NEC3 vs NEC4 - What They Don't Tell Subcontractors: A Practical Guide to Understanding How NEC3 and NEC4 Really Work, and Where Subcontractors Get Cau

The Before You Sign Series was originally developed as a set of five practical guides to help subcontractors spot risk before signing a contract and understand where margin is most often lost.
It has now been expanded to cover the real-world behaviours, decisions, and working practices that affect commercial outcomes on live projects, not just what is written in the contract, but how it is actually applied.
Each book focuses on:

• where subcontractors get caught out
• how contracts really operate in practice
• simple, practical ways to protect margin and cashflow

This book builds on that foundation by focusing specifically on the real-world differences between NEC3 and NEC4.
It explains not just what has changed, but why those changes matter on a live job. In particular, how NEC4 places greater emphasis on process, timing, and structure, and how that shift affects entitlement, risk, and recovery.
It also sets out what subcontractors need to do differently to work properly under these contracts, including managing early warnings, compensation events, programme alignment, and payment processes in a consistent and controlled way.
The aim is simple: to help you understand how NEC3 and NEC4 actually behave in practice, and how to stay in control commercially when working under them.