In the case where all the bids received do not show any sign of informality, error, or omission and the bid prices are within the owner’s budget, a holder can report the findings of the bid analysis to the owner and the owner may in turn simply award the contract to the lowest bidder without any recourse from the other bidders.

An owner that decides to award a contract to a bidder that was not the best value bidder or that may not necessarily be in compliance with the bid documents could find themselves in a legal predicament should one of the other bidders object to the owner’s decision based on their belief that the owner has acted unfairly or has failed to follow the bid documents or standards established within the construction of industry as outlined in CCDC-23 “A Guide to Calling Bids and Awarding Construction Contracts”.

Where the bid call results in the best value compliant bidd being over the owner’s anticipated budget, the owner elects to entertain a bid submitted by other than the best value bidder, or bid omissions, anomalies or errors become apparent during the bid analysis – the owner should be advised to seek legal advice in order to obtain a legal opinion on what steps to take next in negotiating or awarding a contract. The holder should not proceed with issuing any further instruction or documentation to the bidders without explicit written direction from the owner.