Claims » Variations

Verbal Instructions for Variations — The Written Confirmation Requirement

Construction sites run on verbal communication. The site manager does not wait for a written instruction, and the subcontractor does not wait either. This is the reality — and it is also the source of a large proportion of variation disputes.

4 min read · Updated 21/04/2026

In this article

1. Why verbal instructions are a claims risk
2. What the standard forms require
3. Practical application — the confirmation procedure
4. Risks on both sides
5. Mitigation — the instruction management system
6. Conclusion

Key takeaway

Verbal instructions are a fact of construction life, but they must be confirmed in writing if the contractor is to preserve its entitlement. Under both FIDIC and JCT, a procedure exists for the contractor itself to confirm a verbal instruction and create the written record. Failure to use that procedure is one of the most preventable sources of variation disputes — and one of the most common in UAE practice.

1. Why verbal instructions are a claims risk

The gap between what is instructed verbally on site and what is recorded in writing creates two related problems. The first is the dispute about what was actually instructed. When the contractor claims payment for work done in response to a verbal instruction, the employer may deny giving the instruction, deny that it constituted a variation (arguing it was already included in the original scope), or dispute the quantity of work done. Without contemporaneous written evidence, the contractor’s position is evidentially weak.

The second problem is procedural. The confirmation procedure for verbal instructions is frequently not followed on UAE sites — meaning that even where the instruction itself is not in dispute, the formal contractual entitlement to payment may be lost because the preconditions for recovery were never met.

2. What the standard forms require

Standard construction contracts deal with verbal instructions in different ways, but the common principle is that the written record must exist before payment can be claimed.

The key principle is that the written-confirmation procedure must be followed if the contractor is to preserve its entitlement. Acting on an unconfirmed verbal instruction, without following the procedure, risks losing the entitlement to payment — even if the work was clearly instructed and clearly additional to the contract scope.

3. Practical application — the confirmation procedure

For contractors

Establish a site instruction register from day one of the project. Every verbal instruction received should be confirmed in writing to the contract administrator within 24 hours, following the procedure in the contract. The confirmation should identify: who gave the instruction, when, what it required, and why the contractor believes it constitutes a variation. Do not wait for the contract administrator to issue a written instruction — use the contractor-confirmation procedure.

For employers and their representatives

Reduce the risk of disputed verbal instructions by issuing written instructions as standard practice, even for minor matters. Where a verbal instruction must be given for operational reasons, follow up with written confirmation promptly rather than waiting for the contractor’s confirmation notice to arrive.

4. Risks on both sides

For contractors, the risk of acting on unconfirmed verbal instructions is that entitlement to additional payment is lost entirely, regardless of the merit of the claim. A six-figure package of varied work can be reduced to zero by a procedural failure. For employers, the risk is of accumulating unrecorded instructions that create significant financial exposure when a consolidated claim is submitted at project end — often with penalty-style extrapolation that would not have survived real-time assessment.

5. Mitigation — the instruction management system

Implement a simple, consistent instruction management system:

• All instructions recorded on a standard site-instruction form.
• All verbal instructions confirmed in writing within 24 hours.
• All instructions reviewed weekly with the contract administrator and the variation status updated.
• Variation register kept current and circulated at each progress meeting.

This is not bureaucratic overhead — it is the minimum required to manage contract entitlement effectively on a live project.

6. Conclusion

Verbal instructions are a fact of construction life, but they must be confirmed in writing if the contractor is to preserve its entitlement. The confirmation procedure is simple, quick, and contractually critical. The failure to follow it is one of the most preventable sources of variation disputes — and one of the most common. Build the system before the project starts, not after the first disputed variation.

Review your instruction-management practice

The system that captures verbal instructions is the same system that preserves your claim at arbitration. We review site administration practice and advise on the procedures needed for UAE projects operating under FIDIC and bespoke contracts.

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