How do payment, defects and completion work under NZS 3910 in New Zealand?
Under NZS 3910:2013 the contractor's bond is due within 2 months of acceptance, and defects are notified within the 3 months defects notification period. The final payment claim is lodged within 1 month of the defects period ending, and the final payment schedule is issued within 20 working days.
The duties, in the library's order
| Duty | Window and section | If missed |
|---|---|---|
| Make a progress claim on the cadence the contract states | 1 monthcl 12.1.2, 12.2.1, 12.2.8 | a breach of contractDisputes |
| Provide the contractor's bond within 2 months | 2 monthscl 3.1.2-3.1.7 | the claim is barredDisputes |
| Notify defects within the 3 months defects notification period | 3 monthsDZ cl 11.1, 11.2.1 | no penalty statedDisputes |
| Release retention within 10 working days of practical completion (or the defects period ending) | 10 working dayscl 12.3.3; DZ 12.3.4, 12.3.7 | a breach of contractDisputes |
| Lodge the final payment claim within 1 months of the defects period ending | 1 monthcl 12.4.1 | the claim is barredDisputes |
| Issue the final payment schedule within 20 working days | 20 working dayscl 12.5 | no penalty statedDisputes |
| Submit the final account within 3 months of practical completion | 3 monthscl 9.11 | the claim is barredDisputes |
What the library notes on each duty
Quoted a whole sentence at a time from the library's note on each row.
Make a progress claim on the cadence the contract states
cl 12.1.2, 12.2.1, 12.2.8 · 1 month · a breach of contract
- Claims at least monthly; the 2013 edition sets the payment schedule 12 Working Days after service and payment 17 Working Days after service (both folded in here).
Provide the contractor's bond within 2 months
cl 3.1.2-3.1.7 · 2 months · the claim is barred
Notify defects within the 3 months defects notification period
DZ cl 11.1, 11.2.1 · 3 months · no penalty stated
- Defects Notification Period, 3 Months from practical completion unless specified (Auckland Transport's Panel 3 special conditions instead set 12 Months).
- A defect notice must be given during the DNP or within 5 Working Days after; remedy within 5 Working Days.
- Read from the DZ draft and AT Panel 3, not the published 2023 text.
Release retention within 10 working days of practical completion (or the defects period ending)
cl 12.3.3; DZ 12.3.4, 12.3.7 · 10 working days · a breach of contract
- Excess released at practical completion; balance released after the Defects Notification Period less outstanding work; the remainder within 10 Working Days after the Final Completion Certificate (recorded here).
- DZ cl 12.3.4 is draft only.
Lodge the final payment claim within 1 months of the defects period ending
cl 12.4.1 · 1 month · the claim is barred
- 1 Month after the Final Completion Certificate (2013); the DZ draft instead runs from the later of the FCC and the Final Account.
Issue the final payment schedule within 20 working days
cl 12.5 · 20 working days · no penalty stated
- 2013 edition: 20 Working Days (Auckland Transport's Panel 3 instead sets 35).
- The DZ draft splits this into a provisional 20 WD, a final 45 WD, and payment 10 WD later - the 2013/DZ split is ambiguous in the source; the 2013 figure is recorded as primary.
Submit the final account within 3 months of practical completion
cl 9.11 · 3 months · the claim is barred
- Interim Final Account due within 3 Months of practical completion by default (recorded here); the Final Account is due 20 Working Days after the Final Completion Certificate, and the Independent Certifier decides it if unagreed after 3 Months.
What this page is, and is not
It is the section text this library holds for New Zealand's Construction Contracts Act 2002 (NZ), NZS 3910:2013 and Health and Safety at Work Act 2015, with the window and the consequence. The NZS 3910:2023 rows are read from secondary summaries of the draft, not the published text. It is not legal advice, and it is not a substitute for reading the Acts, the contract you signed and any special conditions.
These pages set out the duties the library holds for a New Zealand job.
No library of law is complete, and Demiton never says this one is. An obligation the library does not hold, and you did not add, is not protected. You can add your own to any job.