What Happens If a Head Contractor Ignores Your Payment Claim?

When a Head Contractor Goes Silent

You’ve served a payment claim. The 10-business-day window has passed. Your head contractor hasn’t sent a payment schedule and hasn’t paid. What now?

This is actually one of the most powerful positions you can be in under the Security of Payment Act — because the contractor’s silence creates a legal obligation to pay the full claimed amount.

The Debt Is Now Due and Payable

Under the SOP Act in all Australian states, if a respondent fails to serve a payment schedule within the statutory period, the full amount of the payment claim becomes a debt due and payable by the respondent to the claimant. This means you don’t need to win an adjudication — the debt is already established by operation of law.

Your Two Options After Non-Response

Option 1: Apply for Adjudication

You can apply for adjudication regardless of whether a payment schedule was served or not. If no payment schedule was served, the adjudicator simply determines the amount due based on your payment claim. This is generally very fast — most no-schedule adjudications are determined within days.

Option 2: Recover as a Debt in Court

In some states, you can recover the unpaid amount as a debt directly in court without going through adjudication, because the Act deems the debt to be due and payable. This can be faster than adjudication in straightforward cases.

Don’t Wait Too Long — Adjudication Deadlines Are Strict

The deadlines for lodging an adjudication application are strict and differ by state. In QLD and NSW, you generally have 20 business days from the end of the payment schedule period to lodge an adjudication application. Miss this window and you may need to serve a new payment claim.

PayClaim Monitors Your Deadlines Automatically

PayClaim tracks every deadline from the moment your claim is served. If the response window expires without a payment schedule, PayClaim automatically generates your adjudication application and notifies you — so you never miss a critical deadline.

Owed money? You can start your Letter of Demand here — see the whole letter free, then a flat $69 to issue it. PayClaim is not a law firm; payment outcomes are not guaranteed.