Recoup wins $1.8m as seen on ABC News

RECOUP Contractor Debt Recovery Are Your Best Option For Preparing & Running Security Of Payments Act Payment Claims & Adjudication Applications

We are Australia’s No #1 Security of Payments Act Specialist – GET STARTED HERE…
Now at almost $100 million in recovered Contractor Payments – RECOUP Contractor Debt Recovery are Trusted by more Industry Groups and Trade Associations throughout Australia than any other debt collection agency.

RECOUP are Security Of Payments Act Experts & Debt Recovery and Debt Collection Specialists for Building and Construction Contractors. RECOUP aims to keep all stakeholders in each state up to date with changes and developments in each state’s legislation that impact claiming payments for building and construction work. RECOUP provides information and assistance regarding the following legislation:

New South Wales: “Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 1999″
Victoria: “Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2002″
Queensland: “Building and Construction Industry Payments Act 2004″
Australian Capital Territory: “Building and Construction Industry (Security of Payment) Act 2009″
South Australia: “Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2009″
Tasmania: “Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2009 (No.86 of 2009)”

Why your Payment Claim may be invalid under the Security of Payments Act

A Payment Claim made under the Security of Payments Act is an intricate document that has specific requirements that need to be fulfilled and included in the Payment Claim so that it will pass through adjudication and win you your money with ease.

Below are a few issued that Claimants regularly stumble on in creating their own Payment Claim under the Security of Payments Act:

What State’s Security Of Payments Act Legislation Applies To Your Payment Claim?

As the Security of Payments Act is a state based legislation that may differ from state to state in Australia, the Security of Payments Act that you use in creating and serving your Payment Claim may be different from job to job.  The Security of Payments Act legislation that is used for your Payment Claim is extremely significant; if the incorrect legislation is used then your Payment Claim will be deemed invalid under the Security of Payments Act and cannot be pressed.

Have I got the right person/company in accordance with the Security Of Payments Act?

Often people who issue their own Payment Claim do not address it to the correct entity. This often occurs when the Claimant is unsure of who they have been contracting with. This may be the case if you believe you are working for a company, but your contract is with an individual and it is unclear as to whether that individual is acting as an agent, or has formed the contract with you as a separate entity. If the Payment Claim has been addressed to the wrong person, it will not pass through Adjudication.

What is a reference date for the purposes of the Security Of Payments Act?

The Security of Payments Act makes reference to a ‘Reference Date’, another imperative facet to your Payment Claim. Depending on how formal your contract is and what payment terms have been specified, you may or may not have a Reference Date stipulated that needs to be followed.  It is absolutely crucial that no more than one Payment Claim has been served per Reference Date; if this is the case then your Payment Claim will be invalid under the Security of Payments Act and cannot be pressed.

I sent them a Tax Invoice, does that count under the Security Of Payments Act?

Broadly speaking, a basic Tax Invoice is not a valid Payment Claim made under the Act and will not be regarded in the process set out under the Security of Payments Act.

In the seldom case that your Tax Invoice is a valid Payment Claim under the Security of Payments Act, and you have issued more than one Tax Invoice within the same Reference date, your Tax Invoice will be deemed invalid under the Security of Payments Act and will have no weight at Adjudication.

More often than not, people who have made Payment Claims under the Act without the aid of Recoup have failed to create and serve a valid Payment Claim under the Security of Payments Act… Contact Recoup today for a free review and consultation about how to proceed with your Payment Claim!

Pay When Paid Provision

‘I’ll pay you when I get paid’ – This is Illegal under the Security of Payments Act!

If the person you have done work for (the Respondent) is not paying you because they have not been paid, this is not your problem!

Each Security of Payments Act legislation has in it a provision that prohibits the Respondent from withholding payment from you on the basis that they have not been paid yet by a Principal/Head Contractor.

Can the Principal Contractor withhold payment under the Security of Payments Act?

Depending on your state and situation, you may be able to issue a ‘Payment Withholding Request’ under the Security of Payments Act, prohibiting the Principal Contractor from paying the Respondent the amount outstanding to you until you have been rightfully paid.

If the Respondent still refuses to pay, the Principal Contractor under the Security of Payments Act is legally obliged to use the money they have withheld from the Respondent to pay you directly.

BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY SECURITY OF PAYMENT ACT NSW 1999 Section 26A: Principal contractor can be required to retain money owed to respondent “(1) A claimant who has made an adjudication application for a payment claim can require a principal contractor for the claim to retain sufficient money to cover the claim out of money that is or becomes payable by the principal contractor to the respondent. (2) Such a requirement is made by serving on the principal contractor a request (a “payment withholding request”) in the form approved by the Director-General of the Department of Services, Technology and Administration.”Section 26B: Obligation of principal contractor to retain money owed to respondent “(1) A principal contractor who has been served with a payment withholding request must retain, out of money owed to the respondent, the amount of money to which the payment claim relates (or the amount owed by the principal contractor to the respondent if that amount is less than the amount to which the payment claim relates).”

