Unpaid construction payments

Unpaid construction invoice or application? Focus first on the contract, notices and evidence.

HQ Law advises contractors, subcontractors and other construction businesses on unpaid sums, payment applications, notices, retention and related disputes.

Discuss a payment dispute Construction disputes

Payment records to assemble

Payment application or invoice, valuation details, payment notice, pay less notice, contract terms, correspondence and a clear calculation of the sum claimed.

The strength of any position depends on the actual contract, notices, evidence and procedural history. HQ Law can review the material, identify the legal and commercial issues and advise on the proportionate route forward.

Possible routes

Focused correspondence or negotiation
Construction adjudication where available and appropriate
Mediation or settlement discussions
Litigation or arbitration where the contract and circumstances require it
Insolvency and winding-up petitions

If the debt is not genuinely disputed

Where the paying party has no genuine dispute and simply has not paid, a formal demand, statutory demand or winding-up petition may be quicker than adjudication. See Debt recovery & insolvency.

Fixed-fee payment review

Payment / Pay Less Notice Review — £495 + VAT.

For a defined payment-cycle issue, HQ Law can review the agreed core payment documents, the contractual payment provisions and key dates, followed by a 30-minute call and short written assessment.

The fee assumes one defined payment issue and an agreed document set. Adjudication, correspondence with the other party and further drafting are separately scoped.

Payment analysis

An unpaid construction invoice may be a notice problem, a valuation problem or both.

The first question is not simply whether an invoice is outstanding. For a construction contract, the payment mechanism may determine what sum became due, what notices should have been served, the final date for payment and whether a pay less notice was required. An application, invoice, payment notice and pay less notice can have different contractual and statutory functions.

If the statutory adjudication regime applies, a crystallised payment dispute can often be referred to adjudication. Before doing so, the payment cycle should be reconstructed precisely from the contract and the actual documents served.

Is an invoice automatically the notified sum?

Not necessarily. That depends on the contract and whether the invoice or application satisfies the contractual/statutory notice machinery. The document's label is less important than its function and content.

What if there was no pay less notice?

That may be highly significant, but the payment notice, due date, final date and service requirements must all be checked before drawing a conclusion.

Can payment disputes be adjudicated quickly?

Qualifying construction disputes benefit from the statutory adjudication timetable, under which the adjudicator ordinarily decides within 28 days of referral, subject to permitted extensions.

What should be sent to a solicitor first?

The contract, payment schedule, relevant application/invoice, notices, proof of service, valuation backup and the correspondence showing what is actually disputed.

Key sources: HGCRA 1996, s.108 · s.111.

Free PDF checklist

Construction Payment Dispute Checklist

Use the checklist to reconstruct the payment cycle, review the application and notices, record service evidence and organise the material needed to assess the next step.

Download the checklist

Next step

Discuss the dispute with HQ Law

Tell us who the parties are, what has happened and any immediate deadline. We can then carry out an initial conflict check and consider the next step.

Start an enquiry Call 07843 580 112