Free Christmas Light Installation Contract Template (2026)

Installers pay anywhere from CA$2.33 to CA$29.25 on Etsy for a static Christmas light contract, $39 USD for the two-page Word version from Christmas Lights Design, and up to CA$78.89 for a bundle with spreadsheets. Most of them are a scope box, a price box and a signature line. The template below is the one we use on our own seasonal jobs in Ottawa, with every clause explained, and it is free to copy. It covers lights you supply and the seasonal-service variant for lights the homeowner already owns.

Plain notice before you copy anything. This is sample wording from a working installer, not legal advice. The company that puts its name on the agreement is the only party to it; GlowBid is not a party and does not give legal advice. Have the wording reviewed for your province or state before you use it on a real customer.

The clauses at a glance

The free templates out there are thinner than this. LightQuoter's free template has eleven sections with bracketed blanks and no numbers, which is fine if you already know your numbers. The DocHub fillable form is a general holiday display agreement with schedules A and B. Strandr's guide is the best of the write-ups and suggests a deposit of 25 to 50 percent. None of them deal with the photo measurement, the takedown window in dates, or the homeowner-owned-lights case, which is where the November support calls come from.

The template

Copy the block below into your own document, replace the bracketed parts, and delete the clause you do not use in section 7.

1. Parties and property

This agreement is between [Company legal name], [address], [phone], [email] ("we", "us") and [Homeowner name(s)] ("you") for the property at [service address]. Your contact for scheduling on the day is [name and mobile].

Why it exists. The most common gap in the Etsy templates is the property itself. Write the service address, not the billing address, and get a mobile number for the person who will be home. If the property is a rental, the person signing must have authority to let you on the roof.

2. Scope of work

We will supply and install the following at the property, as shown on the attached drawing and mockup:

Add-ons: [timer / controller / wreaths / garland]. Power: you will provide a working exterior outlet within [x] ft of the roofline; extension runs beyond that are priced separately.

Why it exists. Footage by run type is the scope. Roofline, peaks, ridge lines and jumps cost different amounts to install, so they get their own lines, and the colour and spacing are written down because "warm white at 12 inches" and "pure white at 9 inches" are different jobs at different prices. If you drew the runs in GlowBid, this table is generated from the drawing and cannot disagree with the price. On paper, fill it from your measuring notes. The roofline measuring guide covers how to get the footage from one photo.

3. Price, deposit and balance

Total price: $[amount] plus applicable tax. A deposit of [30]% ($[amount]) is due on signing to book your installation date. The balance is due on the day the installation is completed. [Optional: a late balance accrues [x]% per month.]

Why it exists. The deposit does two things: it pays for the product you order for that house, and it holds the date. Take it when they sign. Balance on completion, not "net 30", because you will be on a ladder at another house on day 30. Strandr suggests a staged split for larger jobs; for a typical residential seasonal job, one deposit and one balance is simpler and generates fewer questions.

4. Measurement honesty

Footage and materials in section 2 are estimated from photos and confirmed on site before installation. If the on-site measurement changes the price by more than [5]%, we will confirm the adjusted price with you before proceeding.

Why it exists. Photo measurement is close enough to quote and not exact. Runs that angle away from the camera read short, and a homeowner's phone photo taken from the driveway is rarely square-on. Saying so in the contract, with a threshold, means a 4 ft difference on install day is a non-event and a 40 ft difference gets a phone call before the crew starts. GlowBid prints this clause on every quote by default and tags each measurement with its source and confidence.

5. Scheduling and weather

Installation is scheduled for the week of [date]. Installation dates depend on weather and roof conditions. If we need to reschedule for safety (snow, ice, high wind, extreme cold), we will offer you the next available date. Neither party owes a penalty for a weather delay.

Why it exists. In Ottawa we lose install days to freezing rain every November. A homeowner who booked for the 15th and sees you on the 22nd needs to have read that this can happen. "Next available date" is the honest promise; "we will be there within 48 hours" is not one you can keep in a storm.

6. Roof, siding and property

We install with clips and fasteners suited to your roof and siding and take reasonable care. Our liability for damage arising from installation or takedown is limited to $[500] per incident. We are not responsible for pre-existing damage, brittle or deteriorated shingles, siding or trim, or damage caused by conditions beyond our control. Please move vehicles and fragile items away from the work area before we arrive.

Why it exists. Zensurance lists roof, gutter and landscaping damage as the main property claims for light installers, and that matches our experience: the one shingle that cracks is always the one that was already brittle. A per-incident cap and a pre-existing exclusion set expectations. Whether a cap holds up against a consumer depends on where you operate, so have it reviewed, and carry liability insurance either way. Some installers add a ladder-fall and shingle waiver as a separate signed page; a clause in the main agreement does the same job with one signature.

