HOW IT WORKS

PREQUAL definitions of Clients, Contractors, Sub Contractors and Sole Traders

Different industry sectors can have slightly different meanings to these descriptors. 

For the purposes of the PREQUAL prequalification process, the following definitions apply:

• Client

You are a Client if you engage others to carry out work for you.  A Client may also be a contractor or even sub-contractor in some circumstances.

Note: in the HSWA 2015 the Client is referred to as a PCBU (Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking)

• Contractor

You are a contractor if you are hired and paid by someone else (a Client) to carry out work for them. For PREQUAL prequalification purposes, “contractor” refers to organisations (including unincorporated partnerships) – not individuals – so the definition does not include sole traders engaging with a single Client on their own. 

• Main or Controlling Contractor

You are a main or controlling contractor if you are employed directly by the client to control/manage the entire job or project from beginning to completion/commissioning the project.

You, rather than the client, provide all the health & safety management systems to be applied to the contracted work and sub-contractors.

All other contractors report to you and you set the requirements for what reporting is required by subcontractors, when and how they report. You will usually present a summary of this information to the client as part of your reporting processes.

• Sub-Contractor

You are a sub-contractor if you are engaged by a Contractor to help them complete work for a Client.  

• Sole Trader

You are a Sole Trader if you do not employ staff or engage other contractors and you contract independently, even if you are a limited liability registered company.

 

Is this a one size fits all process?

The short answer is no.  One of the issues identified with prequalification, that have been applied by Clients or Industry organisations to date in New Zealand, is that they ask for the same information and evidence from all Contractors.  This is regardless of the differing types of work Contractors do and the size of the Contractor organisation.

The PREQUAL process provides five categories of prequalification questionnaire reflecting the different size and complexity of Contractors.

CATEGORIES & COST

What are the Contractor prequalification categories?

PREQUAL has customised the prequalification questionnaires to reflect the size and complexity of the Contractor. 

There are five Contractor Prequalification Categories.

Category	Contractor Type	Contractor Activities
Sole Trader	Individual who works independently	Does not employ staff or engage other contractors and contracts independently even if you are a limited liability registered company.
Category 1	Very Small contractor	Engaged by higher-level contractors or directly by Client. Do not engage subcontractors other than sole traders. Operate under the Client's or high-level contractor's management system.  1 – 5 employees.
Category 2	Small contractor	Engaged by higher-level contractors or directly by Client. Do not engage subcontractors other than sole traders. Operate under the Client's or high-level contractor's management system.  6 – 15 employees.
Category 3	Contractor	Engaged by main contractor or directly by client Usually operate under Client or main contractor's management systems.  16 + employees and/or manages subcontractors.
Category 4	Main or controlling contractor	You are a main or controlling contractor (in this category 4) if you are employed directly by the client (e.g. property developer) to control/manage the entire job/project from beginning to completion/commissioning the project. You, rather than the client, provide all the health & safety management systems to be applied to the contracted work and sub-contractors e.g. Permit to Work systems, emergency management process, incident reporting etc. All other contractors report to you and you set the requirements for what reporting is required by subcontractors, when, and how they report. You will usually present a summary of this information to the client as part of your reporting processes.

 

What will it cost me to prequalify?

Prequalification costs vary for Contractor Categories based on what it costs PREQUAL to assess and manage your application. 

The following category costs apply.

Contractor Category	Base Price
Sole Trader	$145 + GST
Category 1	$575 + GST
Category 2	$695 + GST
Category 3	$1,250 + GST
Category 4	$2,195 + GST

 

Depending on your assessment score, your PREQUAL prequalification can be valid for up to two years; which minimises these costs further.

 

How long does my prequalification last for?

The PREQUAL prequalification can be valid for up to two years; based on the assessment score that you achieve.

Please see below a table indicating the re-qualification requirement – this depends on where your score falls in the three categories outlined.

Separately, if your insurances, licences or certifications expire within the period, you will be required to submit new evidence of cover for your prequalification to remain valid.

Contractors Score	Requalification Requirement
Less than 30%	Requalify within 6 months
30% to 59%	Requalify within 12 months
60% or more	Requalify within 24 months

PREQUAL PROCESS

Who will be able to see my prequalification information?

By prequalifying with PREQUAL, you will be prequalified for all PREQUAL clients.

In your “Manage Clients” page, just select the clients you currently or would like to work with. The client’s will receive notification of your interest and can accept the link if desired. Your information can only be viewed by clients that you have agreed to be linked to.

The PREQUAL team is there to support you in co-ordinating who you wish to see your information. If a client wishes to use your services, we will check with you first. If you confirm that you would like to work for that client, we will then link you and your data to that client so that work can commence.

 

How long do I have to submit my prequalification information?

