Compared

Trusted Payments for trades: who can join, the fees and the alternative

Trusted Payments is the app the government pointed to in its 2026 crackdown on rogue builders: staged payments for home-improvement projects, with a warranty and an ombudsman, for trades vetted by a scheme such as TrustMark. WorkPaid is a get-paid tool for any trade with their own customers. They overlap on one thing, paying in stages, and differ on almost everything else.

What each one is, and what it costs

Trusted Payments is a private company endorsed by the government, not a government service, and it says itself that it isn't FCA-authorised (its payment provider and its insurer are). It works only with trades vetted through a scheme: TrustMark, the Federation of Master Builders, Book a Builder UK, Buy with Confidence, BALI or Scottish Trusted Traders. Registration is free for the trade. The homeowner pays by bank (Open Banking), not by card, and pays the fee: on 25 October 2026 the site said 1% per payment, capped at £4 (partner pages have described a project fee, so check the current figure on their site). Each stage is released to the trade at 6pm the day after the homeowner signs it off, and 10% of the price is held until the whole job is finished, snagging included. If there's a dispute, the two sides get 45 days to sort it, then the Dispute Resolution Ombudsman decides and both are bound. The homeowner gets an insurance-backed warranty of up to £20,000, 3 months during the work and up to 24 months after.

WorkPaid is open to any sole trader or limited company, vetted or not, with your accreditations shown on the quote if you have them. The customer pays from a link by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or bank, and the money goes to your own bank account without a sign-off step, usually in about 3 working days. You pay the fee, 2.5% capped at £500 a quote, or pass it on. There's no warranty and no ombudsman: your customer has their rights under the Consumer Rights Act, and on a card payment, their bank's chargeback process.

Trusted Payments's details were read from trustedpayments.uk on 25 October 2026. Prices and plans change. If something here is out of date, email support@workpaid.uk and we'll fix it. Trusted Payments is its owner's trade mark; WorkPaid isn't connected to them.

Side by side

How Trusted Payments and WorkPaid compare for a UK trade.
What mattersTrusted Payments WorkPaid This is us
Who can use it Trades vetted by TrustMark, FMB, Book a Builder, Buy with Confidence, BALI or Scottish Trusted TradersAny sole trader or limited company
Who pays the fee The homeownerYou, or pass it on to the customer
The fee 1% a payment, capped at £4 (their site, 25 Oct 2026)2.5%, capped at £500 a quote, plus processing
How the customer pays Bank only (Open Banking)Card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or bank
When you get the money 6pm the day after sign-off; 10% held to the endStraight to your bank, usually 3 working days after each payment
Stage payments YesYes
Quotes, extras, invoices, expenses, exports NoYes
Small jobs and call-outs Built for projectsYes
Warranty for the homeowner Insurance-backed, up to £20,000No
Disputes Ombudsman, binding on both sidesConsumer Rights Act; card chargebacks with your evidence
Government-backed EndorsedNo

"Not stated on their site" means we couldn't find it on the pages we checked, not that it doesn't exist. Scroll sideways on a phone to see both columns.

Where each one is the better pick

Choose Trusted Payments when

  • The homeowner wants the protection. A held completion payment, an ombudsman and a warranty are real reassurance on a £20,000 extension, and Trusted Payments has the government's name next to it. WorkPaid can't match that and doesn't claim to.
  • The fee. On a big project, a fee paid by the homeowner and capped at £4 a payment is far cheaper than WorkPaid's 2.5% capped at £500.
  • You're already TrustMark or FMB and your customers ask for it. Then it's free for you to join, and saying yes costs you nothing.

Choose WorkPaid when

  • You're not in a vetting scheme. Most trades aren't, and Trusted Payments won't take you. WorkPaid will, sole trader or limited company.
  • You don't want 10% held to the end, or a sign-off step before a stage is paid. The customer pays each stage from the link when it's done, and Stripe pays it into your own bank, usually about 3 working days later.
  • Your customers pay by card or phone wallet as well as bank. Trusted Payments is bank only.
  • The job isn't a project. A boiler swap, a rewire, a call-out, a day's decorating: WorkPaid handles the quote, the deposit and the invoice for all of it.
  • You want the rest of the job in the same place: the quote the customer accepts by name, extras, the invoice raised when they pay, expenses, mileage, profit, and the files for your accountant.

Questions trades ask

Is WorkPaid the government's Trusted Payments app?
No. Trusted Payments is a separate private company that the government has endorsed. WorkPaid has no connection to it or to the government. WorkPaid is a get-paid tool for trades; Trusted Payments is a protection scheme for home-improvement projects.
Do I need TrustMark to use WorkPaid?
No. WorkPaid is open to any sole trader or limited company. If you have accreditations such as Gas Safe, NICEIC or TrustMark, they show on your quotes and your public profile, but none is required.
Which is cheaper, Trusted Payments or WorkPaid?
For the trade, Trusted Payments: registration is free and the homeowner pays the fee, which their site put at 1% a payment capped at £4 on 25 October 2026. WorkPaid charges the trade 2.5% capped at £500 a quote, plus card or bank processing, and you can pass the 2.5% on to the customer. What you get for it is the money straight to your bank, cards as well as bank, and the whole quote-to-invoice flow.

More comparisons

Deposit before you start. Final payment without chasing.

No subscription, no contract. Free to send quotes; 2.5% when you're paid, capped at £500 a quote, or pass it on to the customer.

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WorkPaid

Your money lands straight in your bank through Stripe. WorkPaid never holds it.

WorkPaid is a trading name of Newall Digital Ltd, a company registered in England and Wales (company no. 17550582). Registered office: 66 Paul Street, London EC2A 4NA. We're not connected to any other company called WorkPaid.

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