Search

How can we help?

Icon

How do I prove my final account claim?

Many construction disputes relate to the calculation of the final account. Sometimes there may be an interesting point of law or expert evidence at stake.  More often than not, the dispute will boil down to proving what work was done and / or what was the agreed price for the work.

These issues came into play in the recent case of Premier Engineering (Lincoln) Limited v MW High Tech Project UK Limited. The underlying project was very large (£150m) but Premier started work on a very small subcontract. When MW fell out with another subcontractor Premier agreed to supply additional labour to help MW the project back on track.  The work was carried out on an ad hoc basis – MW told Premier each week what work was required, Premier did the work and invoiced according to its timesheets. Come the end of the project, the parties were unable to agree Premier’s final account.  Premier claimed an additional £1.3m, whereas MW said that it had already overpaid.

The dispute fell into two main categories – labour and materials – which the court unravelled over the course of an 80 page judgment.

The labour charges represented by far the largest part of the claim.  Premier’s claim relied on its timesheets that had been signed each week by an authorised MW representative.  MW sought to distance itself from the timesheets for two reasons. Firstly, it said that it signed the timesheets without carefully checking them ‘to keep the peace’.  Secondly, the turnstile records at site suggested that the hours worked were lower than claimed.  The Judge rejected both arguments.

Signed timesheets are primary evidence that work has been done. It was MW’s own fault if it had not adequately resourced the job to check the timesheets before signing them off.  This was the best opportunity for MW to raise any concerns about the sums claimed. In any event, MW had challenged the timesheets from time to time.

Turnstile data could have been relevant evidence.However, in this case Premier had raised concerns about the turnstiles – sometimes they were not working and on other occasions Premier’s operatives were working outside the area covered by the turnstiles. The Judge concluded that the parties had agreed that the turnstile data would not be taken into account. They agreed instead to use a biometric clock but this was not installed on site until a later date.

The dispute fell into two main categories – labour and materials – which the court unravelled over the course of an 80 page judgment.

The materials claim threw up a different challenge.  About £100k turned on the claim but it covered very many individual invoices, some of which were low value.  It would not have been realistic for the court to consider every invoice.  Instead it applied a ‘materiality threshold’ to exclude the lowest value invoices. It examined a representative sample of the remainder and used the conclusions on these to determine what was due under the entire batch of invoices.

The case is good illustration of how the court will approach such a claim and the challenges of determining a final account that it for a large sum but made up of very small items.  It also emphasises the importance the claiming party keeping contemporaneous records and the paying party raising objections at the time.

About this article

Disclaimer
This information is for guidance purposes only and should not be regarded as a substitute for taking legal advice. Please refer to the full General Notices on our website.

About this article

Read, listen and watch our latest insights

art
  • 26 June 2025
  • Employment

A shift in EHRC guidance on single sex spaces in the workplace

In a recent significant shift, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (“the EHRC”) has quietly amended its guidance on single sex spaces in the workplace.

art
  • 25 June 2025
  • Immigration

Immigration Changes in Statement HC 836 – what do they mean?

The UK government has released its latest Statement of Changes to the Immigration Rules (HC 836), with shocking implementation dates throughout July 2025.

art
  • 20 June 2025
  • Privacy and Data Protection

Data Protection reform receives Royal Assent: What is the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 (DUAA) and what it means for your business

The UK’s data protection framework is about to undergo its most significant change since the UK GDPR came into force. After months of parliamentary debate, the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 (‘DUAA’) has successfully received Royal Assent.

art
  • 18 June 2025
  • Employment

Pride Month: How Can You Celebrate as an Employer

The UK held its first Pride Parade in 1972, inspired by events held in major American cities following the Stonewall rebellion in New York in June 1969.

Pub
  • 16 June 2025
  • Privacy and Data Protection

WhatsApp in the workplace: Is it legally safe?

In this podcast, Lucy White and Monica Mastropasqua, members of the Data Protection team at Clarkslegal, will address frequently asked questions from clients regarding the use of WhatsApp at work.

art
  • 13 June 2025
  • Employment

Human Resources – A Shift Towards artificial intelligence?

On 6 May 2025, the SRA authorised the first law firm providing legal services through artificial intelligence. Garfield.Law will provide an AI-powered tool which can assist businesses with the small claims court process, to aid in recovering unpaid debts.