Retention Manager · From £19 a month

Retention is rarely disputed.
It is forgotten.

The second half falls due twelve months after practical completion, by which point the job is closed, the file is archived and nobody is watching the contract. This makes sure somebody is.

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exportable, always

What actually goes wrong

Nobody sets out to lose retention. The main contractor is not claiming the work was defective and is not disputing the valuation. The date passed, nobody applied for it, and the money stayed where it was.

On a single job you would probably remember. Across eight jobs at different stages, with two release dates each and defects periods that vary by contract, you will not. That is sixteen dates to hold in your head, most of which are more than a year out.

The other half of it is deduction past the cap. Retention accumulates from each certificate until it hits the ceiling in your contract, usually five per cent, at which point it should stop. In practice it often does not, because it is a running total nobody checks against a limit.

What it does

Emails you before it falls due

At 90, 30 and 7 days before each release date, then again at 7 and 30 days overdue. One email covering everything across all your jobs, not one per job. Sent to whoever chases payments, which is often not you.

Generates the application

When something is overdue, one click produces a formal application for release. Your details at the top, a schedule of what is owed and when it fell due, statutory interest at eight points over base, and the basis under the Construction Act. Send the next one and it refers back to the last.

Flags deduction past the cap

Works out whether cumulative retention has exceeded the ceiling in your contract. Anything above it was never contractually due and is recoverable now, separately from the release dates.

Tracks part payments

Retention rarely arrives in one clean payment. Log what has come in against each stage and the outstanding figure stays honest, so the next application claims the balance rather than the original amount.

Keeps the certificate trail

Record each interim certificate with its date and reference. If a contractor ever disputes how much retention is held, that is the record that settles it.

Everyone who needs it can see it

On the team plan, invite up to ten people. Useful when the person doing the work is not the person chasing the money, which is most of the time.

There is a free version

If you want to see whether this is a problem you actually have, start there. It calculates the same dates and exports them to your calendar, with everything kept in your browser.

Free tool
Retention Manager
Release dates worked out
Yes
Yes
Cap and over-deduction check
Yes
Yes
Calendar export
Yes
Yes
Where your data lives
This browser only
Your account, on any device
Email reminders
No
Yes
Application letters
One-off purchase
Included, unlimited
Part payments logged
No
Yes
Certificate history
No
Yes
More than one person
No
On the team plan

Pricing

Fourteen days free, no card needed. If one release you would otherwise have forgotten comes back, it has paid for a couple of years.

Solo
£19a month

One person, unlimited jobs.

  • Unlimited jobs and contractors
  • Email reminders
  • Application letters
  • Part payments and certificates
  • CSV export
Start free trial
Team
£39a month

Everything in Solo, shared.

  • Everything in Solo
  • Up to ten people
  • Everyone sees the same figures
  • For when the person building is not the person chasing
Start free trial

Questions

What happens when the trial ends?
Nothing is deleted. The app locks until you pick a plan, and everything comes straight back when you do. Your jobs, payments, certificates and application history are all still there.
Can I cancel whenever I want?
Yes. No notice period, no minimum term. You keep access until the end of the period you have paid for, and you can export everything to CSV before then.
Does it work with JCT and NEC?
The default assumes the common JCT pattern of half at practical completion and half at the end of the rectification period. Both the retention rate, the cap and the length of the defects period are editable per job, so an NEC contract with Option X16 or anything bespoke works too.
Who should the reminders go to?
You choose the address. Often it is better going to whoever does the chasing rather than to the person who ran the job, since those are usually different people.
Is the application letter legally reliable?
It sets out the statutory framework accurately, including the notified sum provisions and the adjudication route. It is a template rather than legal advice, and your contract particulars may vary the release mechanism, so it is worth reading before sending.

How much retention are you owed right now?

Most subcontractors cannot answer that without going through a folder of certificates. Fourteen days free and no card needed.

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