A recent contract has just reached the defects date, and on the last day the Client raised a single Defects notification with an attached schedule of defects. Previously during the period prior to the defects date, Defects were notified individually and always with details and associated photos. The defects correction period is 4 weeks, so if accepted as Defects, we would have 4 weeks to correct the issues, without the details to enable this.
The question is, as Contractor, do we have the right to reply to advise the Client that we do not accept the notification as it has not been notified correctly?
Clause 43.2 doesn’t provide guidance on this, so looking for help.
Tony assuming this is NEC4 ECC (although similar provisions existing in the other versions of the contract but might vary slightly) clause 13.7 states “A notification which this contract requires is communicated separately from other communications.” so the schedule of defects attached a defect Notice has been issued incorrectly. They can not be grouped together. You should raise an early warning as under clause 15.1 as it may increase your costs, increase the total of the Prices and impair performance of the works in use.
You are likely to be liable for uncorrected Defects after the defects correction date and the options for delaying with this are set out within clauses 45 and 46. Practically it likely to be in both parties interest that you fix the Defects rather than someone else, so I’d suggest you speak with the PM/Client and see if they are open to this idea. This could be done through an early warning meeting. Whilst the contract clauses 45 and 46 do not envisage defects being corrected by the Contractor outside the defects corect period and after the defects date, they do not stop it.
I’d suggest you take advice on whether their failure to follow the contract is a breach by the Client and therefore a CE under clause 60.1(18).