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Handling acceleration claims made by contractors

On Behalf of | Sep 6, 2021 | Construction Claims

If you are working in construction as a business owner, then you know that there will be times when your client wants you to speed up a project. If that happens, then you may be asked to pay extra to the construction team to get the job done sooner.

If you receive an acceleration claim, then you need to go over it to make sure that it is accurate. A good acceleration claim will include information on overtime, the original change order instructions, information about the increased scope of work and any information regarding supplementation of the workforce, such as hiring new people to help get the job done fast.

Who will make an acceleration claim?

An acceleration claim is most likely to be made if you ask the construction team to speed up their work beyond what is normally expected with the original deadlines. Whether or not you need to cover the cost of the accelerated timeline will depend on the reason that the work has to be accelerated. For example, if the contractor agrees to speed up voluntarily, then you should not have to pay an acceleration claim. If the contractor is directed to speed up by your client, then that should be a formal change order and be compensated.

Sometimes, construction has to speed up due to another issue that occurred. For example, the contractor may have fallen behind because of the weather or an illness. That is an excusable delay. If they have to voluntarily speed up to meet the deadline, then they are undertaking constructive acceleration. This won’t always be something that you have to compensate, especially if it is the contractor’s own delays that led to the need for accelerating the project.

If you receive an acceleration claim and aren’t sure if you should pay it, it may be a good idea to go over your legal rights and obligations with these claims. If you disagree with the request and the other party intends to sue, it’s worth taking some time to negotiate and look into other ways to resolve the dispute before heading to court.