What a rejection costs
On most commercial jobs, the GC collects every sub’s pay application by a set day and sends one draw request to the owner. If yours comes back for a correction after that day, it usually waits for next month’s draw. One wrong number can mean waiting another 30 days for money you’ve already earned, while you keep paying your crew.
The seven mistakes
From Previous doesn’t match last month
Column D on each line should equal D + E from the last approved pay app. It breaks when someone copies last month’s file and forgets a line, or when the GC changed numbers before approving it and the sub keeps billing from their own version.
Catch itBuild each month from the approved pay app, and compare column D line by line.
Retainage doesn’t tie
The rate on one line doesn’t match the contract, the column I total doesn’t equal line 5, or the rate dropped without written approval. GCs check retainage closely because it’s their protection until the job is done.
Catch itWork out retainage from the contract rate on every line, and keep written approval of any reduction.
Billing change orders before they’re signed
Work on a proposed or pending change order goes on the pay app before the change order is executed, or line 2 on the cover sheet counts it.
Catch itOnly bill change orders you have a signed copy of. Track pending ones separately.
Billing ahead of the work
A line passes 100% of its scheduled value, or the percent complete is ahead of what the GC sees on site. Superintendents walk the job before they approve, and they’ll mark down a line that looks overbilled.
Catch itBill what you can show. If a line needs more value, it needs a change order.
The cover sheet doesn’t tie to the sheet behind it
Line 4 doesn’t equal the column G total, line 7 doesn’t equal last month’s line 6, or a line was typed over a formula. It’s easy to do in a spreadsheet and easy for a GC to spot.
Catch itRecalculate lines 3 to 9 from the continuation sheet every month rather than typing them.
Stored materials without backup
Materials are billed in column F without an invoice, proof of insurance or a bill of sale. Or stored materials disappear from F without showing up as installed work in E.
Catch itSend the backup with the pay app, and move installed materials from F to E.
Missing paperwork or the wrong form
No lien waiver, no signature or notary, last month’s period date, a stale application number, or the pay app on your form instead of the GC’s template or portal.
Catch itKeep a checklist for each GC: their form, their due date and what they want attached.
Check yours against all seven
Upload your continuation sheet and last month’s. The checker lists every problem a GC would catch. Free, nothing uploaded.
One pay app, five problems
Here’s what the checker finds on a sample pay app from a fictional electrical sub. Every one of these is a real pattern from the list above, and any one of them could send it back.
Pay application #5 · Checked
Would be returnedLine 7 (Lighting fixtures): total to date does not add up
Column G shows $27,300.00, but From Previous + This Period + Stored (D+E+F) is $23,700.00. Off by $3,600.00.
Line CO-2 (PCO 2: relocate panel LP-2 (pending)): billing a change order that is not approved
This line reads as a pending or proposed change order but bills $3,425.00 this period. GCs reject unapproved change orders; hold it until you have a signed CO.
Line 9 (Low voltage and data): retainage does not match the rate
Shows $950.00 (5%), but 10% of $19,000.00 is $1,900.00. Retainage that does not tie is one of the most common reasons a GC sends a pay app back.
Line 2, Net Change by Change Orders, includes a pending change order
Line 2 shows $29,250.00, which counts CO-2. Approved change orders on the sheet add to $22,400.00.
Line 5 (Rough-in, Level 2): From Previous does not match last month
Shows $28,800.00, but last month's From Previous + This Period was $52,800.00. This is the classic roll-forward slip, and GCs check it first.
When one comes back anyway
- Ask for the exact lines or items the GC wants changed, in writing.
- Fix only those. Changing other numbers at the same time starts the review over.
- Resubmit the same day if you can. Ask whether it can still make this month’s draw.
- Use the approved version, with the GC’s changes, as next month’s starting point.
With Arvelo
Every pay app we prepare is checked for all seven before you see it. If a GC sends one back because of our mistake, we fix it the same day and that month is free. See how it works.