Loss and expense

Ascertaining loss and expense

Ascertained means calculated from evidence, not estimated. A single figure with no basis behind it invites an ascertainment of nil, and that is a defensible outcome.

5 min read · All help topics

One head at a time

  1. Open Loss and Expense and add a head.
  2. Choose it: prolongation, disruption, head office overheads, finance charges, additional supervision or claim preparation.
  3. Enter the period the loss was incurred over, and the amount.
  4. Link it to the delay event that caused it.
The period is the weeks the delay actually happened, not the weeks added to the end of the programme. Those are different weeks with different site establishments and different costs, and using the wrong ones is the commonest error in a prolongation claim.

The warning that saves the claim

Loss and expense needs a relevant matter under clause 4.21. An extension of time needs a relevant event under clause 2.29.

If you hang a head of claim on an event that carries time but not money, QScope colours the entry red and says so. It is better to find that out while entering the claim than in the response to it.

Record the basis

Prolongation calculated as the tendered weekly preliminaries multiplied by the weeks of delay is a price, not a loss. The claim is for what was actually incurred, evidenced from the accounts.

  1. Write the basis against each head: payroll, plant hire invoices, allocation sheets.
  2. QScope flags anything marked as ascertained with no basis recorded.
Worth knowingThat flag exists because a head with no basis is the line an assessor deletes first, and it costs nothing to fill in at the time.

Into the final account

Claimed and ascertained are shown separately, because they are different numbers and conflating them damages the credibility of the rest of the account.

  1. Set the status to Ascertained once the figure is settled.
  2. Click Use in final account.
Still stuck?

Write to support@qscope.co.uk. Include the project reference and, if it is about a figure, the certificate number. Answers within one working day.

Try it on your next valuation

Not your whole portfolio. One live job, one certificate. If it does not save you time the first time you use it, walk away and take your data with you.