A building defect can be described as any deficiency or shortcoming in the performance or function of a building that prevents it from satisfying statutory or user requirements. Such failures can happen at any point in a building’s existence.

Building defects fall broadly into three categories:

  • Material and construction defects
  • Design defects
  • Non-compliance with regulations, standards and approvals

These categories are not mutually exclusive. For example, poor workmanship by a contractor can often amplify an error in the architect’s design. Alternatively, the failure of one element may lead to a secondary defect in a nearby element, for instance where rising damp in a structural wall causes dry rot in an adjoining timber floor.






Material and Construction Defects

All building materials have a lifespan over which we can expect them to degrade, and all will fail at some point. If a building is well designed and constructed, proper maintenance might prolong that life. However, it is still true that all materials will at some point need to be replaced.

Sadly, many buildings suffer an early failure. This can be caused by poor design, specification, manufacture or construction processes. Alternatively, faults might be the result of inadequate maintenance or inappropriate use. The impact of such failings can be costly.

Material and construction defects will often become apparent to a building user through either visual clues, such as cracking and staining; physical symptoms, such as uneven surfaces; or even by smell, which is often the case with dry rot. However, some defects can be less obvious.

Design Defects

A failure to fully co-ordinate the design and construction of a building, or to fully satisfy a client’s brief can also result in a defective building.

Such defects can be either aesthetic, for example an inadequate quality of finish, or physical, such as providing insufficient headroom for an intended use. Determining whether such defects do in fact exist can be challenging. Where a building contract has been clearly written, acceptable standards might be well defined, but where that is not the case the perception of design defects might be more subjective.

At one end of the scale this might lead to a swimming pool that is usable, but not quite as deep as desired by the end user. Much more seriously, an architect’s failure to thoroughly integrate a building’s construction with its fire escape strategy might have fatal consequences for the building’s users. Defects of this type are not always apparent until the point of failure.


Other typical design defects might be:

  • Installing stone copings that do not adequately cast rainwater away from a brickwork wall, leading to problems with staining or frost attack
  • Building an escape stairway that is too narrow to allow full occupation of an upper storey
  • Allowing inadequate ventilation to habitable rooms, leading to condensation and mould growth.


Our experts have first-hand industry experience of their respective disciplines and are well placed to assist clients in all aspects of professional negligence. This includes understanding and advising on:

  • Reasonable skill and care in accordance with the normal standards of each discipline.
  • Design coordination and how each discipline interacts and overlaps, including what a particular discipline would expect from another.
  • Practice or company management, including implementation of quality procedures.

 

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