How do I check a medical supply store’s home delivery and equipment setup service?

Start with the people. Ask who makes the deliveries, whether they are employees or contractors, and whether any of them hold the know-how that only lives in their heads. If one driver handles every complicated setup, that person is part of what you are buying, so find out how likely they are to stay on after the sale.

Then look at the paper trail. A good service leaves a record of each visit: the date, what was installed, who showed the client how to use it, and the client’s sign-off. Ask for a handful of completed jobs and see whether the records are complete and easy to find. Ask how missed visits, damaged items and complaints are logged and resolved.

Finally, look at the vehicles and the tools. Ask what the vans carry, how equipment is cleaned between clients, and who pays for fuel, repairs and replacement. Your accountant can help you see what the service costs to run against what it brings in. Ask too whether the seller keeps a spare set of lifting and setup tools, and how a client reaches someone when a delivery is late or a setup fails over a weekend.

Key takeaways

• Find out whether setup knowledge sits with one person or is written down.
• Ask to see completed visit records, including sign-offs and complaints.
• Check how equipment is cleaned and tracked between clients.
• Ask how a client reaches someone when a delivery runs late or fails.