Sector: drylining contractors
Subcontract software for drylining contractors
Drylining sits in the middle of the chain. Above you is a main contractor who pays on a valuation and serves a pay less notice when the metres are argued; below you are gangs paid on measure who are subcontractors in their own right, with CIS to deduct and notices of your own to serve. Estimark raises the payment application with the due date and the final date on it, tracks the retention to both releases, clocks the gangs on and off site by QR gated on their induction and a signed RAMS, serves your section 110A and 111 notices to them with the deadlines counted, and deducts CIS at the rate HMRC verification produces for each one.
What actually goes wrong
The pay less notice arrived and nobody knew the date
The main contractor served it on the last day it could be served. The application went in on a date nobody had calculated the notice period from.
Metres on the measure, hours on the timesheet, and they disagree
The gang says forty hours. The measure says sixty square metres. Neither is against the job, and the argument is about which one is wrong.
Your own notices never served
The gang’s application became the notified sum because nobody served a notice on them, and the dispute went to adjudication with the paperwork against you.
Deducted at 30% because nobody verified
Half the gang unverified, deducted at the higher rate, and ten per cent of everything they invoiced sitting with HMRC.
Sector: how it works
How does the valuation work?
A payment application carries the cumulative valuation, the retention at the contract percentage, and the Construction Act due date and final date for payment, so the pay less deadline is a date on the record rather than one worked out after the notice arrives.
- Approved variations for the extra layer or the change to a fire-rated board land in the application as their own line.
- Retention is held as its own figure and released in two halves, each as a record with a date.
- The reverse charge is set on the main contractor once and every application and invoice for them carries nil VAT with the section 55A wording.
- Payment Applications is included from Pro.
NoteThe dates follow the Scheme for Construction Contracts defaults where the contract is silent. A contract with its own periods needs those entered, and no system can read a bespoke subcontract for you.
How do I serve notices on my own gangs?
A subcontractor payment notice is raised against a gang’s invoice with the section 110A notice deadline and the section 111 pay less deadline counted from the due date, so what you serve downstream is on the same record as what is served on you.
- Where the subcontract is silent the defaults are the Scheme’s: the final date for payment 17 days after the due date, the payment notice within 5 days of the due date, and the pay less notice no later than 7 days before the final date.
- The dates are stored on the notice, so a subcontract with different terms can be recorded per notice rather than assumed.
- A gang’s application that goes unanswered becomes the notified sum by default, and the record shows which notices were served and when.
How are gang hours and CIS handled?
QR site attendance clocks operatives on and off at the job, can be gated on induction, CSCS card and a signed RAMS, and can create the timesheet entry on clock-out.
| Status | Rate |
|---|---|
| Verified for gross payment status | 0% |
| Verified and registered | 20% |
| Unverified, unmatched or higher rate | 30% |
- Hours against a job are what turn a measure into a labour cost, and Job Costing shows labour, material and subcontract against the valuation as the job runs.
- On labour-only work the deduction base is the whole payment. Where the gang supplied the board and the screws, those come off the base first.
- A payment and deduction statement per subcontractor per tax month, and the CIS300 recorded with both declarations. CIS Compliance is included from Solo.
NoteEstimark records the CIS300 and locks each deduction to its return. Filing the return is done through HMRC’s own service, and the reference is recorded against it.
What about safety on a live site?
RAMS are versioned so an operative signs a specific revision, permits to work cover working at height for the MEWP and the tower, and toolbox talks are logged with a signed attendance list.
- Sign-off works by QR scan, in the app, or on paper, so a gang with no logins does not become a hole in the record.
- A permit has a valid-from and a valid-to time and expires on its own.
- Health & Safety is included from Solo.
Which plan does a drylining firm need?
Pro at £299 a month +VAT covers up to 20 users with no job limit and carries Payment Applications, which is the plan for a firm paid on valuation.
- Core at £129 a month +VAT covers up to 5 users and carries Job Costing and Purchase Orders for the board and the metal.
- Solo is £39 a month +VAT for 2 users and 20 open jobs, with CIS, Health & Safety and Timesheets already on it.
The subcontract, in numbers
- Final date for payment
- Due date + 17 days, Scheme default
- Payment notice
- Within 5 days of the due date
- Pay less notice
- 7 days before the final date
- Verified CIS rate
- 20%
- Unverified CIS rate
- 30%
- Payment Applications
- Included from Pro
Pro
£299 +VAT/month
Up to 20 users, no job limit, with Payment Applications on it.
What you get
- Payment applications with retention and Construction Act dates
- Section 110A and 111 notices to your own subcontractors
- QR site attendance gated on induction, CSCS and RAMS
- CIS verification, deduction and the CIS300 record
- Versioned RAMS, permits and toolbox talks
Core is £129/month +VAT for up to 5 users with Job Costing and Purchase Orders. Solo is £39/month +VAT for 2 users with CIS and Health & Safety included.
Questions
Drylining contractors: frequently asked
Can Estimark work out the pay less notice deadline on my application?
Yes. A payment application carries the due date, the final date for payment and both notice deadlines, following the Scheme for Construction Contracts defaults where the contract is silent. A contract with its own periods needs those entered.
Can I serve a pay less notice on my own gang?
Yes. A subcontractor payment notice is raised against the gang’s invoice with the section 110A and section 111 deadlines counted from the due date, and the record shows what was served and when. An application left unanswered becomes the notified sum by default.
How does QR clock-on work for a drylining gang?
Each operative scans the job’s QR code on and off site. Clock-on can be gated on a valid induction, an in-date CSCS card and a signed current RAMS, and the timesheet entry can be created on clock-out, so the hours behind a measure are against the job.
How much is Estimark for a drylining contractor?
Solo is £39 a month +VAT for 2 users and 20 open jobs. Core is £129 a month +VAT for up to 5 users with no job limit. Pro is £299 a month +VAT for up to 20 and carries Payment Applications. Every plan has a 14-day free trial.
Related
For plasterers
Labour-only CIS, where the whole payment is the deduction base and verification is the margin.
Payment applications & retention
Construction Act dates, pay less deadlines and retention release.
What is a pay less notice?
Section 111, the deadline, and why a late notice means paying the notified sum in full.
Payment date calculator
Due date, both notice deadlines and the final date, from one application date.
Try it on a real job.
14 days, full access, every plan. No implementation fee. All prices exclude VAT, added at 20% at checkout.