Can a contractor claim for variations done on verbal instructions?
Sometimes. Singapore courts have held that a clause makes written instructions a condition precedent to payment only if it is drafted stringently, for example by expressly forfeiting payment or setting a time limit for written notice. In Vim Engineering v Deluge Fire Protection [2023] SGHC(A) 2 the Appellate Division allowed the claim because the clause was not drafted that way. Both parties should still confirm instructions in writing.
From the RRD Field Guide, checked against the sources cited in Variation Orders and Provisional Sums: How to Stop Surprise VOs on Singapore Building Works. General information, not advice for your project.
The fuller picture
Surprise variation orders usually come from scope that was never fully defined, items excluded from the quote, provisional sums used as placeholders, and concealed site conditions. Owners reduce them by defining scope in drawings and an itemised schedule, pricing exclusions when comparing quotes, requiring written instructions and quotations before varied work starts, and agreeing valuation rules in the contract.
More questions on this topic
- What is a variation order?
- What is the difference between a provisional sum and a prime cost sum?
- Is a lump-sum quotation fixed no matter what?
- How are variations valued?
- What are dayworks?
- How should I compare quotations with different exclusions?
- Who bears the cost of concealed conditions found during A&A works?