Section: Cancellation Procedures

Subject: Cancellation Prevention and Cancellation Reasons

Approved by: Tony Massey

Effective Date: 6 May 2021

Last Reviewed Date: 2 February 2026

Policy Owner: Director of Administrative Training

Policy #

At Massey Services, “We believe in building LONG-TERM, TRUSTING RELATIONSHIPS with Customers and Team Members. Above all, we are committed to TOTAL CUSTOMER SATISFACTION.”

This is achieved through setting proper customer expectations, providing a quality service that achieves results, and by providing quick responses to our customers’ concerns.

As such, the administrative team members must personally call every new customer after the initial service is performed to ensure customer satisfaction and review the scope of service, setting proper customer expectations.  The general manager or service manager will manage compliance with the Complaint Log daily to ensure a prompt response and quick resolution to customer concerns.

Cancellation Communication #

Upon receipt of a cancellation request, there are three levels of communication to attempt to retain the account:

1. Customer Requesting to Cancel
   1. When a request is received over the telephone, the administrative team member must
      1. React to the issue with care and concern.
      2. Do everything in their power to prevent the customer from cancelling.
      3. Provide the customer with appropriate solutions whenever possible.
      4. Attempt to schedule a personal visit to the property by the service manager.
      5. If the personal visit is declined, inform the customer the service manager will be contacting them to discuss their concerns.
   2. When a request is received while in the field, the team member must:
      1. React to the issue with care and concern.
      2. Do everything in their power to prevent the customer from cancelling.
      3. Provide the customer with appropriate solutions whenever possible.
      4. Inform the customer the service manager will be contacting them to discuss their concerns.
      5. A technician cannot accept a cancel; they must notify the service center immediately and refer the cancellation request to the management team for resolution.
2. Processing the Cancellation Request
   1. Management will call the customer requesting to cancel the same day the request is received. This call will be made after a complete review of the account history and after discussion with all team members involved with the customer account.
3. Following up on the Cancellation Request
   1. A team member will be assigned to follow-up regardless of the outcome of the cancellation request.
      1. If the customer is retained, the service manager will contact the customer within 48 hours of providing additional services to ensure total customer satisfaction.
      2. If the customer is not retained, the general manager, sales inspector, and/or account manager will follow up within 90 days of the cancel to determine if there is an opportunity to recover their business.

CANCELLATION PROCESSING PROCEDURES #

Administrative Responsibilities #

A cancellation request may be received via telephone at the service center, in Customer Care, at the corporate office, via written correspondence, or in the field by a technician. The administrative team member will:

1. Enter a cancellation request event in the CRM on the customer account. The cancellation request must be completed with as much detail as possible as to the reason for the cancellation. Providing as much detail as possible will assist the management team in finding a resolution for the customer and retaining the business.
2. When a cancellation is received via telephone, attempt to schedule a personal visit to the property for the service manager. If the service manager is unavailable, the general manager will visit the property.
3. Print two copies of the cancellation request, providing one copy to the technician assigned to the customer route, and including the second copy with the cancellation packet.
4. If the account is less than one year old, complete the areas requiring the inspector or account manager’s name, number of months unpaid, and the chargeback amount, providing a copy to the sales inspector or account manager.
5. Print the program service history and payment history which will show regular service visits, extra service activity, and payment history of the service.
6. Print the customer account notes.
7. If a hard file is available, attach all documents to the hard file and provide this as a cancellation packet to the service manager. If no hard file is available (online sales CRM), provide the necessary documents in a packet to the service manager without the hard file.

After the cancellation is resolved, the cancellation packet will be returned to the administrative team. The administrative team member will:

1. If the customer is retained, post the cancellation request with the text of the outcome as indicated by the service manager and general manager comments. This action will automatically mark the request as saved. Any additional corrective action will be entered on the customer account as proactive visits.
2. If the customer is not retained, post the cancellation request with the text of the outcome as indicated by the service manager and general manager comments. After updating the cancellation request, the administrative team member will then cancel the program, which will automatically mark the program as lost. If service has already been rendered for the current month, the cancellation date will be the first business day of the following month.
3. Return the customer hard file to the active customer filing cabinet if retained, or, the cancellation filing cabinet if lost.

