Design and Build Contract (Construction) (B160)

Who can use this Design and Build Contract?

Any property developer, company, organisation or individual embarking on a commercial or residential development.

What is this design and build contract for?

It is a concise and comprehensive contract for appointing a contractor to design and build the development. This could be an office building, a block of flats or an industrial project.

What are the main issues for a design build contract?

There are similar to most building contracts.  But with a design and build contract, the contractor takes on most of the risk, especially when the contract is for a fixed price.

The contractor should be careful to inspect the site before taking on this type of contract. If there are unforeseen conditions, they can cause delay and extra cost which in many cases will not be recoverable, although this will depend on the wording of the contract.

When the client wants a change, the contract should have a clear procedure so that the change does not start until the cost and time implications have been agreed. Similarly, if the contractor is delayed or incurs extra costs which is not the contractor’s fault, the contract needs to have a procedure for allowing the claim to be considered and, when appropriate, an extension of time and/or extra cost will be awarded.

What detailed terms does the design & build contract contain?

There is a one-page form of agreement plus 12 pages of terms and conditions, an appendix with a list of specific items – completion date insurance, etc. – and schedules for price and specification to be inserted.  The T&Cs cover:

For more information, see our Explanatory Notes below which you will also receive when you download the document from our website.

For information on signing documents see our Contract Signing page

When I download the document, can I change it and/or use it more than once?

Yes, all ContractStore’s templates are in MS Word and you can use the contract on more than one project. For more information, watch the video on this page of our website or see our FAQs

Legal support

ContractStore supplies templates and is not a law firm.  All our templates are written by experienced lawyers, in this case by a specialist construction lawyer.  So, we can arrange legal assistance for customers who need special terms in one of our documents or a bespoke template.  For more information see our Legal Services page.

And if you want to contact us see our Contacts page.

Contract author: Giles Dixon