THE enforcement of the Temporary Measures for Reducing the Impact of Coronavirus Disease 2019 Act 2020 (COVID-19 Act) may not be able to resolve all the issues that the building industry is facing, according to the Building Industry Presidents’ Council (BIPC).
The global pandemic has caused major disruptions to the building industry, including delays to building projects due to disruptions as well as escalated costs arising from prolongation of projects and costs of compliance with the necessary standards of procedure (SOPs).
As a result, many dialogues were held among contractors, developers and consultants to explore pro-active roles to help resolve contractual conflicts and disputes arising from the pandemic.
With the COVID-19 Act in effect, it temporarily suspends contractual rights in order to allow all parties to review their respective positions and consider the best way to move forward.
But with the Act extending the defects liability period (DLP) in favour of purchasers under the Housing Development Act 1966 (HDA), it increases the potential rectification costs faced by developers.
Therefore, while BIPC welcomes the provision under the COVID-19 Act for disputes to be resolved by mediation, the process in certain instances could be lengthy and costly.
Due to this, BIPC encourages all contracting parties to approach all ongoing projects with a fresh mindset by looking at how best to preserve each party’s interests as opposed to insisting on strict contractual rights.
Consultants are encouraged to play facilitative roles in helping the contracting parties to explore options that will seek to balance their respective interests to ensure the sustainability of all stakeholders and the building industry as a whole. – Nov 14, 2020
