Handover certificate signed on the day
A handover certificate is the client’s signed acknowledgement that they have received the finished work, the keys and the handover pack, on a stated date. Send it as a link at the final walk-through; the client opens it on their phone, approves and signs, and the dated record stays with the job beside the O and M manuals it refers to.
What is a handover certificate and who signs it?
On a typical UK project, handover is the final inspection and snagging close-out, the commissioning and client training, and the formal sign-off that goes with delivering the handover pack. The handover certificate, or handover letter, is the document the client signs to acknowledge all of that on a date.
The pack behind it is where the work is: the operation and maintenance manuals covering how to run and service what was installed, the as-built drawings, the certificates for gas, electrics and the like, the warranties, and the keys, fobs and access codes. The certificate lists what was handed over so that a missing manual in a year’s time is a matter of record rather than memory.
The person who signs is the client or their representative, the same person who walked the job at the joint inspection a week or so before and agreed what was left to do.
What should the handover certificate record?
The guidance on closing out without the client chasing you for months is to agree the remaining items in writing at the joint inspection, then on the day do the final walk-through, hand over the keys, and have the client sign a handover letter and acknowledge the handover file.
The certificate is the index to the pack. It doesn't need to contain the pack. It needs to say what was in it.
- The project and the date of handover
- What was handed over: the O and M manuals, as-built drawings, certificates, warranties, keys and access
- Any outstanding items carried over, with the date they will be completed
- Any training given, and to whom
- The client’s name, signature and the date
What goes wrong when handover isn't signed?
Without a signed certificate, handover is a date the two sides remember differently. The client rings in March about a manual they say they never got; the builder is sure it was in the folder left on the kitchen counter. The final payment is held back because the client feels the job isn't quite finished, and there's no signed line saying it is.
On a larger project the handover date drives the defects period, the insurance and the retention, and an unsigned handover leaves each of those open. On a domestic job it mostly drives the last invoice.
A certificate signed on the day, with the contents of the pack listed and the outstanding items agreed, gives both sides one date and one list. It also gives the client something they can find in a year, which is what the O and M manual was for.
How do I get the handover certificate signed with Portal Worx?
You upload the handover certificate as a PDF to the job in Portal Worx and, at the final walk-through, send the client a link by email. They open it on their phone while you are both standing there. No account, nothing to install and nothing to learn.
They can leave a note or ask a question, approve or decline. If you asked for it, they must enter a one-time code emailed to them before signing, which shows whoever signed had control of that inbox at that moment. They draw their signature and submit.
If the client wants to sign later, you chase from the same screen. If an item is added to the outstanding list on the day, send the corrected certificate as a new version; it supersedes the first, and the first stays on the record.
What does the signed record hold?
The record is dated and signed, pinned to the exact certificate the client saw, with its SHA-256 fingerprint. The approval, the notes and every version are kept with the job, next to the manuals, drawings and certificates the handover pack listed, so the pack and the acknowledgement of it are in one place.
A simple electronic signature is admissible evidence in the UK under the Electronic Communications Act 2000; its weight is decided by the court on the record around it, which is the date, the address, the file and the notes.
Where doesn't this fit?
Portal Worx doesn't assemble the handover pack or write the O and M manual, and it isn't a facilities system for running the building afterwards. One person signs one request, so where a client and a managing agent both sign, each gets a request. The certificate must be a PDF, an image or plain text.
It doesn't verify identity: the code proves control of an inbox. The page the client opens is on our domain, not yours.
Common questions
- Can I attach the whole handover pack to the request?
- The request approves one file: the certificate. Keep the manuals, drawings and certificates on the job alongside it, and list them on the certificate so the signature covers what was handed over.
- What if the client wants to add an outstanding item on the day?
- Add it to the certificate and send it as a new version. The client signs the new one; both versions stay on the record with their dates.
- Does this tie in with the snagging list?
- Yes. The snagging list and its sign-offs sit on the same job, so the handover certificate can refer to the list the client already accepted.
- Does the client need an account?
- No. They open the link on their phone and sign. Nothing to install, nothing to learn.
- Is there a charge per handover?
- No. Requests and links are unlimited on every plan, from £29 a month.
Related
What else Portal Worx does
This page covers one part of it. Behind every request for sign-off is the job it belongs to: projects holding your documents and site photos, with a folder or a file shareable by link to someone with no account; versions with history and an approval pinned to each; reports built on site and exported as a PDF with your logo; threaded messaging; a year-long activity trail; and AI that catches you up on where a job stands without ever seeing more than you can.
See everything it does, or check the plans. Unlimited users and unlimited requests on all of them.
Hand over the keys and the signature together.
Upload the certificate, send the link at the walk-through, and have it signed on the client’s phone before you leave. 14 days free, no card, unlimited requests on every plan.