ECC NEC3 Option E - Can the Employer offset/deduct Contractor costs due to breakdwon of sub-contractor equipment?

The scenario is;

Option E reactive/emergency project. Contractor employs a sub-contractor to carry out a specialist piece of work. The breakdwon of a sub-contractor piece of equipment causes the project to take say 5 days. Had the item of sub-contractor equipment not broken down the project would have taken 3 days.

Can the Employer deduct, from the Contractor’s application, the costs they have incurred for the additonal 2 days on site (Contractor supervision, labour & prelim plant) due to the sub-contractor’s equipment breaking down? Advising/suggesting the Contractor to do the same to the sub-contractor’s application?

My initial thoughts are that Employer pays defined cost. Therefore, if the Contractor can negotiate a discount/contra-charge for the additonal 2 days on site with their sub-contractor then this should be passed on to the Employer. Vice-versa if the sub-contractor refuses to offer any discount/accept a contra-charge for the additonal 2 days on site then the Employer still pays the defined cost (with no deduction for the additonal 2 days on site).

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Under options C to E a Defined Cost is what the Contractor pays the Subcontractor in accordance with the subcontract, subject to some deductions in clause 11.2 (23). So the first port of call is to look at the subcontract contract.

If the subcontractor has overpaid according to this contract, then it would be a Disallowed Cost under the second bullet of clause 11.2 (25).