NEC ECS: Notice for redeployment.

I am currently working for an engineering company providing site installation services under a NEC 3 option A contract.

We have an Accepted Programme with out client.

Recently we have been unable to commence some installation tasks either due to the Contractor not providing access to the area or the delivery of equipment that is to be installed has been delayed (supplied by the Contractor).

Under clause 60.1 these are compensation events.

However, the Contractor is saying that they gave 10 days notice that the work area wouldn’t be available / delivery would be late and that because this notice was given we have no claim for costs associated with unutilised resources.

Is this correct? Is there a clause within NEC3 that allows the Contractor to give notice of a delay that then removes his liability for costs associated with the delay?

There isn’t really a specific clause, but then you are obliged to work as effectively as possible with instructions/compensation events. If this is agreed as a compensation event, you just need to demonstrate that even with that ten days notice there is a reason why you could not mitigate that and you still did/would have incurred the cost/time disruption.

If you ignored the ten days and did nothing to try to re-mobilise them elsewhere for the benefit of the project then they MAY have a point. I express MAY as it now depends on the detail of how they clearly they instructed and how you acted promptly and competently to that instruction.