Managing warranties on completed works

Ordinary defects versus structural collapse and serious defects

The ordinary warranty under article 1667 of the Civil Code covers defects and non conformities in the works: construction or execution flaws that surface immediately or within months of completion, such as water infiltration from a poorly sealed joint or peeling paint. The client must notify the contractor of the defect within sixty days of discovering it, on pain of forfeiting the claim, and the action expires after two years from delivery of the works.

Article 1669 instead covers total or partial collapse of the building, imminent risk of collapse, or serious defects that compromise stability, safety or essential functionality, such as a structural settlement, widespread infiltration undermining the roof's seal, or foundation movement. Here the notice must be given within one year of discovery and the action expires after ten years from completion of the works. This is a form of liability the contractor cannot exclude through contract clauses.

For a property manager the practical consequence is twofold: the defect must be correctly classified as soon as it appears, because that classification determines which forfeiture deadline applies, and complete technical documentation of the works must be kept from the outset, since it establishes what was actually executed and with which materials.

What to do as soon as a defect is discovered

Timeliness is the single factor that most often decides condominium warranty disputes. As soon as a resident or the concierge reports an anomaly linked to recent works, the manager should have a technician assess the defect, even informally at first, to determine whether it is an ordinary defect or a serious one affecting the building's stability or safety, since this classification decides which deadline applies.

The next step is to send written notice to the contractor, by registered letter or certified email, describing the defect precisely and linking it to the specific job and contract: a vague report weakens the position in any later dispute. At the same time, the manager should inform or convene the assembly, because deciding to take legal action against the contractor exceeds ordinary administration and requires an assembly resolution, except for urgent protective measures the manager can take independently to safeguard owners' rights.

Finally, where available, the post completion ten year insurance policy or the performance bond required by the works contract should be activated, without waiting for the outcome of negotiations with the contractor.

The documentation you need, kept from day one

A condominium works file does not close when the final invoice is paid: it must remain available for the entire warranty period, which for serious defects runs up to ten years. For every intervention it helps to keep a folder containing the works contract with its technical specifications, the completion or final inspection report, technical data sheets for the materials used, any conformity certificates required by the applicable technical standards, the post completion ten year insurance policy where one exists, and the correspondence exchanged with the contractor during execution.

For work on structural elements or on systems subject to specific technical standards, it is worth keeping references to the UNI standards applied during design or testing: in a dispute, proving the work followed the relevant technical standard strengthens the condominium's position if a defect still emerges, and helps distinguish a workmanship flaw from a design issue or improper use by residents.

A digital archive organized by building and by year of intervention, with separate and easily retrievable files, is what allows a manager to respond within sixty days or one year without reconstructing the history of a job under pressure. This is one of the functions AmministraPro covers natively, with document storage linked to each building and to every recorded intervention.

Handling disputes and litigation

If the contractor does not respond or disputes its own liability, the manager, once authorized by the assembly, can send a formal notice setting a deadline for repair or for starting remedial works. In parallel, it is advisable to have an independent technician quantify the damage and the cost of repair, a document that will be useful both in an out of court settlement and in any litigation.

It is worth remembering that under article 1669 liability, in addition to the contractor, the designer and the site supervisor can also be called in if the serious defect stems from a design or supervision error, and in some cases the seller of the property if the sale took place after construction and before the defect was discovered: the range of possible respondents should be assessed with a lawyer before acting, to avoid leaving out a co-responsible party.

Finally, the manager must keep the assembly informed of every stage's outcome, because legal costs and any settlements affect the condominium budget and still require a resolution for approval.

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