Invoicing & Payments · updated 2026-08-08

How to charge an extra fee in Dumpster Controls

The "Charge Extra Fee" flow bills a customer for overweight, damage, trip charges, and other costs after the fact, with photo evidence, a built-in overweight calculator, and three ways to collect: charge the saved card, send an invoice with a payment link, or record the cost internally.

Before you start

• An existing order.
• For card charges: a saved card on file and a connected Stripe account.
• Documentation or photos supporting the charge.

1. ## Open "Charge Extra Fee"
   In "Order History", open the order and click "Charge Extra Fee".
2. ## Pick the "Charge Type"
   Options are "Overweight Fee", "Dumpster Damage", "Trip Charge", "Unsafe Load", "Landfill Cost", "Fuel Cost", "Maintenance", "Permit Fee", "Toll Fee", and "Other Cost". Each type has its own maximum amount.
3. ## For overweight, use the calculator
   The "Overweight (tons)" section reads the recorded net weight and fills "Tons over", "Rate per ton ($)", and "Included (tons)" from the order. The "Charge breakdown" card shows contracted weight, actual weight, excess, rate, subtotal, and "Total to charge". You can also log an "Internal landfill cost" (what you paid the landfill), which is saved to Expenses and not charged to the customer, and use "Apply discount (optional)".
4. ## Describe and attach evidence
   Write a "Description" of at least 20 characters (overweight descriptions are auto-generated from the weight data) and attach up to 3 "Evidence Photos". Landfill receipts on the order are attached automatically.
5. ## Choose how to collect
   With a card on file, pick "Charge card now" (charges immediately), "Send Invoice & Payment Link" (email and SMS with a payment link plus the 5-day reminder cycle), or "Record only (internal cost)" (the customer is not charged or notified). Without a card, the invoice goes out with a payment link, or select "Collect in cash / check" to generate the invoice with no payment link.
6. ## Add to the current invoice instead (overweight)
   If the order's main invoice is still unpaid, the "Add to current invoice" option adds the charge as a line item so the customer receives one updated invoice instead of a separate bill. You can then "Charge card now" or "Send payment link" for the new total, via "Update & Charge" or "Update Invoice & Resend".
7. ## Acknowledge and confirm
   Check the legal confirmations that the charge is documented and justified per the rental agreement, review the "Final Confirmation" screen, and confirm the charge.

What happens next

• The customer receives an email notification about the charge with the receipt and evidence attached. A customer with no email who is charged on the saved card gets the receipt by text message, unless they replied STOP.
• On extra charges the company always absorbs the card processing fee; the customer pays only the charge amount.
• Extra charges appear in Order History under "Customer Extra Charges" with "View Details", "Resend", and refund options.

Troubleshooting

It says no saved card was found.

The customer has no card on file. Use the invoice with a payment link instead; the message suggests exactly that.

The main invoice was paid while I was filling the form.

The app detects it and creates a separate extra-charge invoice instead of consolidating.

Related guides

• How to refund an extra charge in Dumpster Controls
• How to use automatic payment reminders in Dumpster Controls
• How to charge a card on file in Dumpster Controls

© 2026 Dumpster Controls. All rights reserved. Made in the USA.

Frequently asked questions

Is Dumpster Controls really free?

Yes. The software is free: dispatch, online booking, the driver app, invoicing, the Tresha AI assistant and every other feature, with no monthly fee, no trial period and no credit card to sign up. The only cost on the free plan is optional card processing when a customer pays by card through the platform: 2.99% plus $3.99 per transaction on the free plan. An optional Unlimited plan at $169 per month lowers that to 2.99% plus $0.30. Prices as published on dumpstercontrols.io/pricing on 2026-09-23.

Do you charge per driver, per truck or per order?

No. There is no per-driver, per-truck, per-user or per-order fee, and no order limit. A company with one truck and a company with twenty pay the same for the software: nothing.

Is there a contract?

No. There is no contract, no minimum term and no setup fee. You create the account yourself, and on the free plan there is nothing to cancel because nothing is billed. The optional Unlimited plan is billed month to month.

Which countries and languages are supported?

Dumpster Controls serves hauling companies in the United States and Canada. The app interface and the Tresha AI assistant are available in English, Spanish and Portuguese. The public pages, such as the blog, the help center and the landfill finder, are in English.

How do I switch from another dumpster software?

Create a free account at dumpstercontrols.io/login, with no sales call and no credit card. Then import your customers from a CSV file using the template provided in the app; past orders can also be imported from a CSV. Container sizes and pricing are set up in Settings. The landfill database, with 1,750 active US and Canadian landfills as counted on 2026-10-01, is already loaded, so disposal sites do not need to be typed in. Step-by-step guides are at dumpstercontrols.io/help.