Retention & Defect Liability Tracking

Q: Can the automation handle different retention percentages for different contractors or projects?

Yes, the master retention register stores unique retention terms by contractor and project, and the system applies the correct percentage automatically to each invoice.

Q: What if a project manager does not respond to an approval request?

The system sends automatic escalation reminders after a set time and can escalate to a manager or flag the invoice for manual review if no response is received.

Q: Will the automation work with our existing accounting software?

The automation integrates with mainstream accounting platforms like Xero, QuickBooks Online, and others; your existing setup can be connected without replacing your current tools.

Q: How does the system generate audit reports?

The automation maintains a centralized, timestamped log of all retention holds, approvals, defect claims, and releases; reports are generated automatically from this log in minutes.

Tracking retentions held and releasing them when liability periods expire.

240 hrs

Manual time identified

Companies have mapped

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About This Automation

Retention and defect liability tracking involves monitoring contractor invoice holds, managing defect claims, and releasing payments on schedule. Manual tracking across spreadsheets, emails, and approval delays creates bottlenecks and missed deadlines.

Automation centralizes retention schedules, calculates holds automatically, routes approvals efficiently, and triggers release payments on time. The result is faster payment cycles, complete audit trails, and zero missed deadlines.

Key features:

Look up retention percentages and schedules automatically from a master register

Calculate retention amounts and identify payment blocks without manual spreadsheet work

Route approval requests to project managers with automatic escalation if no response

Monitor defect claim deadlines and send alerts before liability expires

Process retention release payments automatically when conditions are met

Generate audit reports in minutes from a centralized, timestamped log

Data insights How it works Apps used What you get FAQ

Top friction points when done manually

The issues teams report most often with this process

#	Friction point	Companies Report This
1	Approval delays and timeouts Project manager approvals are often delayed or forgotten, blocking retention releases for days.	80%
2	Scattered defect claim data Defect claims are tracked across emails, spreadsheets, and logs with no single source of truth.	67%
3	Manual retention calculations Retention percentages and amounts are calculated manually from multiple spreadsheet sources.	53%
4	Missed payment deadlines Retention release dates are tracked manually and often missed, delaying contractor payments.	40%
5	Audit report compilation Audit reports require manual data gathering from multiple spreadsheets, taking hours to prepare.	26%

Disclaimer

Automation readiness

How well-suited this process is for automation

Process Pain Score™

8.0/ 10

AI Fit Rating™

8.6/ 10

Automation Lift Index™

8.4/ 10

Hidden Overhead™

7.8/ 10

How The Automation Works

The full workflow, from trigger to completion.

1. Invoice Receivedtrigger

Automation detects a new contractor invoice or. The trigger captures invoice details, project code, contractor name, and amount.

2. Look Up Retention Schedule

Queries the retention schedule database (stored or ) to retrieve the retention percentage, release date, and any defect claim holds for this contractor and project.

3. Calculate Retention Amount

Calculates the retention hold amount automatically based on invoice total and retention percentage, then logs it as a journal entry.

4. Check Defect Claims

Queries the defect liability register to identify any outstanding claims against this contractor or project that would prevent retention release.

5. Request Approval

Sends a structured approval request to the project manager with invoice details, retention amount, and defect status. Request includes a quick-approve button.

6. Record Retention

Once approval is received (or after a configurable timeout), creates the retention journal entry and tags it with project and contractor details for audit.

7. Schedule Release Reminder

Calculates the retention release date and schedules an automated reminder for the finance team. On release date, automatically creates the payment or credit memo.

8. Notify Contractor

Sends a notification email to the contractor confirming retention amount, release date, and any defect claim holds, creating an audit trail.

Most popular tool stack used

— the complete tool combinations companies use

48% of companies

32% of companies

14% of companies

Disclaimer

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Everything you need to understand, plan, and build your automation.

ROI and business case

What this process costs today and what changes once it's automated.

Launch schedule

What gets built, in what order, and what success looks like once it's live.

Process runbook

How the automation runs day to day, including exceptions and human decision points.

Developer handover pack

Full build spec, logic, and configuration — ready to hand off without a briefing call.

Integration and connections guide

Every tool connection, credential, and data mapping the build needs.

Test and QA plan

20 hrsIdentified

4Mapped

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Frequently asked questions

Everything you need to know before mapping this process.

What happens if a defect claim is filed after retention is released?

The system flags any new defect claims and can automatically place a hold on the release or escalate to the project manager for review before payment is processed.

Can the automation handle different retention percentages for different contractors or projects?

What if a project manager does not respond to an approval request?

Will the automation work with our existing accounting software?

How does the system generate audit reports?

View more FAQs

Process pain:8.0/10

Mapped by:5 Companies

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Page updated 10 August 2026