Price Rise Loss Prevention
PreventionOptional monthly check10 working days
Check price-rise risks before signing, then keep the records and notices needed for any contractual adjustment.
Updated: . By Jack Butler-Kettle, Construction Claims Consultant.
Get a free report on your claim. About three minutes; no obligation.
The problem
Material prices may rise before the job finishes, or an old quotation may be accepted at a price that no longer covers your costs. You need to understand which increases your proposed subcontract allows for.
Costs already risen? See Price Rise Claim.
The solution
We review quotation and subcontract terms, explain which rises you would carry and prepare negotiation points. You decide whether to sign. We then set up a price record and trial it for a month. A contract about to be signed is reviewed first.
What you get
You receive quotation terms stating the price date, validity and possible adjustments, with a pre-signing note identifying price risks and changes to request. A tested price record tracks quoted and actual costs alongside the notice dates.
Includes a Handover Pack: key dates and sources, next steps, likely responses, scope limits and any ready-to-send letters.
Fee: Fixed set-up fee agreed in writing before work starts. Optional monthly checks have a fixed fee agreed first. Pause between jobs or stop at month-end.
How it works
You tell us how you price and buy
Start with a free call. Agree the scope, fixed fee and timetable in writing, then send the records listed below.
What you get: A written scope, fixed fee and timetable
- A
A recent quotation and how it was priced
The quotation as sent, with the supplier quotes it was built on, their dates and their validity periods.
Where to find it: Your estimating folder, or the email the quotation went out with.
Why we need it: The price basis is set in the quotation: its base date, how long it is open, and which prices are fixed.
How we will use it: We rewrite your quotation terms so every quote states its base date, its validity and the materials that will be adjusted, and on what basis.
- B
The subcontract, as offered or signed
A complete PDF with all schedules and amendments, the particulars and any fluctuations option or price adjustment clause included.
Where to find it: The order email or the job's commercial folder.
Why we need it: Whether a rise moves to the main contractor is decided by the subcontract's own wording, and amendments often delete the adjustment altogether.
How we will use it: We read its price terms before you sign, set out what to ask for, and build the job's price record around what it will pay for.
- C
The main contract's price terms, where you can see them
The fluctuations option or price adjustment clause in the main contract, or a note of what the main contractor has told you about it.
Where to find it: The tender enquiry documents, or ask the main contractor's quantity surveyor.
Why we need it: A main contractor that is protected against rises by its own contract has less reason to refuse the same terms to you.
How we will use it: We compare the two and put the terms that mirror the main contract at the top of your asks.
- D
Your main materials and suppliers
The few materials that make up most of your package value, who supplies them, and any price increase notices received in the last year.
Where to find it: Your buyer or your purchase ledger.
Why we need it: The adjustment only needs to cover the materials that move enough to hurt; the rest can stay fixed.
How we will use it: We name the volatile materials in your quotation terms and set up the monthly record of their prices and the matching published indices.
Copies are fine. Send what you have and we will tell you what's missing.
- A
We fix your quotations
We see where price rises have cost you on recent jobs. Then we rewrite your quotation terms to date your prices and name what can be adjusted.
What you get: Quotation terms that date your prices and name what can be adjusted
We read the subcontract before you sign
We check how it deals with price rises and compare it with the main contract where we can. Then we note what to ask for and what to settle for.
What you get: A one-page note of what to ask for, why, and what to settle for
You negotiate, then decide whether to sign
You take our note into talks with your main contractor. Then you decide whether to sign, knowing which rises the subcontract covers and which stay with you.
We set up the price record and hand it over
We set up the record with your buyer and quantity surveyor, and run a live month with them. Then your team keeps it, with our monthly check if you want it.
What you get: A price record for the job and a written routine your team can follow
We leave you with a price basis and a record your team keeps
Get a free report on your claim
Answer the questions below for a free PDF report by email. Allow about three minutes; choose “Not sure” where needed.
Your report explains where you stand, the next steps to take and the records to gather. It also sets out how we could help for a fixed fee, with no obligation.
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Already dealing with it? Price Rise Claim.