, I quickly realized that the logic board might need replacing. I started quoting the customer for the repairs, but I want to know when to draw the line on quoting. How do you decide when it’s just not worth it anymore? In my experience, I’ve sometimes spent hours diagnosing and quoting, only to find that the cost of parts and labor exceeds what the customer is willing to pay. I’d love to hear your thoughts on setting boundaries and possibly a threshold for quotes, especially when it gets complicated with liquid damage.
2 Answers
I feel your pain! For liquid damage, I typically have a threshold based on the cost of parts and labor. If the total exceeds 60-70% of a new device's price, I usually stop quoting and let the customer know they might be better off investing in a new one. I also have a clear policy that I communicate to my customers upfront. This way, it sets expectations and avoids any awkwardness later. I also recommend keeping a good relationship with your parts suppliers. Sometimes, if you can get parts at a discount, it makes it easier to quote more reasonable prices for repairs. Using software like RepairShopr helps me keep track of costs and manage customer communications efficiently, which saves time during these complicated cases.
In my shop, I usually try to limit my quoting process to no more than two hours of labor, especially with liquid damage cases. If I can’t get a clear idea of the extent of the damage in that time, I tend to stop and present the customer with a rough estimate based on potential worst-case scenarios. I also use a simple rule of thumb: if a part is over $200 and I suspect there might be additional hidden issues, I’ll drop a note for the customer about the risks and let them decide if they want to proceed. It’s all about transparency and ensuring they understand what they’re getting into.