Common Mistakes in Construction Contracts
Signing a contract is one of the most important things when it comes to a construction project. A construction contract stipulates what is expected of the involved parties. With a contract, you can take legal actions if the contractor fails to meet their part of the bargain.
Unfortunately, contract mistakes can make this document null and void. That’s why you should be careful to ensure that you’re not signing a document that is dogged with mistakes. Here are some of the mistakes to avoid in your construction contract.
Neglecting Insurance
Insurance is among the most important elements in a construction contract. If you neglect insurance when signing the contract, you put yourself at the risk of court proceedings, huge costs, and damages. To avoid this, make sure that the contract caters to the following insurance policies:
- Developer insolvency
- Employer’s liability
- Public liability
Vague Timing
You want your construction project to be completed at a specific time. Therefore, make sure that this is included in the contract. You can even make sure that the contract indicates when specific project milestones will be completed.
Avoiding vague timing in the contract will help you avoid construction delays. This is very important, especially if your contractor has multiple projects at the same time.
Bad Payment Schedules
Don’t pay your contractor a lot of money upfront. Ideally, you should only pay the contractor after they have delivered some results. Paying upfront puts you at the risk of losing money because the contractor can run out of funds.
Therefore, agree on a payment schedule that is based on project milestones. Thus, you should only pay the contractor for the completed work.
You should also not forget little things like how waste will be removed from the construction site, the payment method that will be used, and the quality of the materials to be used in your project. Pay keen attention to everything that you feel can cause issues down the road.
…