First visit fix rate is the percentage of AV faults an engineer resolves on the first trip, and in London a second trip is unusually expensive: another booking with building management, another slot found in a full meeting calendar, another journey across the city. Raising your first visit fix rate is mostly about preparation, from how a fault is reported to what was written down last time.
The figure is simple, but it reveals a lot about how support is organised. It also sits naturally beside the other AV support KPIs a London business should track.
Why repeat visits cost more in London
A failed meeting room is an inconvenience anywhere. In central London the second visit adds costs of its own:
- Access. Many managed buildings need contractors booked in advance, with documents checked at reception.
- Room availability. Boardrooms and Teams Rooms are often booked back to back, so a return visit may wait days for a free slot.
- Travel. Crossing the city twice for one fault adds hours that someone pays for.
- Reputation. In hotels and client facing offices, a room that fails twice is noticed by the people you least want to disappoint.
What sits behind a high first visit fix rate
IBM's guide to first time fix rate recommends better job preparation, central digital records and parts tracking, and points to ageing or complex equipment as a common cause of low rates. For AV support that translates into four habits:
| Habit | Why it helps |
|---|---|
| Full details when a fault is logged | Site, room, equipment, brand and fault type let the engineer bring the right part |
| A library of proven fixes | An answer found once is used again, before the engineer sets off |
| Firmware recorded before and after each fix | Explains why a fault appears in one office and not another |
| Booked visits where access is tricky | The engineer arrives to an open door and a free room |
Faults raised through the client portal carry these details from the start, and the history of every room stays in one place.
Reading a low first visit fix rate
When the rate is low, the engineer is rarely the problem. Look first at the tickets. Vague reports such as "screen not working" force a diagnostic visit before the real one. Missing notes mean each engineer rediscovers the same fault. And a fault that keeps returning, on the same product and firmware, usually means its cause has never been found.
Four steps to a better first visit fix rate
- Make every ticket complete. Equipment, brand and fault type, every time, plus a photo of any error message.
- Hunt down repeat faults each month. A firmware update or a replaced cable can end a run of call outs.
- Write up every fix. Short notes, kept where every engineer can find them.
- Measure by site and by brand. A good overall figure can hide one difficult building or one unreliable product.
What a well prepared London call out looks like
Take a typical fault: the main display in a client meeting room on the fourth floor of a managed building will not show the laptop. With a good process, the call out runs like this:
- The fault is logged with the room, the display model, the video conferencing equipment and a photo of what the screen shows.
- The engineer checks the history: the last visit to that room, the firmware on record and any similar fault in the fix library.
- The visit is booked with building management for a time the room is free, and the likely part travels with the engineer.
- The fault is fixed and tested with someone from your team before the engineer leaves.
- The ticket is closed with a note of what was found, what was done and the firmware before and after.
Nothing in that list is complicated. It simply makes sure the visit is spent fixing rather than finding out. Skip any of the steps and the odds of a second trip, with a second booking at reception and a second disrupted meeting, go up sharply. Over a year, across a few London sites, those extra trips add up to a noticeable share of the support bill.
Questions to put to your current provider
- What was our first visit fix rate last month, by site?
- Which faults came back, and what changed afterwards?
- Where are your notes from the last visit to each of our rooms?
- How do you handle buildings that need contractors booked in?
Clear answers, backed by tickets, are a good sign that your support is being managed rather than simply attended.
Planning ahead for the rooms that matter
The rooms where first visit fix rate matters most are the client facing ones: boardrooms, receptions with digital signage or LED walls, and hotel function suites. For those, planned checks through 1Install Care catch worn parts and outdated firmware before they cause a fault, and our AV installers in London can replace equipment that support records show is past its best.
Questions we are often asked
What counts as a first visit fix?
A fault resolved on the first visit with no return trip needed. A pre booked visit that fixes the fault counts.
Can every fault be fixed first time?
No. Some need parts ordered or a planned second visit. The aim is a rate that rises steadily.
Who uses the fix library?
Our engineers. Clients see the benefit in quicker repairs and fewer repeat visits.
Does first visit fix rate replace other measures?
No. Read it with response level met, repeat faults and time on site, so a quick first visit never hides a poor repair.
How soon will we see a change?
Once tickets are logged in full and fixes are written up, the trend usually shows within a few months.
To talk about first visit fix rate across your London offices, Book a consultation or call our head office on 01344 937999 (London office 0208 064 0196).
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