Contra-charges I'd never seen have appeared on my final account
Charges we have never seen proved have turned up in the final account, taken off as if they were agreed.
Updated: . By Jack Butler-Kettle, Construction Claims Consultant.
What's happening?
Your final account comes back with charges you have never seen proved: attendance, alleged defects, supervision, delay. They are often round sums with no build-up, which makes them hard to answer. Turning up this late does not prove them, but it does not defeat them either.
Answer them as one total, or not at all, and the whole sum comes off your account. Each charge has to be answered on its own. What event is alleged, and is it yours? What does your subcontract say, and which notice carried it into a payment? What did it cost, and has it been credited or charged twice already? A delay charge turns on a different question: the completion date after any extension of time. Keep it apart from the rest.
The solution
Take the schedule line by line. For each charge, record the basis relied on, the notice that carried it into a payment, the evidence and how the sum was built up. Check for credits and for the same cost charged twice. Keep any delay charge separate.
Contra-Charge Claim rates the evidence on both sides and values what each line supports. We put your answer to the main contractor, then negotiate or adjudicate the disputed balance. We test a delay charge against the completion date as extended, and legal points on the clause go to a solicitor. Contra-Charge Prevention then sets up the routine that answers the next charges as they land.
Example
Illustrative example. The scenario and figures are invented.
The facts
A subcontractor's £380,000 account comes back with £71,000 of contra-charges it has never seen. They are £18,000 for attendance, £22,000 for defects put right by others, £6,000 for supervision and £25,000 described as delay.
What happens
- The subcontractor records each charge: what it alleges, what supports it, and the amount accepted or disputed.
- The attendance charge is a round sum with no build-up, and the payment notices show it was never deducted in any cycle. The subcontractor disputes it in full and records its request for a build-up.
- The defects charge comes with another trade's invoice and photographs. The subcontractor accepts £13,000 that matches work in its scope. It disputes £9,000 for a room it never worked in.
- On the main contractor's own description, the supervision charge duplicates the attendance charge. The subcontractor disputes it.
- The subcontractor keeps the delay item separate. It tests it against the completion date as extended and the delay notices on file. Whether the subcontract allows the deduction at all goes to its solicitor.
- The subcontractor sends its line-by-line answer. It keeps the accepted £13,000 apart from the rest and names who is dealing with each open question.
The contra-charges line by line
| Charge | Amount | Position |
|---|---|---|
| Attendance | £18,000 | Disputed in full, build-up requested |
| Defects put right by others | £22,000 | £13,000 accepted, £9,000 disputed |
| Supervision | £6,000 | Disputed as a duplicate of attendance |
| Delay | £25,000 | Held against the completion date as extended |
The outcome
The main contractor withdraws the attendance and supervision charges, £24,000 together. The £9,000 and the £25,000 stay in the account as disputed, with the evidence requests on record.