What proof do I need to show I did the work and they owe me?
The short answer
Five kinds of paper. Sort your file into the deal, the work, their acceptance, your invoice and your chasing: a record of the whole job. The court publishes its own list1 for building, repair, goods and similar contractual claims, and it usually needs much the same: any written contract, photographs, invoices. In a small claim the strict rules about what counts as proof do not apply2, so a dated delivery note or an email thread can go in.
England and Wales only. WolfX is software, not a law firm.
What you can add
A £4,350 scaffold hire invoice, 56 days late
Say you put up scaffold for another business on 25 May 2026 and took it down on 6 July: six weeks' hire at £725 a week. You invoiced £4,350 that day, due on 5 August. On 30 September it is still unpaid: 56 days late. It went late in the second half of 2026, so the rate is 8% over9 the Bank of England's 3.75%10 on 30 June: 11.75% a year. The file behind it runs to twelve pages and one index: quote and hire terms (2), the “yes please” email (1), delivery and collection notes (2), dated photographs (2), a message that raises no complaint (1), the invoice and a statement (2), and the reminders with proof they were sent (2).
Then it grows by £1.40 a day until they pay. A claim for that total costs a £205 court fee6, which you may be able to claim back if you win; a hearing can bring a further fee. Every line above has a paper behind it: the hire notes for the £4,350, and the invoice and your terms for the date interest runs from.
The road ahead
Five kinds of paper to find, three jobs to do.
Step 1: Find the deal
The quote or estimate, the order, your terms, and any message saying “yes please”. The court's list, in Appendix A of Practice Direction 27A1, opens with any written contract. No signed copy? A deal made by phone or message is still a deal. Look in your sent email and the job folder.
Step 2: Find the work
Delivery or collection notes, timesheets, handover notes and dated photographs. For office work, the brief and the drafts you sent, with dates. Photographs are on the court's list1. Look in the van, the site cabin, your inbox and your camera roll.
A document shown to be part of a business's records can be put in without further proof4. That gets a paper in front of the judge; a date and a signature help the judge trust it.
Step 3: Find their acceptance
Messages that thank you or raise no complaint, their use of the work, and earlier invoices they paid the same way. The court usually asks for a list of the works complained of1. If they raised nothing until the invoice fell due, that list is empty, and these papers show it.
Step 5: Add the chase
Your reminders and the letter before action, each with proof it went: the sent email, or a posting receipt. The court's standard directions say the papers should include the letter making the claim and the reply1, so keep their answer, or a note that there was none.
Step 6: Close the gaps now
Before your letter before action, email the letter below: it asks them to confirm the order date, the finish date and the sum, or say what is wrong. Back up photographs with their dates, and export message threads.
Lost something? Rebuild it, mark it “rebuilt” with today's date, and do not backdate it. A knowingly false statement in a document made for a claim can bring contempt of court proceedings5. Next job, get a name and date on the delivery note.
Step 7: Put it in one folder, in date order
A one-page index, page numbers, and message threads printed with sender and date showing. That is a court-ready file: the dozen or so pages that carry the claim, not every message. Send the key pages with your letter before action: sharing key documents is a usual step before a claim5. A clear file can end the argument there.
Step 8: Get copies to the court and them at least 14 days before the hearing
The court's directions give the exact date, so read them the day they arrive. Copies go to the court and to them at least 14 days before the hearing2. The court gives at least 21 days' notice2 of the hearing date, so the deadline for copies can fall a week after the notice.
Send copies, not originals, and bring the originals to the hearing1. Missing the date can mean an adjournment and costs1. You get the decision on the day7.
A letter you can copy
Email asking them to confirm the job and the sum
Send it once an invoice is overdue and before your letter before action. If that letter has gone, do not send this: when its date passes, start the claim. Keep any reply in the file.
Tap a highlighted gap to see what goes in it.
Send it by email to the person who approves payments, so it is dated. Keep the sent copy, and every reply, in the file. A reply of “agreed” in their own words goes straight into the file. A reply that says what is wrong is useful too: the court usually asks for a list of the works complained of, and now you have theirs.
When not to bother
When it isn't worth it
- They have already admitted it in writing. A reply saying the work was done and the sum is owed is most of the file. Add the invoice and your reminders, and stop at two or three pages.
- The sum is small and the client is worth keeping. On £150 a file costs more of your time than it returns. An invoice and one polite reminder will do; the court fee alone starts at £356.
- All you have is your own word. With no note, message or photograph, the court has only your account against theirs. Weigh a smaller sum, agreed in writing, against a claim you cannot show.
- They're a consumer, or the case is outside England and Wales. The late payment law covers only sales between businesses11. Consumer law is different, and Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own courts, so this page stops there.
- The claim is over £10,000. Small claims are normally up to that value3, with relaxed rules. Above it the fuller rules on documents apply: build the file now, and ask a solicitor who does debt recovery before you claim.
The Wolf's note
A date does more than an adjective. A delivery note, a dated photograph, a “yes please” with the time on it: each is dull, and together they leave little room for “you didn't do it”. Send the email, then let them say in writing what is wrong.
Mr. Wolf · the AI inside WolfX
What comes next
Your next move
No written contract: can I still get paid?
Yes. A verbal agreement is a contract.
6 min read · Letter included
My client disputes my invoice. What happens next?
The disputed part waits.
6 min read · Letter included
If they still won't pay
What happens at a small claims hearing, and how do I prepare?
Informal, often in the judge's room.
6 min read · Letter included
Don't want to do this yourself?
The Wolf does every step for you. He works out the sums, writes the letters and keeps track of every date. Nothing goes without your yes.