7. Product and ownership (choose one)

7A. Lights we supply. The lights, clips, cords and controller are supplied by us and become your property when the balance is paid [or: remain our property under a separate lease agreement].

7B. Seasonal service on lights you own. The lights, clips and cords remain your property. We install and take down what you supply and are not responsible for the condition, safety certification or failure of homeowner-owned products. Strands must be tested and working when we arrive; we charge $[amount] per strand to diagnose or replace at your request.

Why it exists. This is the seasonal-service variant, and it is the one the paid templates leave out. Plenty of homeowners have a bin of lights in the garage and want a crew to hang them. It is good work: our starter rate card prices it at $3 per foot of roofline against $8 per foot for C9 lights we supply. The risk is different, though. Their strands may be ten years old, uncertified, or half dead, and if a strand fails in week two you do not want to be the one replacing it for free. Say plainly whose product it is, that you are not responsible for it, and what you charge to troubleshoot it. GlowBid appends this wording automatically when the agreement type is seasonal service.

8. Takedown

Takedown [is included in the price above / is a separate visit priced at $[amount]] and takes place in the takedown window of [January 2 to February 28], weather permitting. We will notify you before the visit. Lights left up past [February 28] at your request are subject to a re-attendance fee of $[amount].

Why it exists. Without dates, takedown becomes a January argument. A window gives your crew room to route efficiently and tells the homeowner not to call on January 3. If you store the lights for them, add a storage clause with a liability cap; see the lease agreement template for that wording.

9. Cancellation

You may cancel within [3] days of signing for a full refund of your deposit. After that, the deposit covers materials ordered and scheduling and is non-refundable. If we cannot perform the work for reasons within our control, we refund the deposit in full.

Why it exists. Three days is a cooling-off period that matches what many consumer-protection regimes expect for agreements signed at the home or online; check your own province or state, some require a longer window or specific wording. After that, you have ordered product with their name on it. Strandr describes a sliding scale from a full refund at 45 days' notice to full retention under 15 days; that works for commercial jobs booked in August. For residential jobs booked three weeks out, the flat rule is easier to explain on the phone.

10. Warranty and quote validity

Workmanship is warranted for one year from the installation date. Product warranties are provided by the manufacturer. This quote is valid for 30 days from [quote date].

Why it exists. Separate your workmanship (clips that let go, a run that sags) from the product (a controller that dies). The 30-day validity keeps a September quote from being cashed in at November prices.

11. Electronic signature

By signing electronically you agree that your electronic signature is as binding as a handwritten one. Signed: [homeowner name], [date and time], [IP or device record]. For [Company]: [name], [date].

Why it exists. Most of your homeowners will sign on a phone from the quote link. State that it counts, and keep the record. GlowBid stores the signed PDF with the quote it was signed against, so the scope, the price and the signature are one file.

Sample terms notice (print under the terms). These terms are set by the company named on this document, which is the only party to the agreement with the homeowner. GlowBid provides sample wording as a convenience, is not a party to this agreement, and does not give legal advice. Companies should have their own terms reviewed for their province or state.

A worked example

A two-storey in Barrhaven, C9 LED warm white at 12 in, priced from GlowBid's starter rate card (every installer should replace those numbers with their own):

The contract's section 2 lists those four runs with the footage; section 3 carries the $1,910.20, the $573.06 and the balance; section 4 says the 130 ft was measured from the homeowner's photo and will be confirmed on site. If the tape says 138 ft on install day, that is a 6 percent move on the roofline line and about 3 percent on the total, so the crew installs and the invoice shows the true footage. If it says 170 ft, the homeowner gets a call first.

Mistakes we have made or watched others make

• Quoting "roofline" without saying whether peaks are included. Homeowners hear "roofline" and picture the whole silhouette. List the peaks.
• No power clause. The crew arrives, the only outlet is inside the garage, and someone has to run 60 ft of cord through a window.
• Skipping the measurement clause because the quote was done in person. Tapes get misread too; the clause costs nothing.
• Takedown "in January" with no end date. Now it is March.
• Installing homeowner-owned lights on the installation contract, then replacing their dead strands for free because the contract implied you supplied them. Use 7B.
• Sending the contract as a locked PDF for printing and signing. Half of them never come back. Send a link, get an electronic signature, and have the deposit collected on the same page.

If you would rather not maintain the document yourself, GlowBid generates this agreement from the drawing and the rate card, appends the seasonal-service or lease clauses for the agreement type you pick, collects the e-signature and deposit on one page, and creates the install and takedown jobs when it is signed. The wording above is the default library; you can replace any clause with your own on the rate card page.