Operating under an NEC3 ECC Option A; the Contractor has issued an Early Warning regarding the potential impact of COVID-19, and has also advised that under Clause 19.1 the PM should issue an instruction as to how to deal with said event.
However, the PM has refused to issue any instruction, stating nothing has changed and that the Contractor is to carry on as usual (although in hindsight, this could be considered the Instruction). This occurred in April/ May 2020 so, at the time, there was a lot of uncertainty surrounding Contractual procedure.
The decision was made by the Contractor, without an instruction from the PM, to close the Site due to health & safety concerns, suppliers closing resulting in unavailable materials, sub-contractors furloughing staff etc. The Contractor has notified a CE under Clause 60.1(19) which was subsequently rejected.
Does the Contractor have any recourse in this situation, other than Adjudication?