Section 14 of the German VOB/B requires a verifiable invoice with quantity calculations and supporting records. Why a measurement scribbled on a notepad rarely meets that standard, and what a measurement must contain so the final invoice does not fail on form.
The final invoice is written, the work was finished weeks ago, and then the client's letter arrives: not verifiable. For many trade businesses this is the moment that decides whether the measurement taken on site was clean or not. What cannot be reconstructed weeks later cannot be enforced either.
What § 14 VOB/B requires
In construction contracts that incorporate the German VOB/B (the standard terms for construction works), § 14 governs invoicing. § 14 (1) VOB/B (2016 edition) states that the contractor must invoice its services in a verifiable manner, set out invoices clearly, follow the order of items and use the designations contained in the contract documents, and attach the quantity calculations, drawings and other records required to prove the nature and extent of the work (unofficial translation).
Three things follow. The invoice must mirror the structure of the bill of quantities. It must use the contract's designations, not the contractor's own. And it must include the quantity calculation itself, meaning the measurement, not just the result.
Joint measurement
§ 14 (2) VOB/B adds that the findings needed for invoicing are to be made as the work progresses, jointly wherever possible, and that for work which is difficult to verify once construction continues, the contractor must request joint findings in good time (unofficial translation). Anyone who wants to invoice the insulation behind the facing wall or the pipe in the backfilled trench must record the quantities while they are still visible and invite the client to witness them. Miss that window, and in a dispute it is the contractor who bears the risk of being unable to prove the quantity.
The measurement is not a note for writing the invoice. It is the record the invoice must carry under § 14 VOB/B.
Why the notepad rarely suffices
A handwritten measurement is not legally worthless. In practice it fails in three places. First, allocation: the notepad says "bathroom, 1st floor, 14.2", the invoice says item 3.2.10, and whoever has to connect the two is guessing. Second, time: without a date it cannot be shown that the finding was made "as the work progressed". Third, completeness: waste, allowances and deductions were calculated in the head and appear nowhere. The client can then rightly say the invoice is not verifiable.
The consequence is in § 14 (4) VOB/B: if the contractor fails to submit a verifiable invoice despite being set a reasonable deadline, the client may draw up the invoice itself at the contractor's expense (unofficial translation). That is the most expensive way to arrive at an invoice.
What a measurement should contain
A simple checklist follows from § 14 VOB/B. Every finding needs the date, the location in the building (storey, room, component), the item number in the bill of quantities, the measured quantity with unit, the rule applied for allowances or deductions and, where possible, a note whether the finding was made jointly. Photos complement this but do not replace a quantity calculation.
The deadline still applies on top: under § 14 (3) VOB/B, for works with a contractual execution period of at most three months, the final invoice must be submitted no later than twelve working days after completion unless otherwise agreed (unofficial translation). Whoever reconstructs measurements from notepads after completion spends that time typing.
Capture on site, check in the office
This is where voice-based capture comes in. Speaking the measurement at the moment of measuring, with room, item, quantity and waste, produces a dated finding assigned to the item that can be attached to the invoice as its quantity calculation. Scrypa Trades structures what is spoken into the fields of your trade or measurement software. The technical review stays with you, but the reconstruction disappears.
This article gives a general account of the legal position under the German VOB/B (2016 edition) and is not legal advice for individual cases. Whether VOB/B applies depends on your contract.
The figures in this article are illustrative and based on industry studies of voice-based documentation. They do not replace an assessment for your own organisation.