Do I have to accept their final account assessment?
Not always, but do not treat it as just an opening offer until you have checked what it does under your subcontract.
Updated: . By Jack Butler-Kettle, Construction Claims Consultant.
The answer
Some certificates and assessments become final under the subcontract unless challenged in time. Others are only your main contractor's view of the value. Which one you have depends on the clause, the law that applies and the facts. So check its status and any deadlines first. Then reconcile each difference against your account. Keep what you can prove separate from what you can actually collect. Ask your solicitor whether negotiation, a response notice, adjudication or another route is open, and whether you are still in time.
Example
Illustrative example. The scenario and figures are invented.
The facts
A joinery subcontractor submits a final account of £120,000 and gets back an assessment of £70,000. It wants to know whether it has to accept the £50,000 cut.
What happens
- The subcontractor records the date of the assessment and finds the clause said to make it final.
- The subcontractor asks for the £50,000 difference to be explained.
- Any accepted balance is separated from the disputed heads.
- A £35,000 variation is put first for evidence. The route for responding, and what the document does, are for the solicitor to confirm.
The account in figures
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Final account submitted | £120,000 |
| Assessment received | £70,000 |
| Difference to be explained | £50,000 |
| Variation prioritised for evidence | £35,000 |
The outcome
The file separates the accepted balance from the disputed heads, with the clause and the date recorded. It does not assume a challenge is open or that payment will follow.
To have an assessment set against your account line by line and answered in your name, see our Final Account Claim service.