Adding a contractor to your approved list

What you'll end up with: a firm on your contractor panel with its trade, contact details and public liability insurance on file, so work can be sent to it.

Before you start you need: the firm's name, a contact, and a copy of their public liability insurance certificate with its expiry date. To load many firms at once, see Loading your portfolio from spreadsheets.

No work order can be sent to a firm until its public liability cover is recorded and in date. If a contractor is hurt on site, or damages the building, without cover, the cost can fall on the leaseholders.

1. Go to Contacts → Contractors. The Contractor Panel lists each firm with its status and its cover.
2. Press Add Contractor.
3. Type the firm's name in Supplier Name.
4. Choose the Trade.
5. Leave the Status as Active.
6. Type the Contact, Phone and Email.
7. Press Add Contractor. "Added [firm]."
8. Open the firm from the panel. It reads No Valid Cover: "No public liability certificate on file — no new work orders."
9. Under Compliance Wallet, press Add Certificate.
10. Choose Public Liability Insurance as the Document Type.
11. Choose the date the Cover Expires, and the date it was Issued.
12. Type the Policy or Certificate Number and the Cover Limit.
13. Press Save. "Recorded. Work can be released to this firm."

Record employers' liability, risk assessments and accreditations (such as Gas Safe) the same way. Only public liability releases work; the others are kept because clients and auditors ask for them.

Before the firm's invoices can be paid, add its bank details under Bank Details and have a colleague who pays suppliers verify them (see Recording a supplier's bank details, and checking a change).

You'll know it worked when: the firm reads Active, and its Compliance Wallet shows Public Liability Insurance, "Valid to 30 Sep 2027" (with your date).

If something's wrong:

• "A past date records lapsed cover and does not release work." The certificate you were sent has run out. Ask the firm for the renewal.
• The panel says "Cover expiring — chase the renewal certificate now". The cover ends within 60 days. Ask for the renewal and record it with Add Certificate. Once it lapses, no new work can be sent.
• A firm should not get any more work. Press Edit Details and set the Status to Suspended. Work already arranged is not cancelled. Inactive retires the firm; its work orders, invoices and certificates stay, which is why a firm is never deleted.
• The firm wants to receive jobs in an app. See Inviting a contractor onto SynkroTech Trade.