Accreditation scheme comparison
Assured Contractors and CHAS compared
CHAS (now Veriforce CHAS) is an SSIP, PAS 91 and Common Assessment Standard scheme: contractors pay an annual membership to be assessed, and clients use it free through the VeriforceONE portal.
Assured Contractors is software a client uses to run its own contractor assurance from prequalification to the site gate; contractors connect free.
Many clients use both: they require a CHAS or other SSIP certificate for some work, and keep it on each contractor's Assured Contractors record.
At a glance
How do Assured Contractors and CHAS differ?
| Question | Assured Contractors | CHAS |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Contractor assurance software that a client runs for its own supply chain and sites, from prequalification to the site gate. | An SSIP, PAS 91 and Common Assessment Standard scheme (now Veriforce CHAS). Free for clients; contractors pay an annual membership.[2] |
| Who pays | The client organisation, with one subscription. Contractors pay nothing on any plan, so there's no Assured Contractors fee for them to recover in their prices. A client sends its contractors its company code or invite link; they join free and are connected straight away, and one profile serves every client. | Contractors pay an annual membership, priced by size of organisation. There is no charge for being a CHAS client.[1][3] |
| Published price (checked November 2026) | Clients subscribe from £149 a month (excluding VAT) after a 14-day free trial. Contractors: free, with no joining, annual, per-client or per-worker fee. | Standard from £429, Advanced from £659 and Elite from £949 a year, by size of organisation. There is no charge for being a CHAS client.[3] |
| What it covers | Company documents and insurance with expiry tracking, Companies House status, workers' cards, vehicle MOT and tax checks, permits to work, crane and delivery bookings, gate check-in, muster, visitors, incidents, inspections and COSHH. | Standard: SSIP requirements. Advanced: adds the former PAS 91 standard. Elite: adds Common Assessment Standard requirements. Also the VeriforceONE client portal, RAMS software and CHAS Protect insurance.[2][3] |
| Assessment turnaround | No external assessment queue: the client's own reviewers approve documents and cards in their workspace. | Review within up to 10 working days, or 2 with Fast Track.[1] |
Capabilities
What does each one cover?
From CHAS's published pages and our own product, checked November 2026.
| Capability | Assured Contractors | CHAS[1][2][3] |
|---|---|---|
| Contractors connect at no cost | Yes | NoFrom £429/yr |
| Independent SSIP / CAS certificate | NoStores your contractors' SSIP certificates | Yes |
| Company documents and insurance with expiry tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Companies House status monitoring | Yes | —Not published |
| Worker competency cards (CSCS, CPCS, IPAF…) | YesCard details, photos and expiry | —Not published |
| Vehicle MOT and tax checks (DVSA / DVLA) | Yes | —Not published |
| Permits to work | Yes | —Not published |
| Crane, hoist and delivery bookings | Yes | —Not published |
| Gate check-in and live attendance | YesSoftware, no turnstiles | —Not published |
| Emergency muster roll call | Yes | —Not published |
| Visitor sign-in kiosk | Yes | —Not published |
| Incidents and inspections | Yes | —Not published |
| COSHH register | Yes | —Not published |
✓ published by the vendor · – partly · ✗ not offered · — not published by the vendor (it may still exist). See all providers
Which fits
Which one is right for you?
When CHAS is the right choice
- Your clients ask for CHAS or the Common Assessment StandardCHAS Elite covers Common Assessment Standard requirements, which some clients ask for. Assured Contractors doesn't issue certificates.
- You want contractors assessed independently, at no cost to youThere's no charge for being a CHAS client, and CHAS says it has more than 32,500 assessed contractors to search.
- You're a contractor who wants tools bundled with accreditationCHAS offers RAMS software and insurance (CHAS Protect) to its members.
When Assured Contractors fits
- You set the standardRequirement sets say what each kind of work and risk tier needs, and your reviewers approve documents and cards in your own workspace, with your own audit trail.
- You see the people, not only the companyEach worker's CSCS, CPCS, NPORS, IPAF, ECS or CCNSG card is recorded with its number and expiry, with reminders at 90, 60 and 30 days, and checked against the site and job.
- The record carries on to siteThe same contractor record drives permits to work, crane and delivery bookings, gate check-in, visitors and emergency muster.
- Nothing for contractors to pass onContractors join free in a couple of minutes with your company code and keep one profile for every client. With no membership to buy, onboarding doesn't wait for a purchase, and there's no Assured Contractors fee for them to recover in their prices.
Using both
Can you use CHAS and Assured Contractors together?
A CHAS certificate tells you a company met the scheme's standard when it was assessed. Assured Contractors shows whether that company, and each of its workers, is ready for your site today — and carries that through to permits, bookings and the gate.
Clients that require CHAS add it to their requirement set. The contractor uploads the certificate once, it's shared with every client they connect to, and Assured Contractors reminds them at 90, 60 and 30 days before it expires.
What Assured Contractors doesn't do
- No SSIP, PAS 91 or CAS certificateAssured Contractors isn't an assessment scheme and doesn't certify companies. Clients who require SSIP keep requiring it; contractors store the certificate on their profile with its expiry date.
- No turnstiles, biometrics or gate hardwareGate check-in is software on a phone, tablet or laptop: gate staff search the worker, see their readiness and record allow, refuse or refer with reasons.
- No live CSCS Smart Check connection yetCards are recorded with their number, expiry date and photos, and approved by the client's reviewers. Reviewers who want a live check use the CSCS Smart Check app.
Does Assured Contractors replace CHAS?
No. Assured Contractors isn't an SSIP scheme and doesn't issue SSIP, PAS 91 or Common Assessment Standard certificates. It's the system a client uses to run its own contractor checks and its sites; many clients keep asking for CHAS alongside it.
Is CHAS free for clients?
CHAS says there is no charge for being a CHAS client; contractors pay the membership. Assured Contractors works the other way round: the client pays one subscription and contractors connect free, on every plan.
Which CHAS level covers the Common Assessment Standard?
CHAS Elite. Standard covers SSIP requirements, and Advanced adds the former PAS 91 standard.
Can a contractor store their CHAS certificate in Assured Contractors?
Yes, as a document with its expiry date. Every client they're connected to sees the current version.
Does CHAS manage site access or permits?
Not on the CHAS pages we reviewed (checked November 2026). Veriforce, which owns CHAS, describes a worker product called WorkerPass, but we couldn't confirm it's offered in the UK, so we haven't counted it.
- CHAS FAQ www.chas.co.uk/faq/
- Veriforce CHAS www.chas.co.uk/
- CHAS products and packages www.chas.co.uk/contractors/products-packages/
The Assured Contractors column describes our own product. CHAS is a trade mark of its owner; this page isn't endorsed by its owner. If anything here has changed, tell us and we'll correct it.
See it on your own contractors.
Start a 14-day free trial with no card needed. Send your contractors your company code: they join free, on every plan, and keep one profile for every client.