For all moving cancels, the administrative team member will:

1. Create a moving lead, assigning it to the appropriate sales inspector or account manager and scheduling it for follow-up 15 days after the property’s closing date.
2. If the customer requests to cancel a termite account because they are moving, transfer the termite program using New Owner Transfer and schedule the follow-up to maintain the termite protection with the new homeowner.

Note: Termite Services will never be canceled with reason “Moving/Sold” or “Deceased.” See pages 6 and 7 for approved termite cancel reason codes.

Service Manager Responsibilities #

The service manager will:

1. Respond to every cancellation request the same day it is received. They should not leave the office before every cancellation request has been contacted.
2. Review the complete service history and customer account notes to determine:
   1. Patterns of extra services
   2. Slow payment
   3. Skips
3. Review the original graph and agreement to determine:
   1. Any issues for which they are cancelling are similar or related to the original concerns they had when they signed up for service.
   2. The overall condition of the property at the time of the initial service.
4. Review the cancellation request to determine:
   1. if the customer is cancelling for issues related to administration or service.
   2. Which team member is responsible for or has been involved in servicing the customer relative to the issues at hand, if applicable.
   3. if there is a balance on the program which must be collected or allowanced during the resolution of the cancellation request.
5. Speak to the team members who have personal knowledge of or involvement with the customer and the issues related to the reason for their cancellation request.
6. Make a personal visit to the property. If the cancel request is due to dissatisfaction, the technician should accompany the service manager to the personal visit.
   1. Be on time.
   2. Acknowledge the customer’s concerns and empathize with them, reassuring them you are committed to resolving the issue to their satisfaction.
   3. Perform a complete inspection of the property to determine any conditions, avenues or sources that created the situation or are making the situation worse.
   4. Create an action plan for remediation of the problem and the prevention of future issues.
   5. Present the action plan to the customer.
      1. Do all you can to get customer buy-in and save the account.
      2. Thank the customer for the opportunity to remedy the problem.
      3. Perform any appropriate service while on the property.
   6. Honor the commitment made to the customer; be sure the customer receives what is promised to them in the time frame it was promised.
   7. Follow up to ensure the customer is satisfied with the results.
7. Relay the information and outcome of the personal visit to the administrative team and ensure all necessary follow-up services are scheduled.
8. Inform the technician of the outcome of the cancellation request.
9. Regardless of the outcome, the service manager will discuss the problem with all team members involved as a training opportunity to prevent future recurrences.
10. If all attempts to retain the customer have failed, the original cancel packet will be forwarded to the general manager for additional contact and approval.

General Manager Responsibilities #

Only the general manager has the authority to approve the cancellation of a customer account. When the general manager receives the completed cancellation package, they will:

1. Thoroughly review the contact history to ensure all avenues were explored to save the account.
   1. If the account was lost due to controllable issues, such as dissatisfaction, financial, or billing, the General Manager will contact the customer and attempt to retain their business.
   2. If the account was lost due to uncontrollable issues, such as the customer is moving or the property is unserviceable, the general manager will assign the cancellation as a lead to a sales inspector or account manager for follow-up. Note: This does not apply to “Bad Debt” accounts.
2. If further retention avenues are exhausted, a cancellation reason will be assigned to the cancellation (see pages 4-7 for detailed cancellation reason codes).
3. Sign and return cancellation packet to the administrative team for cancellation processing.

Cancellations must be processed and cancelled in the CRM the same month they are received. The only exception is when service was rendered in the same month the program is to be cancelled. If this is the case, the cancel will be processed as above but cancelled in the CRM with a date of the first business day of the following month.

Cancel Reason Codes with Use Cases for Recurring Pest and Lawn Services #

Pest and lawn service cancellation reason codes and their corresponding use cases are as follows:

