How to write a job sheet (with a free template)

Put the job in context

Begin with the customer, site address and job reference. If the person paying is not the person at the property, make that clear. Include the visit date and the time you arrived and left so the record describes the actual visit rather than a vague promise to attend.

A useful job sheet is not a customer database or a diary. It is a record of one visit or piece of work. Keep enough context for the customer and the next engineer to understand it without copying unrelated personal information into every answer.

• Customer and site details
• Job reference and visit date
• Time arrived and left
• Engineer’s name

Separate the fault from the findings

Write the fault reported in the customer’s terms, then record what you found. “No hot water” and “failed valve found during checks” describe different parts of the visit. Keeping them separate makes it clear that you investigated rather than simply repeating the initial request.

Describe the work carried out in plain English. Name the part repaired or replaced and explain the result. Avoid an unexplained “sorted” or a string of abbreviations that only your colleague understands. If the fault was intermittent or not reproduced, say so rather than claiming a definite fix.

• Fault reported before the visit
• Findings and checks actually carried out
• Work completed and its observed result
• Any limitation or remaining fault

Keep parts, readings and photos useful

List parts and materials so the customer can see what went into the work. Record readings with units and enough context to identify where they were taken. A pressure or temperature without a label is hard to interpret when someone reviews the sheet a month later.

Before-and-after photos should support a point in the report: the damaged fitting, the repaired area or the final installation. Give them captions where useful and avoid including people or unrelated belongings unnecessarily. Check that the image is legible before treating it as evidence of the work.

If the job includes recommendations or advisories, keep them apart from completed work. A customer should not mistake a suggestion for a repair already done or assume a quoted follow-up has been authorised. Write the next action clearly without turning the form into a separate job-management board.

• Parts and materials used
• Labelled readings with units
• Before-and-after photos supporting the work
• Recommendations and outstanding advisories

Finish the record before leaving

Write the sheet before leaving site while the work is fresh in your mind. Ask for the customer’s name and signature to acknowledge the handover, and include the engineer’s name. Explain any unanswered item rather than leaving a blank that looks like a missed check.

Send a legible PDF the same day where you can. Read it once as if you were the customer: does it say what happened, what you paid for and what still needs doing? A clear record is more helpful than a long report padded with copied text.

The free Service & Callout Sheet covers a straightforward visit, while the handover sheet is useful when the main purpose is closing completed work. You can fill a copy in guest mode on your phone. Free PDFs use Classic style with the JobForms badge; custom branding and automatic customer emails are paid features.