Thanks for the input everyone. 

This isn't a matter of a single search, it's on many searches over time, and the requirements are the same for a number of our clients.  On the extremes, one gives us carte blanche to approve a full without asking because it always needs to go out of family while the other will almost always stop in-family and try to work with what they get (they don't cancel) and want only to be charged for the current owner.  I understand what some of you are citing as a conflict in their requirements but unfortunately, some of our clients want to take the cheapest route possible (I know - shocking these days) to do whatever it is they're doing with these, well, half-assed searches.

Oddly, it seems to be regional as to what the searcher opts to do.  99% call to ask how to proceed.  I assume they know as middlemen, we have clients who have clients to answer to.  There are a handful of abstractors in one state who just run with it, double/triple the charge and it's invariably for the client who will choose to stay with the current owner.  I've had to amend this client's order form to state "if this requirement will incur a fee increase, you must call for approval." 

Despite this, in all caps on the form, a searcher recently called in a snit after I'd emailed stating the up-charge wasn't approved and we could only pay for a current owner.  It wasn't a large up-charge but the margin on the search was small and the difference put us upside-down on the order.  She belabored the requirement of out-of-family while I continued to direct her to the rest of the sentence stating a call is needed if this incurs a fee increase. We came to an agreement once her less hot-headed partner took the phone. 

I ended up doing the search free for the client because the dollar amount wasn't enough to cause me to lose sleep, nor was standing on principal worth my time for this amount, but it probably would have left them (her at least) fuming for days.  I view it in the same vein as over-tipping waitstaff... you've made his/her day but you don't miss the extra couple bucks.  Worth the investment.