A quantity surveyor doesn't pay you — but they decide how much you get paid. A fair QS certifies what you're owed and settles the final account cleanly. An unfair one undervalues every application, remeasures in their favour, buries your variations and drags the final account out for months. You don't feel it as one big dispute — you feel it as a margin that quietly disappears. Knowing which kind you're dealing with, before you price the job, is worth real money.
What a difficult QS actually costs you
- Undervalued interim applications — your cash flow strangled while the QS “waits for more detail”.
- Harsh or late remeasurement that always seems to land in the client's favour.
- Variations left unvalued or unconfirmed until it's too late to argue.
- Back-charges and deductions applied without a proper basis.
- A final account that stalls indefinitely — money you've earned, held just out of reach.
The track record that tells you the truth
A QS's reputation is built over dozens of jobs and travels with them. The questions worth asking before you commit:
- Do they value applications fairly, or fight every line?
- Is their measurement accurate and consistent — or creatively selective?
- Do they value and confirm variations promptly?
- Do their payment recommendations reflect what was actually done?
- Do they settle final accounts in reasonable time, or let them drift?
CIX collects exactly these judgements as structured, moderated reviews from the contractors who've dealt with them. Instead of finding out the hard way, search the QS before you price the work.
Why other contractors' experience is your best data
You can't see how a QS behaved on a job you weren't on — but the contractors who were on it can. That collective memory is normally locked in private WhatsApp groups and site-canteen conversations. CIX brings it into one place, so a QS's real conduct is visible before you're tied into it.
Before you price the work
- Find out who the QS is on the job — not just the main contractor's name.
- Check them on CIX. A poor record is a reason to price in the risk, or walk away.
- Document everything from day one — measures, variations, agreed rates. A fair QS won't mind; an unfair one can't argue with paper.
- Report your experience afterwards so the next contractor prices with their eyes open.
Your margin is decided by the person holding the pen. Make sure you know how they use it. Search a quantity surveyor now, or add a report on one you've worked with.