# The quote was 6,000 euros and the invoice came to 9,500. Do we have to pay it? | Illia BizTech > A quote in March, expressly described as an estimate, two small changes along the way. Nobody warned us, and the answer is that these were all extras. Source: https://illia-biztech.de/en/forum/das-angebot-lag-bei-6-000-euro-die-rechnung-kam-auf-9-500-mussen-wir-das-zahlen 1. [Home](/en) 2. [Forum](/en/forum) 3. The quote was 6,000 euros and the invoice came to 9,500\. Do we have to pay it? # The quote was 6,000 euros and the invoice came to 9,500\. Do we have to pay it? A quote in March, expressly described as an estimate, two small changes along the way. Nobody warned us, and the answer is that these were all extras. * ##### Asked by LoyalBeacon544 * ##### Asked on September 5, 2026 In March we signed a quote for 6,000 euros net for a new website, with a note saying it was an estimate. Along the way we changed small things twice: one extra page and a different contact form. Last week the invoice arrived at 9,470 euros, without anyone telling us beforehand that it would cost more. When we asked, we were told these were all extras. #### Answers ![Portrait of Illia Belichenko, technical specialist at Illia BizTech](/_ipx/f_webp,q_75/https://cms.illia-biztech.de/uploads/small_Illia_Belichenko_author_81f88864f0.png) ##### Illia Belichenko ✓ Accepted answer September 5, 2026 What decides this is not the size of the figure. It is the call you never received. A cost estimate is a professional projection rather than a fixed commitment, and [as a rule it is not itself chargeable](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/bgb/%5F%5F632.html). That is exactly why the law attaches a duty to it. If it emerges that the work cannot be carried out without substantially exceeding the estimate, the contractor has to say so. That sits in [Section 649 BGB](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/bgb/%5F%5F649.html), and I name 649 deliberately: most German guides still cite this rule as Section 650(2), which has been wrong since the construction contract reform. Section 650 now governs something else. I have read both texts. What counts as substantial is not defined in the statute. The percentages circulating online appear nowhere in the legislation and come from commentary, so I would not lean on them in a conversation. An increase of more than half, however, is not a borderline case worth arguing about. An additional page and a different contact form are genuine additional work, and they may legitimately cost real money. They simply do not account for 3,470 euros on their own. Ask for a breakdown in which every line is tied to one of your two changes, with hours and a rate. Anything that cannot be tied to a change was part of the original job. Pay the undisputed part and set out in writing which line you are withholding and why. Leaving the whole invoice unpaid puts you needlessly in default; paying it without comment ends the discussion for you. For the next project one line in the quote is enough: above a ten per cent variance, the contractor informs you in advance and obtains written approval. The duty to warn then stops being something to argue about and becomes a date in the calendar. ![Portrait of Alina Belichenko, content and social media specialist](/_ipx/f_webp,q_75/https://cms.illia-biztech.de/uploads/small_Alina_Belichenko_author_ae667ebec9.png) ##### Alina Belichenko September 6, 2026 Before the email, settle inside your company what you want at the end of this. The site finished and handed over, or the working relationship closed. Both are fine, and they are written differently. Most people send a message that wants the first and triggers the second. For the ordinary case a short, factual email does it. Ask for the breakdown, name a date by which you expect it, and add that you are transferring the undisputed part this week. Do not ask how this could have happened, because that question gets you a justification. Ask something that can only be answered with a document. For the next project, the sentence in the offer needs a second half on your side. Your two small changes were approved by someone in your company, most likely in passing. Decide who is allowed to approve changes, or the same invoice arrives again from a different provider. ##### #### [The confirmation email from our contact form lands in customers' spam. Why?](/en/forum/die-bestatigungsmail-aus-unserem-kontaktformular-landet-bei-kunden-im-spam-woran-liegt-das) September 4, 2026 [](/en/forum/die-bestatigungsmail-aus-unserem-kontaktformular-landet-bei-kunden-im-spam-woran-liegt-das) #### [We received a letter about Google Fonts demanding 170 euros. 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Should we separate them?](/en/forum/unsere-e-mail-postfacher-liegen-beim-gleichen-anbieter-wie-die-website-sollte-man-das-trennen) September 2, 2026 [](/en/forum/unsere-e-mail-postfacher-liegen-beim-gleichen-anbieter-wie-die-website-sollte-man-das-trennen) **Share** **Topics** * cost estimate * works contract * invoice