Change Order Writer
A written change order the customer signs before the extra work starts, with the reason, the price, the schedule impact and the one sentence that protects the original estimate
The problem
The wall came down and the plumbing behind it was galvanized. Or the customer, standing in the half-done kitchen, said "while you're here, could you also". Either way the job just changed, and the moment to put it in writing is now, before the first extra hour is worked. Most contractors handle it with a conversation and a number on the back of a receipt, then argue about it at the final invoice. In Ontario a consumer job with an estimate can't be charged more than 10 percent over it unless the customer agreed to the change in writing, so the handshake version isn't only a bad habit; on a residential job it's an unpaid one. This prompt writes the change order in the time it takes to drink a coffee in the truck.
The tool
You write change orders for a trades or renovation business. A change
order is a short document the customer signs before extra or different
work begins. It states what changed, why, what it costs, what it does
to the schedule, and that the original estimate otherwise stands.
MY BUSINESS AND TRADE: [E.G. "BATHROOM RENOVATIONS, TWO-PERSON CREW"]
THE JOB: [ADDRESS OR JOB NAME, ORIGINAL ESTIMATE TOTAL AND DATE]
WHAT CHANGED, IN MY WORDS: [E.G. "OPENED THE WALL, GALVANIZED SUPPLY
LINES, HAVE TO REPLACE TO THE MAIN"]
WHY: [UNSEEN CONDITION / CUSTOMER REQUEST / CODE OR INSPECTOR /
MATERIAL UNAVAILABLE]
EXTRA LABOUR: [HOURS OR DAYS AND MY RATE]
EXTRA MATERIALS: [ITEMS AND COST, OR "QUOTE ATTACHED"]
SCHEDULE IMPACT: [E.G. "ADDS TWO DAYS, COMPLETION MOVES TO MAY 9"]
IS THIS A RESIDENTIAL JOB FOR A HOMEOWNER IN ONTARIO: [YES / NO]
WRITE THE CHANGE ORDER WITH THESE PARTS:
1. HEADER: change order number, date, job, reference to the original
estimate by date and total.
2. WHAT CHANGED: two to four numbered lines in plain words, the way
I'd explain it standing in the room. No jargon the customer can't
check.
3. WHY: one sentence. If it's an unseen condition, say it couldn't
have been known before the work started. If it's the customer's
request, say so plainly.
4. PRICE: labour, materials, tax, total for this change only. Then the
new job total.
5. SCHEDULE: the new completion date, or "no change".
6. THE STANDING SENTENCE: everything else in the original estimate is
unchanged; no work on this change begins until this order is
signed.
7. SIGNATURE LINES for the customer and for me, with dates.
IF THIS IS A RESIDENTIAL JOB IN ONTARIO, add one line noting that the
customer is agreeing in writing to additional work and its cost, as
Ontario's consumer protection rules expect when a charge will exceed
the estimate by more than 10 percent.
THEN GIVE ME: a three-sentence text message to the customer that says
a change order is coming, what it's about, and that nothing extra
starts until they've signed.
RULES: Keep the whole order under one page. Don't invent prices or
hours; use mine or write "to be quoted". Don't apologize for the
change; explain it.Send the text message first and the change order within the hour. The gap between the two is where the customer gets their head around the number. When the original estimate was written with the Job Estimate Builder, the change-order sentence is already in it and the customer expects this document; when the final invoice goes unpaid anyway, the Invoice Chaser has the signed order to point to.
How to use it
- 1Fill in the job, the change and the reason in your own words, standing in the room if you have to.
- 2Put in your real hours and rates, or write "to be quoted" and send the order with the price to follow.
- 3Run the prompt, read the change order once, and fix anything it guessed.
- 4Send the text message, then the order for signature (e-signature, a photo of a signed page, or a reply saying "approved" with the order attached).
- 5Start the extra work when it's signed, and not before.
Example
A Barrie flooring installer is halfway through a 900-square-foot engineered hardwood job when the subfloor near the patio door turns out to be water-damaged. The prompt returns change order 2 for the job: three plain lines (remove damaged subfloor, replace 40 square feet of plywood, re-level), the reason stated as a condition under the old flooring that couldn't be seen before removal, 4 hours of labour at the installer's rate plus $140 in materials and tax, completion moved one day, the standing sentence, and the Ontario line because the customer is a homeowner. The text goes out at 10:20 a.m. The customer replies "approved" with a photo of the signed order at 11:05. The new plywood is down by 2.
Pro tip
Number your change orders from 1 on every job, even if there's only ever one. The final invoice that reads "original estimate plus change orders 1 and 2, signed March 4 and March 11" ends the conversation that "plus extras" starts. And when the change is the customer's idea, write that down in the Why line in their words. Memory is generous to whoever is holding the invoice.
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