Project delays are a fact of life in construction. Weather, design changes, permit issues, other trades running behind — there are countless reasons a project might slip. For subcontractors, delays mean extended overhead, disrupted schedules, and cash flow strain.
Here's how to survive — and even thrive — when projects don't go according to plan.
The Real Cost of Project Delays
Extended Overhead
Your general overhead (insurance, vehicle costs, office expenses) keeps running even when work stops. A three-month delay means three extra months of overhead on that project.
Stranded Labor
If you've allocated crew to a project that's delayed, you either pay them to wait, find them other work, or let them go — all costly options.
Lost Opportunities
While tied up on a delayed project, you may miss opportunities for other profitable work.
Cash Flow Disruption
Delayed projects mean delayed billing and delayed payment, straining your cash flow.
Mobilization Costs
If you demobilize from a site and have to remobilize later, you incur costs twice.
Protecting Yourself in the Contract
No Damages for Delay Clauses
Many construction contracts include "no damages for delay" clauses that limit your ability to recover costs from delays. These clauses are often negotiable, and courts have found exceptions.
At minimum, push for exceptions covering delays caused by the GC's own actions, delays not reasonably foreseeable, and delays due to bad faith.
Time Extension Rights
Ensure your contract provides for time extensions when delays occur through no fault of yours. A time extension protects you from liquidated damages even if it doesn't provide cost recovery.
Delay Notice Requirements
Know your contract's requirements for notifying the GC of delays. Failure to provide timely notice can waive your rights to any relief.
Acceleration Clauses
If the GC wants to recover schedule by accelerating your work, that's additional cost. Your contract should address compensation for acceleration directives.
Documentation During Delays
If delays occur, documentation is your best friend.
Daily Logs
Maintain detailed daily logs of site conditions, work accomplished, crews on site, and reasons for any work stoppages.
Photographs
Photograph conditions that prevent work — other trades in your way, incomplete predecessor work, missing materials.
Correspondence
Communicate delays in writing. Email confirmations create a paper trail.
Impact Records
Track the actual impact of delays on your costs: extended equipment rental, idle labor, overtime to catch up, material price increases.
Managing Your Response to Delays
Early Communication
As soon as you see a delay developing, communicate with the GC. Early warning allows collaborative problem-solving.
Submit Delay Notices
If your contract requires delay notices, submit them promptly. Don't wait to see if the delay resolves itself.
Mitigate Your Damages
You have an obligation to mitigate (reduce) your damages from delays. Document your mitigation efforts — reassigning crew, seeking other work, negotiating with suppliers.
Keep Working Where You Can
If parts of the project can proceed, keep working. Stopping entirely when you could make progress weakens your delay claim.
Track Everything Separately
Keep delay costs separate from base contract costs. This makes it easier to document and recover delay damages later.
Recovering Delay Costs
Formal Claim Process
Most contracts have specific procedures for submitting delay claims. Follow them precisely — procedural failures can defeat otherwise valid claims.
Supporting Documentation
Your claim should include the cause of delay (with documentation), the duration of delay, impact on your work, quantified damages with backup, and reference to contract provisions supporting recovery.
Negotiation
Many delay claims are resolved through negotiation. Be prepared to compromise — some recovery is better than protracted disputes.
Dispute Resolution
If negotiation fails, use the contract's dispute resolution procedures: mediation, arbitration, or litigation as specified.
Practical Tips for Delay Survival
Build Float Into Your Schedule
Don't bid impossibly tight schedules. Some built-in float gives you buffer before delays become critical.
Maintain Cash Reserves
Cash reserves let you survive delays without desperate measures.
Diversify Your Work
Don't put all your eggs in one project basket. Multiple concurrent projects provide stability when one is delayed.
Stay Flexible
The ability to shift resources between projects or take on fill-in work helps you weather delays.
Maintain GC Relationships
Good relationships with GCs lead to more consideration when delays occur — priority scheduling when work resumes, faster payment, informal cost recovery.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I walk off a project that's delayed indefinitely?
Generally not without legal consequences, unless the delays constitute a material breach by the GC. Consult an attorney before abandoning a project.
Should I pursue delay claims or just move on?
It depends on the amount at stake and your relationship with the GC. Small delays may not be worth fighting over. Significant impacts deserve formal claims.
How do I avoid being blamed for delays I didn't cause?
Documentation. If you have records showing you were ready to work and prevented by conditions outside your control, you're protected.