Guideline 2.9 Tender Negotiation
- Guideline 2.1 Tendering Authority Procedures
- Guideline 2.2 Invitation to tender
- Guideline 2.3 Expedited Tender Procedures
- Guideline 2.4 Tender Evaluation Specification
- Guideline 2.5 Tender Evaluation Process
- Guideline 2.6 Tender Evaluation - Lowest Price Conforming Tender Method
- Guideline 2.7 Tender Evaluation - Weighted Attribute Method
- Guideline 2.8 Analysis of Alternative Tenders
- Guideline 2.9 Tender Negotiation
- Guideline 2.10 Notification Procedures
- Guideline 2.11 Conformity with RFT
- Guideline 2.12 Use of Particular Inputs
- Guideline 2.13
Guideline 2.9 Tender Negotiation
In general, tender negotiation should be avoided because it reduces transparency for other bidders in the evaluation process, and can also result in tenderers not putting in their best price first time because of concern about being negotiated down.
For various reasons tendering authorities may on occasion wish to reject all tenders with respect to any RFT. In such situations legal advice should be sought as case law is very fluid in this area. Some recent court cases are finding that a de-facto contract is established as soon as a tendering authority has invited tenders and suppliers have submitted tenders in response to this. Tenderers can successfully sue tendering authorities which break this contract by declining all tenders. Tendering authorities that wish to reject all tenders should seek legal advice that considers the specifics of their situation and the latest legal precedents.
