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Delay & Disruption Claims — ABR Advocates
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Construction Law

Claiming Delay & Disruption Costs in UAE Construction Projects

Project delays are inevitable — weather, supply chain disruptions, design changes, and contractor defaults happen on every major project. But delays have a cost: extended site supervision, extended plant hire, increased financing charges, and opportunity costs. A delay claim without contemporaneous records and causal proof is almost unrecoverable.

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Delay & Disruption Claims in the UAE

Delay claims require you to prove three elements: that the contract was delayed beyond the original completion date; that the delay was caused by an event not your responsibility; and that you incurred identifiable, quantifiable costs as a result. Many contractors prove delay and claim cost without adequately addressing causation. We help you construct a defensible delay narrative using contemporaneous project records — baseline schedule, monthly updates, site diaries, correspondence logs — to prove causation with technical rigor.

Prolongation costs are the most straightforward delay entitlement: extended site supervision, extended plant hire, extended financing charges, and overhead allocation for extended site duration. Recovery requires proof of the actual duration of extension, the specific costs incurred, and that the costs would not have been incurred but-for the delay. We ensure prolongation claims are granular, traceable, and defensible.

Acceleration claims are more contentious, requiring proof that you were contractually obliged to accelerate, the direction came from the employer or engineer, the acceleration was caused by an employer-side event, and the costs were actually incurred and are quantifiable. Under FIDIC, Sub-Clause 20.1 governs notification. We manage the entire delay-claim lifecycle: notice preparation, programme forensics, cost quantification, and arbitration advocacy.

How We Protect Your Project

Contemporaneous delay documentation including baseline programme, monthly updates, and delay event logs

Causation analysis using critical-path methodology to isolate the specific delay impact on completion date

Prolongation cost quantification with granular breakdown of extended supervision, plant, financing, and overhead

Acceleration cost claims where applicable, with proof of direction and actual cost incurrence

Force majeure defense and strategy when delay results from unforeseeable circumstances

Who this applies to: Main contractors claiming prolongation costs due to employer-caused delays or design changes; subcontractors protecting entitlements when upstream delays cascade down the contractual chain; project owners defending against overpriced delay claims and substantiating counterclaims for liquidated damages; programme managers and quantity surveyors seeking legal validation of delay impact analysis.

See also: FIDIC-Based Agreements · Construction Arbitration Proceedings.

Common questions

Delay & Disruption Claims FAQs

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Causation requires forensic schedule analysis: the baseline programme, the as-built programme, the critical path, and how the delay event impacted it. Using scheduling software, a schedule analyst can conduct ‘but-for’ analysis comparing the hypothetical and actual completion dates. Without this, your claim relies on opinion, which arbitrators discount — invest upfront in schedule forensics.
Courts disfavour ‘broad-brush’ approaches. For allocable costs, itemize and document. For absorbed overheads, use your actual cost-allocation method if defensible, or an industry-standard markup (5-15% of direct costs) with expert justification. Be conservative and specific — unsubstantiated markups above ~30% invite rejection.
Respond with evidence distinguishing events within your responsibility versus the employer’s, contemporaneous communications raising delay concerns in real time, and your mitigation efforts. Where causes are concurrent, the outcome depends on contract language — FIDIC often excuses the contractor if part of the delay is the employer’s responsibility, but many UAE contracts differ. We analyse your specific contract and advise accordingly.
Explicit direction is the strongest case. Implicit acceleration is weaker and courts are reluctant to impose it absent clear contractual language. The safer approach is usually to claim prolongation and delay-related costs separately, documenting any voluntary acceleration as mitigation rather than a discretionary claim.
If the contract treats liquidated damages as the sole remedy for delay, you are generally limited to the cap unless it constitutes an unenforceable penalty (a high bar) or the contract separately permits delay-cost claims outside that framework — common in cost-reimbursable contracts. Review your contract’s liability-cap and remedies language carefully.
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This page is provided for general information only and does not constitute legal advice. Figures and cost ranges are illustrative industry benchmarks, not guarantees. Law references last reviewed July 2026.

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