Is there a standard rate for travel fees?
If you are traveling an hour and a half each way to a wedding what
do you charge?
Thanks!
Full Version: Travel Fees
An hour and a half each way to a wedding is an average travel time in Atlanta traffic. If I were to charge travel for that length of time, I"d never get hired.
IMO, charging based on time is bad because time is so variable. What if the weather is bad? What if traffic is bad? What if there's an accident? ARe you going to penalize your client because a drive that normally takes 45 minutes was doubled?
If you're going to charge for that kind of travel, then make it based on a mile-radius around a given point. For example, in my case it might be w/in a 100 mile radius of downtown Atlanta.
However, I don't charge travel like that. I base travel fees on whether or not I'll require an overnight stay. In general, anything less than 3 hours one way (in average traffic conditions) I don't bother with. If there's bad weather or traffic in that situation that would make my commute much longer, I'll make a judgement call about getting a hotel room and that will be *my* cost because it's my decision.
Otherwise, if it requires an overnight stay, then I charge the equivalent of 2 nights in a nice hotel (incl. taxes and fees) plus a flat $250 driving fee. If it requires airfare, the client is responsible for all costs of travel: airfare, rental car, hotel, etc. plus a 15% markup for incidentals.
Karen
IMO, charging based on time is bad because time is so variable. What if the weather is bad? What if traffic is bad? What if there's an accident? ARe you going to penalize your client because a drive that normally takes 45 minutes was doubled?
If you're going to charge for that kind of travel, then make it based on a mile-radius around a given point. For example, in my case it might be w/in a 100 mile radius of downtown Atlanta.
However, I don't charge travel like that. I base travel fees on whether or not I'll require an overnight stay. In general, anything less than 3 hours one way (in average traffic conditions) I don't bother with. If there's bad weather or traffic in that situation that would make my commute much longer, I'll make a judgement call about getting a hotel room and that will be *my* cost because it's my decision.
Otherwise, if it requires an overnight stay, then I charge the equivalent of 2 nights in a nice hotel (incl. taxes and fees) plus a flat $250 driving fee. If it requires airfare, the client is responsible for all costs of travel: airfare, rental car, hotel, etc. plus a 15% markup for incidentals.
Karen
QUOTE(KarenS @ June 29 2007, 01:34 PM) 
An hour and a half each way to a wedding is an average travel time in Atlanta traffic. If I were to charge travel for that length of time, I"d never get hired.
IMO, charging based on time is bad because time is so variable. What if the weather is bad? What if traffic is bad? What if there's an accident? ARe you going to penalize your client because a drive that normally takes 45 minutes was doubled?
If you're going to charge for that kind of travel, then make it based on a mile-radius around a given point. For example, in my case it might be w/in a 100 mile radius of downtown Atlanta.
However, I don't charge travel like that. I base travel fees on whether or not I'll require an overnight stay. In general, anything less than 3 hours one way (in average traffic conditions) I don't bother with. If there's bad weather or traffic in that situation that would make my commute much longer, I'll make a judgement call about getting a hotel room and that will be *my* cost because it's my decision.
Otherwise, if it requires an overnight stay, then I charge the equivalent of 2 nights in a nice hotel (incl. taxes and fees) plus a flat $250 driving fee. If it requires airfare, the client is responsible for all costs of travel: airfare, rental car, hotel, etc. plus a 15% markup for incidentals.
Karen
IMO, charging based on time is bad because time is so variable. What if the weather is bad? What if traffic is bad? What if there's an accident? ARe you going to penalize your client because a drive that normally takes 45 minutes was doubled?
If you're going to charge for that kind of travel, then make it based on a mile-radius around a given point. For example, in my case it might be w/in a 100 mile radius of downtown Atlanta.
However, I don't charge travel like that. I base travel fees on whether or not I'll require an overnight stay. In general, anything less than 3 hours one way (in average traffic conditions) I don't bother with. If there's bad weather or traffic in that situation that would make my commute much longer, I'll make a judgement call about getting a hotel room and that will be *my* cost because it's my decision.
Otherwise, if it requires an overnight stay, then I charge the equivalent of 2 nights in a nice hotel (incl. taxes and fees) plus a flat $250 driving fee. If it requires airfare, the client is responsible for all costs of travel: airfare, rental car, hotel, etc. plus a 15% markup for incidentals.
Karen
Thanks Karen! Great info. I am in LA and Everything is an hour!
We just got voted worst traffic in the country....
Same here - 1 hour is pretty average with traffic for most of the well-used sites in my area. Beyond that, I charge $30/hour extra to compensate for my gas (my car is very fuel efficient) and the caffeinated beverages that must be consumed to keep me on the road that long. 
And the time spent driving, which is BOOORRRRING.
In my region, there are some "fixed" travel expenses that are unavoidable - I bill those to clients when appropriate, but just at the actual cost. I'm referring specifically to ferry fees here to get to the Islands and the Peninsula from my location, but we might have tolls roads in downtown Seattle soon, too. Ugh!
And the time spent driving, which is BOOORRRRING.In my region, there are some "fixed" travel expenses that are unavoidable - I bill those to clients when appropriate, but just at the actual cost. I'm referring specifically to ferry fees here to get to the Islands and the Peninsula from my location, but we might have tolls roads in downtown Seattle soon, too. Ugh!
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