Getting help on a job — what to agree before you start
Bringing in a helper for a day and passing a job to another trade are two different moves. Every later decision depends on one question: whose name is on the invoice the client pays? Agree the split first. Price the help properly. Then tell the client in one line.
Take on a subcontractor only once you know which of two things you mean. You bring help in: you invoice the client, and the helper invoices you. Or you pass the job on: another trade invoices the client directly. Agree the split, the price, and who supplies materials before work starts. Charge for the risk and admin you carry, not just the helper’s day rate.
Sooner or later a job comes along that is bigger than you can cover alone. You may need a second pair of hands for a day. Or part of the work may not be your trade at all. Before you say yes, answer one question. Whose name is on the invoice the client actually pays?
1. Two different things, often confused
Bringing in help means you stay the business the client hired. You quote the job, you invoice the client, and you carry the job from start to finish. The helper works for you, and invoices you, not the client.
Passing the job on means the other trade quotes and invoices the client directly. You step out of that part of the job entirely. You send no invoice for that work, and you give no guarantee on it.
Decide which one you are doing before you say yes. The two carry a different price, a different guarantee and a different line to the client. Most of the trouble in this guide starts when people mix them up.
2. What to agree before work starts
Whichever route you take, settle these points before anyone picks up a tool:
- Scope. Exactly what the helper covers, and what stays yours.
- Price. A day rate or a fixed price for the work, agreed in writing.
- Materials. Who buys them, and who is out of pocket if a delivery is wrong or late.
- A callback. Who goes back if something needs fixing, and who pays for the visit.
- Payment date. When the helper gets paid, relative to when the client pays you.
The bringing in help scripts below cover two steps. You ask a helper for a price. Then you agree these terms in writing, before the job starts.
3. What to charge
Do not pass a helper’s day rate straight through to the client. You still carry the risk if the work is wrong. You still give the guarantee once the job is finished. You still do the chasing and admin behind the invoice. Add your own margin on top of what the helper charges you. Do the same as you would for materials or any other cost in your quote. The markup & margin calculator does the arithmetic. When the job is finished, use the job profit check. It shows whether the day paid what you priced.
The bringing in help check runs this arithmetic for one job. It shows what is left after you pay the helper and the materials. It also shows what your own remaining hours are worth, now that the helper has freed up your day.
4. Tell the client in one line
Say it in the quote, before work starts: another person you have brought in will do some of this job. One line is enough. A client who finds out on the day, and did not read it beforehand, can reasonably feel misled. The work may be fine. The client feels misled because nobody asked.
5. Keep control of the quality
Brief the helper the way you want the job done. Check the work in person before you invoice the client. The invoice goes out under your name, so the check is not optional. If something is wrong, put it right with the helper. Do not quietly absorb it, and do not pass it on to the client.
Do not agree to pay the helper only once the client pays you without saying so. Silence on this point reads as a normal payment date, not a condition. Do not let the client deal with the helper directly with no rule about it. Agree up front whether that is allowed. And do not agree terms with a helper only by phone. A call is easy to remember differently later. The pay-when-paid glossary term explains what that arrangement means. It also explains why you must say it plainly if you plan to use it.
Common questions
Should I take on a subcontractor, or turn the job away?
Neither is the only option. A third choice is to bring in help for the parts you cannot cover alone. You stay the one the client pays. Decide that before you say yes. The price, the risk and the guarantee then follow from it.
Do I mark up a subcontractor’s price?
Yes. A helper’s day rate is not a pass-through cost. You still carry the risk, the guarantee and the admin of the job. Add your own margin on top of what the helper charges you. Do the same as you would for materials or any other cost in your quote.
What is the difference between bringing in help and passing the job on?
If you bring in help, you still quote and invoice the client, and the helper invoices you. If you pass the job on, the other trade quotes and invoices the client directly. You then step out of the job. The client pays a different name in each case. That name decides who carries the guarantee.
Do I need to tell the client I am using help?
Yes. Say it in the quote, before work starts. One line is enough: another person you have brought in will do some of the work. A client who finds out on the day, and not in writing beforehand, can reasonably feel misled. This is true even if the work is fine.
My subcontractor is slower than me — what do I do?
Price by the job or the agreed scope. Do not match your own pace to theirs. Brief the work clearly and check it before you invoice the client. If the helper causes a delay, hold it against the helper. Do not pass it on to the client as an excuse.
How do I keep control of quality when someone else is doing the work?
Brief the job the way you want it done. Check it in person before you invoice the client. If there is a snag, the helper puts it right. Do not quietly absorb it yourself. The invoice goes out under your name, so the check before you invoice is not optional.
Want the invoice to stay straight once help is involved?
BizBinder has no helper or subcontractor record. It does not split one job’s work between payers. It does keep the one invoice you send to the client accurate and tracked. This holds whatever mix of work sits behind it.
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- guide How to price a job so the number holds up The quote works only if its number works. Start with the price, then write it up.
- tool Free Quote & Estimate Generator Fill in your business and client details. Add line items, mark any as optional, and set a deposit. A clean quote builds as you type. Turn it into an invoice with one click.
- tool Quote & invoice terms builder Tick the clauses that fit the job and fill in your numbers once. You get a plain-English terms block. Copy it, print it, or send it into the quote generator.