Using the Defects Liability Period Instead of Wasting It

Most owners let the defects period run out and then discover the problems. Here is how to spend it finding faults while somebody else still has to fix them.

The defects liability period is a stated time after completion during which the contractor must return and correct defects in their work. It is the cheapest repair you will ever get, and it is routinely wasted because nobody is looking systematically and because the retention is often released before the period ends.

Before stage one

To use the period you need three things in place before completion: a clear record of what was accepted and what was outstanding, retained money to hold until the end, and a named person responsible for reporting defects as they appear. Without the third, the period passes and the building simply develops problems that become yours.

• The period length and start date confirmed, and calendared with a reminder before expiry.
• Retention or a bond held until the end of the period, not released at completion.
• A named person, usually the property manager, responsible for reporting defects.
• A written reporting route: to whom, in what format, and how a response is chased.
• The handover documents in your possession, since warranties depend on them.

Stage 1: Hand the building over with a baseline record

Photograph and record the condition at handover, room by room, and keep the closed snag list alongside it. When a defect appears later, the first argument will be about whether it was there at handover or was caused by use, and the baseline record settles it.

• Deliverable: A dated condition record at handover with the closed snag list attached.
• Owner: Owner representative with the incoming manager.
• Approval gate: Record complete before occupation or letting begins.

Stage 2: Brief whoever occupies or manages the building

Tell the manager, the tenant or the family using the building that defects must be reported rather than tolerated, and give them the route. Most defects are noticed by occupants within weeks and reported to nobody, because they assume a new building settles.

• Deliverable: A short written guide on what to report and to whom.
• Owner: Owner or property manager.
• Approval gate: Guide issued at the start of occupation, not at the end of the period.

Stage 3: Report each defect in writing as it appears

Send each defect in writing with the date noticed, a photograph and the location, and keep a running log. A defect reported at the time is a contractual obligation. The same defect raised at the end of the period invites an argument about when it started.

• Deliverable: A defects log with reported dates, responses and closure dates.
• Owner: Property manager, copied to the owner.
• Approval gate: Every item reported within days of being noticed.

Stage 4: Watch the two seasonal tests

Two moments reveal most of what is wrong with a new building in the Kingdom: the first full summer, which tests cooling capacity, insulation and the performance of every seal, and the first heavy rain, which tests roofs, drainage and waterproofing. Inspect deliberately after both.

• Deliverable: A post summer and post rain inspection report added to the log.
• Owner: Owner representative or an independent inspector.
• Approval gate: Both inspections completed inside the period, not after it.

Stage 5: Escalate items the contractor leaves open

Where a reported defect is not attended to within a reasonable time, escalate in writing, referring to the contract provision and the retained money. If the contractor still does not respond, follow the contractual route for having the work done by others before acting.

• Deliverable: An escalation letter for each overdue item with the contract reference.
• Owner: Owner, with advice where the amounts are significant.
• Approval gate: No engagement of another contractor before the contractual notice steps are complete.

Stage 6: Inspect fully before the period expires

Carry out a complete inspection well before expiry, so that anything found can be reported and remedied while the obligation still exists. An inspection on the final day finds items that will never be fixed, because there is no time left to require the work.

• Deliverable: An end of period inspection report issued with time for a response.
• Owner: Independent inspector.
• Approval gate: Inspection completed with enough time remaining for remedial work.

Stage 7: Close the period and preserve what continues

Release the remaining retention once the log is closed, and file the warranties that continue beyond the defects period, noting what maintenance each one requires from you. Some protections outlive the contractor obligation, but only if you can produce the documents and the maintenance records.

• Deliverable: A closed defects log and a warranty register with maintenance obligations noted.
• Owner: Owner with the property manager.
• Approval gate: Final release only after the log is closed and the warranty register exists.

Handovers between stages

The handover that wastes the period is from the construction team to the operator, because knowledge of what to watch is not transferred with the keys. The second is inside your own organisation when a property manager changes during the period and the log is not passed on. Keep the log in a shared location rather than in one person messages, and put the expiry date in more than one calendar.

How you know it is finished

The period is properly used when every item is logged with dates, the two seasonal inspections are on record, the end of period inspection happened with time to spare, and the warranty register exists with maintenance obligations noted. What defines success is not the absence of defects but the fact that the contractor paid for them.

Domira designs, builds and manages projects across Saudi Arabia for owners who are based abroad: land appraisal, feasibility, design, construction, handover and asset management under one accountable contract. Send us the plot or the brief and Domira will put the numbers in front of you before you commit.