Send a notice of failure under clause 62.6 as soon as the reply date passes. If there's no proper reply to it within two further weeks under the ECC, your quotation is treated as accepted, the event is implemented, and the Prices and dates change.
What decides it is the form you're on, whether this quotation is for an event or a proposed instruction, and whether any reply has arrived that counts. The ECC position is the same under NEC3. Don't assume silence alone has done anything: without your notice, nothing is treated as accepted. See more situations in our NEC questions.
Your deadlines
| Step | NEC4 and NEC3 ECC | NEC4 subcontract |
|---|---|---|
| Reply to a quotation due (62.3) | 2 weeks from submission | 4 weeks from submission |
| Further period after your failure notice (62.6) | 2 weeks | 3 weeks |
Do this now
- Confirm the submission date and the period. Clause 62.3 applies, unless a Z clause has changed it. Under 62.5, the time can be extended only by agreement before the reply is due.
- Check that nothing counts as a reply. An emailed instruction to revise, or a statement that it will make its own assessment, would count.
- Send the failure notice. It should be separate from other communications (13.7), identify the quotation, and say which one you propose if you submitted more than one.
- Diary the two weeks, counted from your notice.
- When it expires, confirm the result in writing. Update your register, the Prices and the Completion Date, and include it in your next payment application.
- Show the effect in your next programme. The event's alterations should go into the next revision.
Sample notice
Situations that change the answer
| Situation | Result |
|---|---|
| The quotation was for a proposed instruction (NEC4 clause 65; NEC3 61.2) | Silence goes the other way: under NEC4 65.2, no answer in time means it's not accepted. See proposed instructions |
| A revised quotation was instructed, with reasons | That's a valid reply. You have 3 weeks under the ECC to submit, and a new reply period follows |
| The Project Manager said it will assess, then didn't | The route moves to 64.3 and 64.4, with its own failure notice |
| The Contract has Z clauses on treated acceptance | Some lengthen the periods or remove the route altogether |
| Your programme wasn't submitted or accepted | Doesn't stop 62.6 on its face, but it gives the Project Manager a reason to make its own assessment if it replies in time (64.1) |
What the other side will probably do
A Project Manager may well answer in the two weeks after the failure notice, with an instruction to revise or a statement that it will assess. That's its right, and the route stops. Be sure that the reply is one the contract allows: "Under review" or "the Client is considering it" isn't one of the listed replies, and you can say so.
A Client finding out at the end of the period may say it never agreed the number. The answer is that a treated acceptance implements the event under 66.1, and an implemented assessment isn't revised except as the conditions allow (66.3; 65.2 in NEC3). It may still try the dispute route, and under W1 the time to do so is short. See clause 62.6 and what implementation changes.
The contract, and your own judgement
The contract doesn't require your figure to be reasonable before it's treated as accepted. In practice, if your quotation is well above what the event is worth, using the route can damage the relationship and invite a dispute about the value of other events. Send the notice. It's your right, and it protects you. But if the quotation has an error you know about, fix it before the period ends. Honest figures make this route very hard to attack.
Related guides
- NEC Questions Answered: Real Situations on Site
- The PM Rejected Our Compensation Event Without Reasons
- The PM's Assessment of Our Compensation Event Is Too Low
- We Cannot Price the Quotation Yet Because Facts Are Unknown
- Can We Notify a Compensation Event Before It Happens?
- The PM Has Not Replied to Our Compensation Event Notice
How this looks in Contract Status
An overdue quotation from the Contractor side, with the notice under 62.6. See the worked example.
See how this works in practice
Click through Contract Status with sample contracts: raise the notice, reply to it, and watch both sides of one record.
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This guide is general information in our own words, not legal advice. Your contract and its Contract Data always govern. NEC, NEC3 and NEC4 are trade marks of Thomas Telford Ltd; Contract Status is not affiliated with or endorsed by NEC.