The final weeks decide whether defects get fixed or inherited. A structured handover sequence, with the documents that should change hands.
Handover is treated as a formality and is in fact the last moment at which you hold any real leverage. Once final payment is released and the contractor demobilises, every remaining defect becomes a favour you are asking for rather than an obligation you are enforcing.
Before stage one
Begin preparing for handover while finishing is still in progress, not when the contractor announces completion. Three things should be in place before the first inspection: the approved specification to inspect against, a retention amount still unreleased, and a written definition of what completion means.
- Approved material samples available for comparison against what was installed.
- Retention still held, with its release conditions defined in the contract.
- A written completion definition covering systems, documents and cleaning.
- An independent inspector appointed, whether your supervising engineer or a specialist.
Stage 1: Pre-handover walkthrough
Walk the building before the contractor declares completion, room by room, in daylight, with the specification in hand.
- Deliverable: An early list of defects, issued while trades are still on site.
- Owner: Owner with the supervising engineer.
- Approval gate: Contractor acknowledges the list in writing with dates for remedy.
Stage 2: Systems testing and commissioning
Test air conditioning, electrical circuits, water supply, drainage and any smart systems under real operating conditions, not by switching them on briefly.
- Deliverable: Commissioning records showing each system tested and the results.
- Owner: Contractor and specialist subcontractors, witnessed by supervision.
- Approval gate: Test records accepted before the handover inspection proceeds.
Stage 3: Water and drainage verification
Flood test wet areas and roofs, and run drainage under load, because these defects are the most expensive to discover after occupation.
- Deliverable: Test results with dates, durations and photographs.
- Owner: Contractor, witnessed independently.
- Approval gate: No area is accepted without a documented test result.
Stage 4: Formal snag list
Produce a numbered defects list per room with photographs, referencing the specification clause or approved sample that each item fails.
- Deliverable: A numbered snag list with responsibilities and target dates.
- Owner: Supervising engineer with the owner.
- Approval gate: Both parties sign the list as the agreed scope of remedial work.
Stage 5: Remedial works
Defects are corrected and re-inspected individually rather than declared closed collectively.
- Deliverable: A closed-out list showing each item verified and dated.
- Owner: Contractor.
- Approval gate: Each item is signed closed by the inspector, not by the contractor.
Stage 6: Document handover
Collect as-built drawings, warranties, commissioning records, operating manuals and approved samples.
- Deliverable: A complete handover file, digital and physical.
- Owner: Contractor, compiled through supervision.
- Approval gate: Final payment is conditional on the file being complete, not merely promised.
Stage 7: Handover and retention period
Take possession formally, record meter readings and the start of the defects liability period, and diarise the release inspection.
- Deliverable: Signed handover certificate with the defects period start date recorded.
- Owner: Owner.
- Approval gate: Retention released only after the end-of-period inspection.
Handovers between stages
The dangerous handover here is between the snag list and the final payment. If payment is released while items remain open on the promise that they will be finished next week, the list will not be finished next week. Keep the two linked.
How you know it is finished
The project is closed when every snag item is individually signed off, the handover file is in your possession, the defects period end date is in your calendar, and the retention release inspection has taken place. Anything short of that is an open project that you have stopped tracking.
If you are preparing to build, Domira can review your drawings, scope and contractor offers before you commit, and supervise delivery against the programme and specification you agreed.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long should the defects liability period be?
Twelve months is common and has a practical logic: it exposes the building to a full cycle of weather, including the first heavy rain and the first summer of continuous cooling. Agree the period in the contract along with what happens if a defect appears in the final weeks of it.
Can I move in before snagging is complete?
You can, and many owners need to. Record the condition of every room in dated photographs before you move furniture in, because once you occupy the building, the argument over whether a scratch or a crack predates occupation becomes unwinnable without evidence.
What if the contractor refuses to return for defects?
This is exactly what retention exists for. With retention still held, you have a defined sum to apply to remedial work by others. Without it, your remaining options involve the contract's dispute mechanism, which costs time and money that the retention would have saved.
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