How Are Jobs Allocated Between Contractors?
Each enquiry goes to one contractor, chosen on track record. Respond quickly, communicate well and complete work properly, and you become the first call in your area.
The short answer
Jobs are allocated on track record. Reliability is what earns you more work.
Each enquiry goes to one contractor in the right area and trade, and we choose that contractor on their record with us: how quickly they respond, how clearly they communicate, how professionally they deal with customers and how well they complete the work. It is not a rota, it is not a price auction and it is never shared between firms.
That means allocation is something you influence directly. Here is what we look at, how a new contractor builds a record, and why we deliberately avoid overloading anyone.
What we look at
The record that decides allocation
Response speed
Same-day replies to new opportunities, ideally within about two hours. A fast answer, yes or no, lets us move the customer on.
Communication
Telling us when a quote will take longer, when a visit needs moving, or when something has changed. Contractors who keep us informed get the benefit of the doubt.
Professionalism with customers
How you conduct yourself at the survey and on site. You work under your own company name, and the customer's experience of you shapes their view of the whole network.
Completed work
Jobs finished properly, and anything that needs putting right dealt with. Nothing builds a record faster than a string of completed projects.
One contractor per enquiry
We appoint a single contractor to each job. You are not pricing against firms who were offered the same enquiry.
Not overloaded
We won't send one firm more than it can service well. Quality slips when a contractor is stretched, and the customer notices first.
Starting out
How a new contractor builds a record
Everyone starts with no history with us, however long they have been trading. The first few opportunities are where that changes. Accept or decline promptly, attend the visit we book, get your price back within the expected time, and treat the customer well. Do that consistently and you move up the list quickly.
The first site visit carries the most weight. A contractor who misses it without good reason or any communication is removed, because it tells us more than anything said at application. The detail is in site visit expectations.
Once you are established, trust accrues. A contractor with a good record who occasionally needs to move a visit or take longer on a price, and tells us, is given latitude. The strictness is aimed at the early jobs, not at people who have already proved themselves.
The aim in each area
One or two reliable contractors taking most of the work
Spreading enquiries thinly across many firms helps nobody. Each contractor sees too little to plan around and the customer gets inconsistent service. Our aim is one or two genuinely dependable contractors per area handling the majority of jobs.
That is also why we watch workload. If you are already busy, sending you more risks slower responses and slipping standards, so we balance allocation rather than concentrating everything on one firm.
Allocation follows the quality of your record, not the number of jobs you accept. Declining an opportunity carries no penalty. Leaving it unanswered is what affects your standing. See can I choose which jobs I take? and contractor response time standards.
What moves the needle
What allocation rewards, and what it doesn't
Allocation isn't based on how cheaply you price, how many jobs you accept, or how hard you push for work. None of those tell us whether the customer will be well looked after.
Your experience elsewhere matters at the checks stage, when we look at your trade experience, work history, reviews and references. Once you are in the network, allocation follows your record with us.
That record can move in both directions. Slow replies, visits missed without communication and quotes that go quiet all count. At the far end, contractors who fail to meet our standards, including failing to put defective work right, are removed. The common reasons are set out in why contractors leave the network.
At a glance
What builds your record, and what weakens it
Builds it
- Replying the same day, yes or no
- Attending the visits we book
- Getting prices back when expected
- Telling us early when timing slips
- Treating customers well on site
- Finishing jobs properly
Weakens it
- Leaving opportunities unanswered
- Missing visits without a word
- Quotes that go quiet
- Customers left without updates you promised us
- Defects left unresolved
Straight answers
Allocation questions
Does pricing lower get me more jobs?
No. Allocation is based on response speed, communication, professionalism and completed work. We expect a fair trade rate, not a race to the bottom.
Is the enquiry ever shared with another contractor?
No. One contractor is appointed per enquiry. More in is the work exclusive? and the longer explainer, how opportunities are allocated.
Can you tell me how many jobs I'll get?
No, and we won't guess. It depends on your area, trade and record. The contractor network hub explains the wider arrangement.
For contractors
Tell us about your business
Your trade, the areas you cover and the size of work you take on. A person reads every enquiry, and if it looks like a fit we will send you the full application.