NEC ECC: After completion of the whole of the works but before the defects date does the Contractor have to be on stand by to search for or correct Defects?

NEC3 and NEC4 Contracts
1

The defects date is 12 months after the completion date, so in that period if a “fault” is found by the Employer, which may or may not be due to the Contractors work, does the Contractor have to have an Instruction to search for a Defect and if no Defect was found, or the fault is due to others, can the Contractor claim as a compensation event for the time incurred. This is under NEC 3 Option A.

Thank you in anticipation

Geoff Shaw

2

If you are instructed to do something between Completion and Defect Date that proves not to be a defect or it is due to Others then this would be a compensation event that you can seek full recovery of cost for.

If it is your defect then this would have to be corrected, and at Contractor cost.

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3

The relevant clauses in NEC3 are 42.1 “Until the defects date, the supervisor may instruct the contractor to search for a Defect…” and 60.1(10) The supervisor instructs the contractor to search for a Defect and no Defect is found…"

The Supervisor should identify the Defect the contractor is to search for (it can’t just be a general request) and the contractor is then obliged to do so.