Can I stop work/supply under the Security of Payments Act?

Under the Security of Payments Act and depending on the situation you are in, you may be able to stop works and/or the supply of goods and services to the Respondent given you meet the specific timeline requirements set out in the Security of Payments Act relevant to your situation.

BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY SECURITY OF PAYMENT ACT NSW 1999 Section 27: Claimant may suspend work “(1) A claimant may suspend the carrying out of construction work (or the supply of related goods and services) under a construction contract if at least 2 business days have passed since the claimant has caused notice of intention to do so to be given to the respondent under section 15, 16 or 24.”

So if the person/company who owes you money has refused to pay you because they have not been paid, do not give up… use it to your advantage – contact Recoup today and ask what options are available to you for your individual situation.

Construction Site Diary – Why should I buy one?

The Diary designed by Recoup is an essential item on every project site no matter how big or small.

The Diary requires you to record all specific details of the people/company you have contracted with. This is crucial if a dispute arises and you wish to make a claim under the Security of Payments Act as there will be no dispute as to the entity that owes you the money.

One page spread is to be used for each day worked on site. This includes:

1. Contract Works Completed Today
2. Variations to Contract Works Completed Today

i.      Authorised By?

ii.      Authorised How?

1. Additional Works Outside of Contract works Completed today

i.      Authorised By?

ii.      Authorised How?

1. Client Instructions Received today
2. Authorities Approvals/Contact Today
3. Documentation Received Today
4. Weather Today
5. Delays Today
6. Photos taken today
7. General miscellaneous
8. Personnel onsite today
9. Today’s Record kept by?

This faultless Diary includes everything you will need to run a successful and profitable project site, which is crucial as project sites in the construction industry tend to become very chaotic and busy in their day to day running. With this site diary handy, you will not forget to record anything and this will benefit you immensely in the short and long term for the following reasons:

1. The Diary will ensure you are paid for all the works that you have carried out as you will record all works that you do and make sure all variations and additional works are documented, signed off by the appropriate personnel and therefore authorised. All the works you have carried out for the day will be organised in a concise and presentable manner, which will work in your favour shall your dispute land in Adjudication under the Security of Payments Act. The concise nature of the Diary will mean that you will not forget to charge for works you have carried out; hence making sure your Project site remains profitable and runs smoothly.
2. The Diary serves as Contemporaneous Evidence in the case of a dispute arising about payment due or works completed; that is, evidence from the exact point in time in which the incident in dispute occurred. This means that the any extract from the Diary used in the Adjudication process under the Security of Payments Act will be given more weight by the Adjudicator hence working in your favour.
3. The precise nature of the documentation required by Diary allows you to monitor the profitability and efficiency of your project site. Through being able to see exactly how much time and labour was used to carry out contract and/or variation works, you will be able to better allocate time, money, labour and other resources in the future on your project site.

At only $9.90* per site diary, the Construction Project Site Diary is an essential item on every project site. To order yours today, contact RECOUP now!

Building & Construction Industry Security Of Payment Act 1999

The Labor Party with the support of the Independents were encouraged by the CFMEU to provide a means of expediting payment to sub contractors in the New South Wales Building & Construction Industry.

In 1999 the legislation, Building & Construction Industry Security Of Payment Act 1999 No 46 was brought into being in the New South Wales Parliament.

The Security Of Payments Act NSW commenced on the 26th March 2000.

Since its inception the Security Of Payments Act NSW has assisted many sub-contractors, suppliers and consultants recover money they are owed for construction work and or related goods and services for a lot less and a lot quicker than before the BCISPA 1999 commenced.

The Building & Construction Industry Security Of Payment Act 1999 is extremely powerful legislation.

