How to get a job signed off by your client

A job is not really finished until the client agrees it is. Sign-off closes the job, starts the clock on payment and sets the line between this job and the next one.

Agree what done means before you start

Sign-off goes smoothly when both sides agreed the finish line at the start. Put the scope in writing: what is included, what is not, which materials and finishes, and how the work will be checked. "Paint living room" invites argument. "Two coats, walls and ceiling, client's chosen colour, woodwork excluded" does not.

Record changes as they happen, with a short message the client confirms. Take before photos on day one too, including anything already damaged, so the walk-through compares the finish with how things really started. Extra work agreed by phone and never written down is the most common cause of a stalled sign-off.

The sign-off visit

1. Book the walk-through. Agree a time when the decision maker can be there. Sign-off from someone who cannot approve the work rarely sticks.
2. Prepare the site. Clean up, remove tools and test everything first. Have the scope and your before photos ready.
3. Walk through the scope in order. Go item by item, so the client is checking the agreed work rather than looking round for anything new.
4. Write a snag list together. Note each small defect with its location and a photo, and agree a date to fix it. A list both of you have seen is better than a vague promise.
5. Fix and photograph. Close the snags, then photograph each one finished from the same angle as the snag photo.
6. Get the signature. Use a completion form or certificate with the job details, date, any exclusions or items still open, and the client's name and signature. Give them a copy with the photos.

If the client will not sign

Ask what exactly is stopping them, and write it down. Most refusals fall into three groups: a genuine snag you can fix, something that was never in the scope, or a worry about money.

Fix genuine snags quickly and send photos of the result, taken from the same angle as the snag photo so the client can see the change without a second visit. For anything outside the scope, point calmly to the written agreement and offer to quote it as extra work. If most of the job is accepted, ask for sign-off of those parts and list the open items separately.

Keep every message in writing. If it still stalls, check what your contract says about completion and payment. This is general guidance rather than legal advice, and a qualified adviser is the right person for a serious dispute.

Make the record easy to find

Keep the signed form with the job's before and after photos, so you can find all of it in one place months later. In JobProof, a job cannot be marked complete without an After photo, and you can send the client one link with every area before and after. Pair it with a free printable completion certificate if you need a signature.

Questions