Change orders — signed addendums to an in-flight job

A change order is a signed addendum to a job that's already underway. The customer accepted Quote A for $5,000, you started work, and mid-job they say 'while you're in there, can you also add X?' — that 'X' goes on a change order, the customer signs it, and you have legal cover for the additional work + the additional money.

Why this matters

• Legal coverage — verbal 'while you're in there' agreements are dispute-bait; a signed digital change order isn't.
• Financial integrity — the original invoice stays frozen (sent invoices are immutable in Plyrium for audit reasons). The change order generates a NEW addendum invoice instead of mutating the original.
• Audit trail — every change order is timestamped, signed, and IP-logged. You can pull up exactly what was approved when.
• Scope creep visibility — at the end of a remodel, the contractor can see 'Original $12,000 + 3 change orders totaling +$2,800 = $14,800' instead of arguing about emails.

Creating a change order

1. 1
   Go to /portal/change-orders and click 'New change order'

   Or jump straight in from a sent invoice's detail page (an 'Add change order' button creates one with the source invoice pre-selected).

2. 2
   Pick the source

   Either an active invoice (typical: mid-job scope creep) or an active quote (rare: customer wants to amend before accepting). The customer + tax rate inherit from the source automatically.

3. 3
   Title + reason

   Title is what the customer sees: 'Add smart thermostat to Master Bedroom.' Reason is optional but recommended — it shows up on the customer-signing page so they understand WHY they're being asked to approve more money.

4. 4
   Add line items

   Same line-item editor as quotes. Negative unit prices ARE allowed (scope reduction = credit) — the public page renders this as a 'net credit' instead of an 'additional charge.'

5. 5
   Save & send

   Customer gets an email with a signing link (/co/[token]). They review + type their name + click Accept.

What happens when they accept

• Plyrium creates a NEW draft invoice (the 'addendum invoice') with the change order's line items + totals.
• The original source invoice is NOT modified — its total, its sent_at, its public link all stay exactly as they were.
• The change order's status flips to 'accepted' with the customer's signature + IP recorded.
• Owner gets an email notification.
• The contractor reviews + sends the addendum invoice through the normal /portal/invoices flow. Customer pays it like any other invoice.

Negative-amount change orders (credits)

Use negative unit prices when the customer is REDUCING scope, not adding. Example: original scope included tile backsplash; mid-job customer decides to do that themselves. Create a change order with a line like 'Remove tile backsplash from scope: -$650.' On accept, the addendum invoice records as a -$650 credit you can apply against what the customer owes you.

Status states