Construction Industry Sub-Contracts - Lump Sum Payment on Completion
The sub-contract templates in this subfolder are suitable for all small scale construction projects. They can be used by a builder or main contractor to engage an electrician, plumber, plasterer, bricklayer or any other type of sub-contractor.
These sub-contracts provide for a one-off payment to be made on completion of the works. Some of the templates make provision for retention to be held by the contractor. The retained amount is paid to the sub-contractor when the defects liability period has expired, so long as the sub-contractor has remedied any defects.
All of the templates include detailed provisions to ensure the parties understand what is expected of them, thus reducing the scope for disputes. Descriptions of the main contract works and the sub-contract works need to be inserted. A timescale is set out for completion of the works and the agreement lists the day-to-day obligations of the contractor and sub-contractor. The sub-contracts have clauses dealing with payments to the sub-contractor, the sub-contractor’s liability and insurance.
In other folders we have construction sub-contract templates providing for payment in instalments and more robust templates for larger projects.
Construction Industry Sub-Contracts - Lump Sum Payment on Completion is part of Business . Just £38.50 + VAT provides unlimited downloads from Business for 1 year.
Frequently Asked Questions
I want to pay my subcontractor one lump sum when the job is done, is there a template for that? +
Yes. These subcontracts are built for a single payment made on completion of the works, suitable for any small scale construction project and any trade, such as an electrician, plumber, plasterer or bricklayer. They set out the works, a timescale for completion and the day to day obligations of contractor and subcontractor, plus payment, liability and insurance. Use one where the job is straightforward enough to pay for in one go at the end.
If I pay one lump sum on completion, do the statutory payment rules still apply? +
Yes. A construction subcontract is covered by the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996, which requires an adequate payment mechanism and the notice regime, even where there is a single payment. If you intend to pay less than the notified or applied for sum you must serve a pay less notice in time, and the subcontractor can suspend work for non-payment on notice. These templates are drafted to work with those rules. Do not treat a lump sum job as outside the Act.
Can I hold retention when I am only making one payment on completion? +
Yes. Some of these lump sum templates provide for retention: you release most of the price on completion but hold back a retained amount, paid once the defects liability period ends and any defects are remedied. That gives you security against problems appearing after completion, even on a single payment job. Retention and the defects period are contractual terms you set, so agree the percentage and the length upfront and record them in the subcontract.
Which trades can these lump sum subcontracts be used for? +
Any type of subcontractor on a small scale construction project: electricians, plumbers, plasterers, bricklayers, roofers, tilers or others. The template is general, so you describe the main contract works and the specific subcontract works in it rather than it being trade specific. Use it wherever a builder or main contractor engages a trade for a defined job paid on completion. For instalment payment or larger projects, other subfolders have the right forms.