Under the Security Of Payments Act NSW a claimant serves a payment claim on the respondent. The respondent must either pay the payment claim in full or provide a payment schedule to the claimant within 10 business days of receiving the payment claim.If the Respondent doesn’t pay in full or provide a payment schedule within the allowed time the money owed becomes a statutory debt. This means that the claimant can go to the appropriate court and ask for “Summary Judgement”. Summary Judgement is a judgment entered by a court for one party and against another party summarily, i.e., without a full trial. Such a judgment may be issued on the merits of an entire case, or on discrete issues in that case. Once you have “Judgment” you can begin enforcement proceedings using all of the traditional debt collection methods. The alternative to applying for summary judgment is adjudication. If you have received a payment schedule that you dispute you must apply for adjudication within 10 business days. If you haven’t received a payment schedule to be entitled to apply for adjudication you must serve a 2nd chance notice on the respondent giving them a further 5 business days to pay in full or provide a payment schedule. The claimant then has 10 business days from receipt of a payment schedule or at the expiry of the 5 business days to apply for adjudication. The adjudication must be lodged with an ANA and an exact copy served on the respondent. The adjudicator has 10 business days to determine the application from the date of acceptance. The adjudicators fee is payable by the claimant initially but is added to the debt of the respondent if the claimant is mostly successful. The respondent then has 5 business days to pay. If the respondent doesn’t pay in this time the claimant can apply for a adjudicators certificate file it with the appropriate court entering judgment. Once you have “Judgment” you can begin enforcement proceedings using all of the traditional debt collection methods.

The Security Of Payments Act NSW has brought more certainty to the debt recovery process for contractors, it has made debt collection for contractors more affordable, and it happens fast to help alleviate cash-flow issues sooner rather than later.

To find out more about the Building & Construction Industry Security Of Payment Act 1999 call or email RECOUP Contractor Debt Recovery for expert advice.

Help Enforcing a Judgement Obtained Under the Security of Payments Act NSW

Building & Construction Industry Security Of Payments Act 1999

• Once an adjudicator releases his determination under the BCISPA 1999 to the parties the respondent has 5 business days to pay.
• If the respondent doesn’t pay at this point we will apply for an adjudicator’s certificate under the BCISPA 1999
• We then take the adjudicators certificate to court and have it entered as a judgment under the BCISPA 1999 on the court record.
• There are then several options we can pursue :
• Garnishee the respondent’s bank account.
• Writ Of Levy For Property (send the sherriff around to repossess items of value up to what you are owed)
• Creditors Statutory Demand For Payment (against a corporation)
• Examination Notice & Examination Order
• Winding Up Order (against a corporation)
• Bankruptcy (against a individual)

Moving fast is what counts and that is exactly what we do.

We are Australia’s No #1 Security of Payments Act Specialist – GET STARTED HERE…
Now at almost $100 million in recovered Contractor Payments – RECOUP Contractor Debt Recovery are Trusted by more Industry Groups and Trade Associations throughout Australia than any other debt collection agency.

RECOUP are Security Of Payments Act Experts & Debt Recovery and Debt Collection Specialists for Building and Construction Contractors. RECOUP aims to keep all stakeholders in each state up to date with changes and developments in each state’s legislation that impact claiming payments for building and construction work. RECOUP provides information and assistance regarding the following legislation:

New South Wales: “Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 1999″
Victoria: “Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2002″
Queensland: “Building and Construction Industry Payments Act 2004″
Australian Capital Territory: “Building and Construction Industry (Security of Payment) Act 2009″
South Australia: “Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2009″
Tasmania: “Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2009 (No.86 of 2009)”

Collecting Money from a Principal Under the Security of Payments Act NSW

Building & Construction Industry Security Of Payments Act 1999

• This is one of the best tools in the whole of the New South Wales debt collection industry.
• When the contractor you are working for is untrustworthy and or unreliable and or incompetent you need to be able to bypass him and go to the principal contractor that he is working for.
• The Building & Construction Industry Security Of Payments Act 1999 make this possible once you have applied for adjudication.
• This is done with a ‘Payments Withholding Request’ under the BCISPA 1999.
• And once a determination & judgement are obtained under the BCISPA 1999 we can proceed to press the principal to release payment directly to you bypassing your debtor.
• This is done by obtaining a debt certificate under the BCISPA 1999.

It is important to approach the Principal as early as possible to ensure they don’t rush into paying the contractor when you aren’t being paid. We will draft an appropriate letter for this for you.

We are Australia’s No #1 Security of Payments Act Specialist – GET STARTED HERE…
Now at almost $100 million in recovered Contractor Payments – RECOUP Contractor Debt Recovery are Trusted by more Industry Groups and Trade Associations throughout Australia than any other debt collection agency.

RECOUP are Security Of Payments Act Experts & Debt Recovery and Debt Collection Specialists for Building and Construction Contractors. RECOUP aims to keep all stakeholders in each state up to date with changes and developments in each state’s legislation that impact claiming payments for building and construction work. RECOUP provides information and assistance regarding the following legislation:

New South Wales: “Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 1999″
Victoria: “Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2002″
Queensland: “Building and Construction Industry Payments Act 2004″
Australian Capital Territory: “Building and Construction Industry (Security of Payment) Act 2009″
South Australia: “Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2009″
Tasmania: “Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2009 (No.86 of 2009)”