How to Get Client Approval for Extra Work
By Boksit Editorial Team ·
Getting a customer to approve extra work is mostly a communication problem, not an administrative one. People agree quickly to changes they understand and hesitate over changes that feel vague. This guide covers what to put in front of a client and how to keep a record of their answer.
Write a description the client can picture
Trade shorthand is efficient between trades and confusing to everyone else. "Additional 2nd fix" means nothing to most homeowners. "Fitting the two extra sockets in the utility room, including chasing the wall and making good" means something immediately.
A good description names the location, the work, and anything visible that will change. Keep it to a few sentences, and use the same words you would use standing in the room.
Give one clear price
Ranges invite negotiation and later disagreement. Where you genuinely cannot fix a price — for example, work that depends on what is found behind a wall — say so explicitly and explain how it will be measured, rather than quietly leaving the number open.
State whether the figure includes VAT and materials. Most disputes about extras are really disputes about what the number covered.
Say what is changing, not just what it costs
- The price effect: what the revised job total becomes.
- The programme effect: extra days, another visit, or no change at all.
- The alternative: what happens if the customer declines, including any compliance or practicality issues.
- Anything it replaces: if the extra work removes something from the original scope, show that credit.
Ask for written approval
Written approval does not need to be formal. An email reply, a signed document or an online approval all serve the same purpose: they capture agreement at a point in time, in the customer's own words or signature.
Make it easy to respond. A single question — "Happy for me to go ahead with this at £340 plus VAT?" — gets an answer far more often than an attachment with no clear ask.
Online approval
Sending a secure link the client can open on a phone removes most of the friction. There is nothing to print, sign and scan, and the approval is timestamped as soon as they tap it.
In Boksit, an Additional Work request can be shared as a secure link. The client reviews the description and price and approves or signs online, and the response is recorded against the Project. Where a client prefers to reply by phone or email, that approval can be recorded manually so the Project record stays complete.
Keep an audit trail
An audit trail is simply the ability to answer three questions months later: what exactly was agreed, who agreed it, and when. Keep the description, the price, the approval and any supporting photographs together with the job rather than scattered across a phone, an inbox and a notebook.
- The request as it was sent, not a later edited version.
- The date it was sent and the date it was approved.
- The name of the person who approved it.
- How approval was given: online, email, message or recorded verbally.
Avoiding misunderstandings
- Send one request per change rather than bundling unrelated items into a single figure.
- Avoid approving work retrospectively as a habit; it trains everyone to skip the step.
- Repeat the agreed wording on the invoice so the two documents match.
- If the client asks for a change while you are on site, still send the written version the same day.
Frequently asked questions
- Can clients approve extra work online?
- Yes. Boksit can send a secure Additional Work link for the client to review and approve or sign online. The approval is timestamped and recorded against the Project.
- What should an approval request contain as a minimum?
- A plain-language description of the work, the price and whether it includes VAT, any effect on the programme, and a clear request for the client to confirm.
- Do I need a formal variation document?
- It depends on the contract you are working under. On domestic work a clear written request and reply is usually enough; on contracts with a main contractor, follow the variation process the contract sets out.