PREQUAL strongly recommend completing and submitting all information as soon as practically possible to ensure any evidential information does not become dated and negatively affect your final assessment outcome.

Client organisations may also request, and directly communicate to you to complete the prequalification within a specific timeframe.

In accordance with the standard prequalification terms and conditions;

From registration and payment of your prequalification fee, you have 6 months to complete your submission. After that time, PREQUAL has the right to cancel your application along with any submitted information.

 

How long will it take to have my prequalification information assessed?

PREQUAL will target the provision of a final assessment report within 20 working days of you submitting your prequalification material, including the fourteen days allowed for resubmission.

 

Is there a pass or fail for this prequalification?

PREQUAL does not provide a pass or fail mark. It is up to the individual Clients to determine how they will use this information.

PREQUAL and Clients view this prequalification process as a key element in driving the improvement of the health and safety performance of their Contractors.

 

How is my Category 1 – 4 prequalification questionnaire scored?

PREQUAL provides percentage scores for Categories 1 - 4 and commentary outlining where we think your prequalification information indicates you are at in terms of health and safety management.

Each question in the Category 1 – 4 prequalification questionnaire is scored on a scale of zero to four.  A score of zero indicates that there is no evidence of meeting requirements while a score of four indicates requirements are being met at a best practice level.

In addition, each question is weighted on a scale of one to five. This is to allow some questions to hold greater importance than others.

Currently Accepted Accreditations

Currently accepted accreditations include:

+ Accredited Employer Partnership Programme

+ AS/NZS 4801

+ OHSAS 18001

+ ISO 45001

IMPORTANT: ACC Workplace Safety Management Practices (WSMP) Accreditation Changes.

On 31/3/17 ACC ceased their WSMP accreditation programme. With a validity period of 2 years, all pre-existing ACC WSMP accreditations have now expired. PREQUAL no longer accepts ACC WSMP for assessment purposes. If you have previously held this accreditation, please do not upload your expired accreditation or your assessment will be sent back to you to answer further questions.

Who assesses my prequalification questionnaire?

PREQUAL Assessors will carry out the assessment of your prequalification information.  The PREQUAL process will be overseen by senior health and safety professionals with significant experience in contractor management. 

All PREQUAL Assessors are experienced health and safety practitioners, rigorously trained in the assessment tools and protocols. A continuous professional development programme is also in place to ensure all assessors stay abreast with current thinking in health and safety management.

 

Do I need to save my prequalification as I work through it?

No. Your prequalification answers will automatically be saved as you complete the prequalification. There is no save button. As you add information you will see a green tick appear next to the question, showing your information has been successfully uploaded.

 

Can I attach a file for an answer rather than fill out text boxes online?

Most questions have requirements to attach files as evidence. Where a question asks you to describe something and provides a free text panel for you to type your answer in directly, there is also the opportunity to attach an existing file if that is easier and answers the question adequately.

Files can be a maximum of 20mb and we recommend no symbols (& #) or punctuation (, !) is used in the file name as this can cause the uploaded file to become corrupted.

 

What is the difference between answering No and N/A?

If you answer ‘No’ to a question, you will not be asked to submit evidence and will score a zero. You may not be given the opportunity to resubmit evidence for questions you have answered ‘No’ to.

If you answer ‘N/A’ to a question, you will have the opportunity to describe why this question is not applicable to your organisation. Your PREQUAL Assessor will review this and decide whether to accept your reasoning or not. If the PREQUAL Assessor agrees with you, the question will be removed from your questionnaire with no impact on your score.

 

Do I have an opportunity to resubmit evidence if I don't score well?

Contractors in Category 1 – 4 will have one opportunity to resubmit evidence after submitting the initial prequalification information. Sole Traders do not have an opportunity to resubmit after submitting the initial prequalification information.

 

How long do I have to resubmit evidence after initial assessment?

You have 14 days to resubmit evidence as identified by your PREQUAL assessor. If you do not do so within this timeframe, your prequalification will be scored on the initial information provided.

 

Why does the orange i remain and the percent completed not change when I resubmit evidence?

When additional evidence is added to your application for resubmission, the orange i will not change to green ticks. This allows your assessor to identify which questions require re-assessing.

 

How are my Category 1 – 4 results presented to me?

Once your Category 1 – 4 prequalification has been assessed, you will receive a report that provides you an overall score, and breakdown of that score into key sections and subsections.  In addition, we will provide comments on what you appear to be doing well and areas for improvement. 

 

How is my Sole Trader prequalification questionnaire scored?

Each of the questions you are asked to answer will be scored from 1 to 4.  This is purely to indicate whether your response showed good, average, limited or no understanding of the topic it was addressing.

 

How are my Sole Trader results presented to me?

