Sector: tiling contractors

Measured rates, CIS and snagging software for tilers

Tiling is priced by the square metre and lost in the preparation: the tanking, the self-levelling compound, the substrate found under the old floor. Estimark holds your rates per square metre in a price book, turns the photograph of the bad substrate into a priced variation from the phone before the adhesive goes down, books the gang’s hours to the job, applies CIS to labour-only subcontractors at the rate HMRC gives them, and closes the job with a snag list where each item is photographed, rectified and signed off.

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What actually goes wrong

The prep was found after the quote

The old floor comes up and the screed is not flat. The levelling gets done because the tiles are on site, and it gets billed at nothing.

Measured on the drawing, paid on the floor

The quote was 42 square metres from a plan. The room is 46 with the cuts, and the extra is argued about at the final invoice.

Grout day counted as a day

Three operatives, two days of grouting and cleaning, and the timesheet says one line with no job against it.

Snags argued at retention

A cracked tile and a lipped edge held back the last five per cent for four months, because there was no list saying what was outstanding and what was done.

Sector: how it works

Can I price by the square metre?

Yes. Quotes are built from line items with a quantity and a unit price against your own price book, so a rate per square metre for wall tiling is a line you pick rather than a number you type.

Your price book holds a cost per item with where the cost came from, so the same rate is used on every quote until you change it.
Optional lines let the customer choose the underfloor heating or the upgraded trim in the portal before they sign.
For housing contracts priced on a schedule of rates, the Schedule of Rates bolt-on holds coded rate sets with a client uplift per contract, at priced on a quote.

How does the preparation get paid for?

A variation is its own record raised against the job, priced, sent to the customer for approval, and carried into the invoice or the valuation as a separate line.

From the phone app, the variation starts with the photograph of the substrate, so the reason is visible rather than described.
It carries its own status, so nobody has to remember which extras were agreed and which are still hanging.
The customer approves it in the portal with a recorded signature, or on the device at the door.
Variations is included from Solo, so it is on every plan.

NoteA variation raised after the tiles are laid is a conversation, not a record. The value of raising it from the photograph is that it is priced before the work is done.

How does CIS work on a tiling gang?

Labour-only subcontractors are verified with HMRC, the deduction is taken on the labour element at the rate verification produces, and a payment and deduction statement is issued per subcontractor per tax month.

Status	Rate
Verified for gross payment status	0%
Verified and registered	20%
Unverified, unmatched or higher rate	30%

On labour-only work the deduction base is the whole payment, so the ten points between verified and unverified is ten per cent of everything the gang invoices you.
Where the subcontractor supplied the adhesive and the trim, those materials come off the base before the percentage is applied.
The CIS300 is recorded with both statutory declarations, and a CIS tax month runs from the 6th to the 5th. CIS Compliance is included from Solo.

NoteEstimark records the CIS300 and locks each deduction to its return. It does not file the return with HMRC; you file through HMRC’s own service and record the reference.

How are snags closed out?

Defects are numbered items against the job, each with a location, a photograph, an assignee and a status that runs open, in progress, rectified and signed off.

A snag can be pinned to a location on the current drawing, so the lipped tile in bathroom 3 is a point on a plan rather than a sentence.
Sign-off is recorded per item with a date, which is the evidence that releases the first half of retention on a commercial job.
Photo Management keeps the before-and-after pair per area, and the after photograph is what a client sees in the portal.
Defect Management is included from Core.

Which plan does a tiling firm need?

Solo at £39 a month +VAT for up to 2 users and 20 open jobs has CIS, Variations and Timesheets already on it.

Core at £129 a month +VAT covers up to 5 users with no job limit and adds Defect Management, Purchase Orders and Job Costing.
Pro at £299 a month +VAT covers up to 20 users and adds Payment Applications, for work valued as a subcontract rather than invoiced.
Completed, invoiced and cancelled jobs stop counting against the Solo cap, which suits a trade where jobs turn over in days.

Tiling, in numbers

Priced by: Line items with quantity and unit rate
Verified CIS rate: 20%
Unverified CIS rate: 30%
Snag statuses: Open, in progress, rectified, signed off
Solo: £39/month +VAT
Variations: Included from Solo

Which plan

Solo

£39 +VAT/month

2 users, 20 open jobs at a time, with CIS Compliance, Variations and Timesheets included. Jobs marked complete or invoiced stop counting.

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What you get

Quotes from your own square-metre rates, with optional lines
Variations raised from a photograph on the phone
CIS verification, deduction and the CIS300 record
Timesheets booked to the job
Online signature, invoicing and the accounting push

Defect Management is included from Core and Photo Management from Solo. Core is £129/month +VAT for up to 5 users with no job limit.

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Questions

Tilers: frequently asked

Can Estimark quote tiling by the square metre?

Yes. A quote is built from line items with a quantity and a unit price against your own price book, so a rate per square metre is picked rather than typed. Optional lines let the customer choose extras in the portal before signing, and accepting the quote creates the job from the lines they chose.

How do I charge for substrate preparation I did not quote?

Raise a variation from the phone with the photograph of the substrate, price it, and send it for approval. It carries its own status and lands on the invoice or the valuation as a separate line, so one disputed extra does not put the rest of the job in dispute.

Is CIS deducted on the adhesive and trim a tiler supplies?

No. The direct cost of materials comes off the deduction base before the percentage is applied, and the materials are still paid in full. On labour-only work there is usually nothing to exclude, so the base is the whole payment and the rate matters more than in a trade that supplies.

How much is Estimark for a tiler?

Solo is £39 a month +VAT for 2 users and 20 open jobs, with CIS and Variations included. Core is £129 a month +VAT for up to 5 users with no job limit. Every plan has a 14-day free trial.

Try it on a real job.

14 days, full access, every plan. No implementation fee. All prices exclude VAT, added at 20% at checkout.