Abstract

Performing construction work, which can be technically be very complicated, usually involves many people whose actions or inactions can lead to defects in the finished construction, and consequently affect its suitability for a certain purpose. With this in mind, it seems important to establish who is liable for these defects, and to what extent. In the simplest form of contractual relations, responsibility for the proper course of the construction process, and for defects in the handed over construction, is borne by the contractor, who is liable for executing the construction works. Under civil law, this responsibility may take the form of liability on general terms, under the warranty for defects, under the guarantee regime (if granted), or even as tort liability for a tort. This is a vast subject, so the paper is limited to presenting the principles of the contractor’s liability under warranty for physical defects and discusses the concept of physical defects in construction works, the concept of a physical defect in the design and the premises of liability for defects in construction works and in designs. An analysis of the regulations in force in this respect leads to the basic conclusion that the construction contractor is liable under the warranty on a risk basis for physical defects in the construction, even when the designer contributed to the defects and the contractor did not manage to prevent them.