The letter to an unsuccessful tenderer, which includes the panel's collective comments,is one of the most important steps in the process to get right.

This will be one of the most scrutinised documents by tenderers and their legal team. The issue of this letter initiates the important standstill period, during which time the decision may be challenged.

The comments in the letter must be an accurate reflection of the decision-making process against the evaluation criteria and the scoring rationale.

If just a single comment is incorrectly stated or poorly worded this may give tenderers a reason to challenge the entire decision, and can lead to the whole process being contested for months in court,or having to be abandoned.