On 23 March 2020 the country went into its first lockdown. Construction was not ordered to stop, but every site had to show it could operate safely, and within days the industry was working to new site operating procedures published by the Construction Leadership Council. For a managing agent or freeholder with major works under way, three questions arrived at once: can the work carry on, who pays for the delay, and what happens to residents living next to an open site?
Can the work carry on?
For most of the external repair and refurbishment contracts we were administering, the answer was yes, with changes. Fewer trades on site at once, staggered starts, welfare facilities rearranged, and some tasks resequenced so operatives could keep their distance. Where a contractor proposed to carry on, the contract administrator’s job was to make sure the revised method was recorded and that residents were told what to expect.
Who pays for the delay?
This is where the contract matters. Under the JCT forms most of our projects use, delay caused by events outside both parties’ control can entitle the contractor to more time, but not necessarily more money. Whether a pandemic and the government’s response fell within the relevant events was argued across the industry that spring. The practical answer was to deal with each claim on its evidence: what actually stopped, for how long, and why. The RICS Black Book guidance on extensions of time sets out that approach.
What about the people next door?
Residents were suddenly at home all day, every day, beside scaffold and noise. Clear written updates to leaseholders, which we already sent as part of a Section 20 programme, became more important than ever. Agreeing quieter working windows with the contractor cost little and prevented a lot of complaints.
What it taught us
- A contract that records the programme, the method and every instruction in writing is far easier to manage when circumstances change.
- Extensions of time should be assessed on the facts of each delay, not granted or refused wholesale.
- Residents forgive disruption they have been told about. They rarely forgive disruption that arrives unannounced.
Those lessons still shape how we run every contract. If you have works planned or under way, see our Contract Administration and Major Works services, or read how one programme was delivered for two mansion blocks.