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Rees, Rebecca (2025) The use of relative price evaluation formulae in the UK housing sector and the extent to which these comply with English law. PhD thesis, University of Nottingham.

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Abstract

Despite the importance of the price tendered to the contracting authority for a public goods, work or service contract, and its determinative impact on the ultimate outcome of a procurement process, how price is evaluated and, in particular, the problems caused by the use of relative price evaluation formulae have not thus far received comprehensive scrutiny in the field of public procurement law.

This thesis has researched the use of relative price evaluation formulae, focusing on price evaluation practice in the UK housing sector and whether such formulae enable the identification of the "Most Economically Advantageous Tender" (MEAT), the relevant test under English law, and as set out in Article 67 of the Directive 2014/24/EU on procurement (“the Public Contracts Directive”) which is the relevant Article in the EU Directive that has been transposed into English law via Regulation 67 of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015.

The research identifies a range of poor outcomes and behaviours driven by relative price evaluation practice, primarily enabled by the procurement professionals' misunderstanding of relative price evaluation formulae and their impact on tender pricing. Custom and practice in the UK housing sector helps obfuscate the nature and extent of the issues arising. Therefore the thesis seeks to unwind this complex area of evaluation practice: it explains what a “relative price evaluation formula” is; how it is used in combination with a quality evaluation method when the contracting authority adopts a MEAT approach; and makes some observations on how this combination satisfies procurement professionals’ concern that they do not award on a lowest price basis but nevertheless still creates a sub-optimal decision-making matrix, whereby bidders are encouraged to "race to the bottom" on price and submit bid prices that do not reflect the actual cost of the contract requirements.

It is concluded, inter alia, that this primary misconception leads to a perpetuation of the use and the subsequent acceptance of the mischief relative price evaluation formulae cause in procurement practice and contract delivery. To that end, it is argued that prima facie an overall prohibition on the use of relative price evaluation formulae is required.

Item Type:	Thesis (University of Nottingham only) (PhD)
Supervisors:	Butler, Luke La Chimia, Anna
Keywords:	procurement price evaluation award criteria uk housing sector
Subjects:	K Law > KD England and Wales
Faculties/Schools:	UK Campuses > Faculty of Social Sciences, Law and Education > School of Law
Item ID:	80719
Depositing User:	Rees, Rebecca
Date Deposited:	26 Jul 2025 04:40
Last Modified:	26 Jul 2025 04:40
URI:	https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/id/eprint/80719

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