Build a dated chronology before you argue what was agreed
When a job has run past its paper, or never had any, a dated chronology shows who agreed what and when, from the documents. Put every document in date order, mark where the written terms stop, and value the work on each side of that line.
Updated: . By Jack Butler-Kettle, Construction Claims Consultant.
Why it matters
Once work has run past a letter of intent, or started on a quote and a phone call, memories split. Each side remembers a different price, scope and start date. The argument drifts between what was said, what was built and what was paid, and every point is made from memory. A chronology built from the originals ends that drift. It shows which document says what and where the written terms stop. It also shows which part of the money is unpaid whichever side is right. You can claim that part now and argue the rest on the documents, not on recollection. Whether a contract was formed, and on whose terms, is a question for your solicitor. The chronology is the first thing they will ask for.
How to do it
- Gather the originals: the quote, any letter of intent or order, emails and messages, instructions, the drawings you built from, invoices and payments.
- Put them in one list in date order, each with its date, its sender and what it says about scope, price or payment.
- Mark each entry as agreed, one side's version or in dispute, and attach each disputed term to the message it came from.
- Fix the date where the written terms stop: the cap reached, the letter expired or the last agreed instruction. Confirm that date in writing.
- Value the work on each side of that line and reconcile both against every payment. The sum unpaid on either reading is then plain.
Example
Illustrative example. The scenario and figures are invented.
The facts
A glazing subcontractor starts a £140,000 package on a letter of intent capped at £40,000 and valid for 6 weeks. After 5 months the subcontract is still unsigned and £95,000 has been paid. The main contractor says the work beyond the cap was never authorised.
What happens
- The subcontractor puts the letter, the quote, eleven instructions, the unsigned versions of the subcontract, the invoices and the five payments into one dated list.
- The list shows the cap reached in week 5, the letter expiring in week 6, and eight of the eleven instructions issued after the expiry.
- It marks each entry as agreed, the main contractor's version or in dispute.
- It values the work in two parts, inside the cap and after it, and reconciles both against the £95,000 paid.
The chronology in figures
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Cap in the letter | £40,000 |
| Value of the work inside the cap | £40,000 |
| Value of the work after the cap | £78,000 |
| Paid | £95,000 |
| Unpaid | £23,000 |
The outcome
The main contractor's own instructions and payments after the expiry sit on the list, right beside its claim that nothing beyond the cap was authorised. The subcontractor sends it the £23,000 claim with every entry traced to a document. Its solicitor gets the same list to advise on what the arrangement was in law.
To have this done for you, see our Letter of Intent Claim service.