• Acquisition Chargeback
  • This code is used to denote an account being charged back during the assimilation period of a new company.
• Contract Complete
  • This code is used when the customer has completed their initial 24 months of service and no longer wishes to continue service.
• Corp. Use Only
  • This code is limited to use by corporate departments only.
• Cycle Frequency / Program Change
  • This code is used when the cycle or frequency of a program changes and a new program of the same nature will be added.
• Deceased
  • This code is used when a customer is deceased and the program will be cancelled.
• Delinquent Balance/Bad Debt
  • This code is used when a customer cannot be serviced due to having a balance on their account that would put the service out of compliance with the collection policy (see PP 701 / 901: Pest Prevention / Lawn Collection).
• Dissatisfied with Billing
  • This code is used when the customer indicates they are cancelling service due to company billing practices.
• Dissatisfied with Personnel
  • This code is used when the customer indicates they are cancelling service due to being dissatisfied with a company team member.
• Dissatisfied with Service
  • This code is used when the customer indicates they are not satisfied with the service they have received.
• Financial
  • This code is used when the customer indicates they are cancelling due to financial reasons.
• Lost to Competitor
  • This code is used when the customer indicates they will be changing service providers to a competitor.
• Moving/Sold Home
  • This code is used when the customer indicates they have moved from the property or sold the property and no longer need service. A moving lead will be entered for all services cancelled with this code.
• Other
  • This code will be used infrequently when no other cancellation reason is appropriate and must include a detailed explanation of the ‘Other’ cancel reason in the customer account notes.
• Out of Business
  • This code is used when a business has closed and service will no longer be performed.
• Price Increase
  • This code is used when a customer is dissatisfied with a price increase.
• Sold not Started
  • This code is used when a program has been sold and the customer cancels service prior to the initial service being rendered.
• Sold not Started Data Entry Error
  • This code is used when the program entered has a data entry error and has not yet been started. 
• Transferred Service
  • This code is used when a homeowner moves to a new home and service is started on the new property without an initial service being completed.

Cancel Reason Codes with Use Cases for Termite Services #

Termite service cancellation reason codes and their corresponding use cases are as follows:

• Baiting Conversion
  • This code is used to transfer an account from a conventional termite treatment to a baiting system.
• Burned/Torn Down/Destroyed
  • This code is used when a property has sustained damage from a disaster or is completely torn down.
• Contract Complete – DNR (Do Not Renew)
  • This code is used when a conventional termite or fumigation contract is complete and the company will not renew the coverage based on retreatment history and consistent termite activity after multiple treatments. This cancel reason will require regional manager approval.
• Dissatisfied with Billing
  • This code is used when the customer indicates they are cancelling service due to our billing practices.
• Dissatisfied with Personnel
  • This code is used when the customer indicates they are cancelling service due to being dissatisfied with a company team member.
• Dissatisfied with Service
  • This code is used when the customer indicates they are not satisfied with the service they have received.
• Doesn’t want-
  • No problems
    • This code is used for conventional termite and baiting termite customers only, who no longer wish to continue with their coverage.
  • Treatment still good
    • This code is used when the customer does not want to continue their termite protection but the treatment is still in effect on the property.
  • Termites not an issue
    • This code is used when the customer does not want to continue their termite coverage because they believe termites are not an issue for their property.
• EPT Baiting Conversion
  • This code is used when the customer agrees to convert to the termite baiting system from a liquid termite treatment when the liquid termite treatment is due for an Extended Protection Treatment (EPT).
• EPT cancel
  • This code is used when the customer does not wish to have an Extended Protection Treatment (EPT) on their property and the termite coverage has expired.
• Financial
  • This code is used when the customer indicates they are cancelling due to financial reasons.
• First Year Pretreat – No Contact
  • This code is used when the service center has made every attempt to contact the new homeowner of a new construction pretreat program and was unsuccessful in reaching the new homeowner.
• Lost to Competitor
  • This code is used when the customer indicates they will be changing service providers to a competitor.
• New Homeowner – No Contact
  • This code will be used when we have completed a new owner transfer for existing termite and bait programs and we have been unsuccessful in contacting the new homeowner to transfer the termite service.
• New Homeowner – Declined Coverage
  • This code will be used when we have completed a new owner transfer for existing termite and bait programs, contact has been made with the new homeowner, and they decline to continue with termite services.
• New Homeowner – Contract Expired/Do Not Transfer
  • This code will be used in the rare case when the management team identifies that the termite program should not be continued with the new homeowner. This cancel reason will require regional manager approval.
• Other
  • This code will be used infrequently when no other cancellation reason is appropriate and must include a detailed explanation of the ‘Other’ cancel reason in the customer account notes.
• Price Increase
  • This code is used when a customer is dissatisfied with a price increase.

Downloads #