Building project gone wrong? What to do first
When a building project goes wrong, the first priority is to keep people and the property safe and prevent avoidable damage. Then establish what has actually been built, paid for and agreed. A rushed argument about blame can make it harder to resolve the practical problem in front of you.
Deal with immediate risk
If there is a dangerous condition, unsafe access, exposed electrics or an opening that could let water into the house, keep people away and contact the appropriate qualified person or emergency service. Record the condition before urgent protective work where safe to do so. Tell the builder promptly in writing what you found and what temporary action is needed.
Temporary weather protection and securing the site are different from authorising permanent remedial work or accepting responsibility for a defect. Be clear about which action is urgent and what remains to be assessed.
Make one reliable project record
Gather the signed agreement, quotations, drawings and revisions, specification, programme, invoices, payment receipts, inspection records, photographs and messages. Put them in date order. Note who instructed each change and whether its price and time effect were agreed before the work.
List the current position under four headings: work complete, work incomplete, work you believe may be defective, and work whose scope or payment is disputed. Do not describe an uninspected item as defective fact. Mark it for specialist checking where necessary.
Reconcile the money
Record the original price, agreed variations, payments made, materials paid for but not installed, disputed requests and the balance claimed by each side. Compare that with the value of work visibly complete and the likely cost of completing what remains. These are different figures, and early uncertainty should stay visible.
Do not assume that paying an extra invoice will solve the delivery issue, or that withholding everything will be consequence-free. Contractual rights and notices need advice on the actual agreement. Our guide to extra payment requests helps organise the builder’s explanation.
Ask for a specific written response
Send a short list of the issues rather than a long stream of messages. For each one, ask what the builder proposes, who will do it, when, how it affects the programme and whether there is an extra charge. Keep agreed and disputed matters separate. If the builder has stopped attending, ask for an explicit return plan and how the site will be left meanwhile.
Bring in the right expertise
A structural concern may need an engineer; water ingress or defective work may need an independent inspection; a contract dispute may need a solicitor or consumer adviser. Build Advocate can help frame the issue and identify which specialist judgement is required, but does not replace it. Citizens Advice provides consumer guidance on problems with home improvements.
Define the next decision
The immediate question might be “How do we keep the property safe tonight?”, “What work is left and what will it cost?” or “Can this builder complete it under a credible plan?” Answer those in order before deciding whether to renegotiate, appoint somebody else or escalate a dispute. Our delay guide covers a slipping programme in more detail.
Build Advocate’s Rescue Initial Assessment reviews the available evidence and defines the practical next action, with a one-hour review call. Site visits, independent specialists and further intervention are separately scoped.
