The full skeleton, ready to copy, with a worked example and the mistakes that cost jobs.
NINO guide · updated 25 September 2026
Header. Your name or trading name, address, phone and email — and your VAT number if you are registered. Below that: the customer's details and the exact site address, not the billing one.
Reference and date. QUO-2026-0042 and the date issued. Plus the validity: "Valid until …".
Job title. One line the customer will still recognise six months later: "Bathroom refit — bath removed, shower tray fitted".
The lines. One per task or material: description, quantity, unit price, total. Labour and materials kept apart.
The totals. Net, VAT if you are registered, and the total. Nothing hidden underneath.
What is NOT included. The most profitable section of the document.
Terms. Timescale, payment, guarantee, validity.
Acceptance. A line for the customer's signature and date.
Site: 14 Mayfield Road, Flat 3, Leeds.
Date: 25/09/2026 · Valid until 25/10/2026.
Labour
Drain down, remove and dispose of existing cylinder — 1 no.
Supply and fit 180 L unvented cylinder, connect and commission — 1 no.
Call-out and travel — 1 no.
Materials
180 L unvented cylinder — 1 no.
Flexible connectors, safety valve and sundries — 1 lot.
Not included: making good, decorating, waste removal beyond the old cylinder, or any alteration to the existing electrical supply.
Terms: 1 working day from acceptance · 50% on acceptance, balance on completion · 2-year guarantee on labour, manufacturer's guarantee on the cylinder.
Look at what this document does: every line can be discussed on its own, and the "not included" section closes down the three usual last-day arguments before they start.
1. "Sundry works". One big line with one big number invites haggling. Ten small lines do not.
2. Not saying what is excluded. It is behind nearly every argument on the last day.
3. Sending it three days later. On an urgent job the customer has already rung someone else.
4. Sending it as a loose message. A WhatsApp full of numbers disappears; a PDF with your name on it gets kept.
5. Never following up. One line a week later wins back jobs you had written off.
The quote proposes. The pro forma confirms what was agreed and lets the customer release payment. The invoice records the sale for tax purposes. NINO does the first two, as PDFs, with your name and your logo. Invoicing stays where it is — your accounting software or your accountant.
For the full method, from visit to follow-up: how to write a quote.
If you are VAT registered, show the net amount, the VAT rate and the total so there is no argument later. If you are not registered, do not put VAT on anything — and do not imply you have charged it.
Between 15 and 30 days works well. If merchant prices are moving, shorten the validity rather than absorbing the difference yourself.
There is no rule that says so, but number them anyway. A reference (QUO-2026-0042) lets you talk about the document on the phone without confusion and keeps your year in order.
A quote accepted in writing generally works as an agreement between the two sides on scope and price, which is exactly why the 'not included' section matters so much. For where you stand legally, take proper advice.
NINO is a tool for self-employed tradespeople: you build the quote on site, the customer gets a professional PDF over WhatsApp, and customers, appointments and documents stay in one place. You can start free, with no card.
See also: all guides · NINO in your city.