Once your Sole Trader prequalification has been assessed you will be provided with a report. Each question asked will be given a green, amber or red colour to indicate the level of understanding shown of the topic it was addressing.

 

How do I know my prequalification is being scored consistently with other contractors?

The assessment guides used by PREQUAL Assessors have undergone rigorous testing and continuous improvement to ensure they promote the highest level of consistency between assessors. PREQUAL assessors work together which allows continual discussion around interpretation of prequalification evidence. They also meet formally on a regular basis to discuss application of PREQUAL assessment tools.

We also random select 5% of submissions for moderation by a second assessor, to ensure consistency of scoring and feedback.

 

Is there a certificate provided on completion?

Once your prequalification is completed you will be provided with a Certificate which can be printed off and provides information on:

• Contractor Category
• Date of Assessment and Expiry Date
• Main Business Area

If you achieve above 80%, your certificate will also show a 5-star rating as evidence of this achievement.

This certificate is the final page on your completed report.

 

Does PREQUAL monitor my insurance coverage?

PREQUAL will monitor the expiry of your insurance cover (as you present it to PREQUAL). 

PREQUAL will notify your nominated key contact person (as defined in your registration details) when your insurance is about to expire. 

We will also notify your Clients of this.

 

But I still have a low score?

This is not like most prequalification processes you have been through where you pass on the basis of submitting some documentation.

From the years of experience that PREQUAL and its advisors have had trialling this level of prequalification, it is expected that a significant number of Category 1 - 4 contractors are likely to score well below 50%. To illustrate this, a score of 4 (out of 4) for a question will require very strong evidence of best practice systems and application.

We will also provide you with an indication of where you sit in relation to your peers so you can view your performance in that context.

It is important that you understand your Clients (actual and prospective) want to see you improve over time so a low score is not a reason to give up!

 

Can I add information and attach documents to my completed report?

Once your application has been assessed and a report generated, no further information can be added to your prequalification report, apart from updating your insurances.

For any additional information or evidence to be reflected in your prequalification, you would need to complete a new application. This is at your discretion and cost. 

Please contact us on Freephone 0800 773 782 should you wish to complete a new prequalification prior to your current expiry date.

OTHER FAQS

Can I complete a PREQUAL if I am an international organisation?

Yes, if you’re an international organisation working for New Zealand based Clients, you can complete a prequalification with PREQUAL.

As PREQUAL is a service for New Zealand based Clients, it is important that your policies and procedures include New Zealand legislation and that any evidence of application is from your New Zealand branch or division.

 

Who oversees the PREQUAL process?

PREQUAL has developed this prequalification process with input from a number of Client organisations. 

PREQUAL administers and manages the process but there is a Client Steering Group in place that continues to provide guidance to PREQUAL.

 

What does the Client Steering Group do?

The Client Steering Group is made up of representatives from key PREQUAL Clients. Representatives come from a mix of Health and Safety and Procurement roles. The Steering Group provides direction and advice to PREQUAL about the appropriateness of PREQUAL systems, processes and content. 

The following provides an illustration of what they are involved in:

• Agreeing the appropriateness of questionnaire content and assessment protocol;
• Agreeing the adequacy of moderation and appeals processes;
• Agreeing the rules of the PREQUAL process e.g. number of prequalification attempts allowed, length of time for contractors to submit information, requalification timeframes, confidentiality of information protocols etc.

 

Do I have the right to appeal my prequalification outcome?

Huge focus and effort have been placed on getting this right first time. The oversight, training, continuous professional development and improvement processes described above, coupled with the robust moderation programme, mean that a standard appeal process is not required. 

If there are specific questions you believe have not been assessed fairly, you can send a request for review of those questions only, in writing to info@prequal.co.nz within one month of your prequalification being completed.

A senior assessor will then review the requested questions, in conjunction with the assessor, against the evidence supplied and make any adjustments to the scoring, if the appeal is deemed valid.

 

Can I redo the prequalification more frequently than every two years?

Yes, you can submit a new prequalification at any time.  This is at your discretion and cost. 

Also, depending on the requirements of your client(s), you may be asked to requalify more frequently based on the assessment score that you achieve.

Please contact us on Freephone 0800 773 782 should you wish to complete a new prequalification prior to your current expiry date.

 

What if I require a refund?

REFUND POLICY

If you decide not to proceed with your prequalification, please contact us at info@prequal.co.nz within 3 business days of original payment to submit a written request for a refund.

If your application has not been submitted, the amount paid for your prequalification will be repaid to you, less $80 (or $50 for a Sole Trader) which will be held as an administration fee. This repayment will be made within 3 – 5 business days.

No refunds are available for any prequalification that has been submitted, or after 3 business days of original payment.