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It’s called “smash and grab” - I couldn’t remember it’s name.
“Smash and grab is the term used to describe an adjudication seeking payment on the narrow ground that the contractual payment mechanism has produced a ‘notified sum’ and this has not been paid.”
Builder puts in a “notified sum” using the valid mechanism under the contract (whether or not the sun is actually correct) and then can get a quick claim against you if you don’t dispute it in time.
That is fine, but the ruse was to go from reasonable-ish monthly payment notifications, made direct to me the homeowner, copying the architect / contract administrator, to a notification for an absurd amount that I was deliberately not copied to. The architect correctly thought “that’s ridiculous, no one is paying it” but didn’t properly follow the method to dispute it. My memory is now hazy (/repressed) but I believe had we used JCT we would have been fucked, but the builder wasn’t familiar with RIBA, and under RIBA we weren’t fucked.
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t.o.
Eugh sounds awful - out of interest - what was their JCT stitch up trick ?