Getting a supplement approved shouldn’t take three rounds of back and forth. If yours keep bouncing, the problem usually isn’t the dollar amount. It’s that the desk reviewer can’t see why the line is owed without doing your homework for you.
Lead with the trigger, not the line item
A supplement gets approved when the reviewer can answer one question in five seconds: what changed since the original estimate? Open with the discovery. “Upon removal of the first course of shingles, decking damage was found across the north slope.” Then the line items. Then the photos that prove it.
Tie every line to documentation
Each added line needs three things behind it: a photo that shows the condition, a note that explains why it’s covered, and a measurement or count that justifies the quantity. Miss one and you’ve handed the reviewer a reason to kick it back.
Write the narrative the reviewer needs
The desk isn’t on the roof. Your file is the only evidence they have. Write the scope note like you’re explaining it to someone who has to defend the payment in an audit, because they do.
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