Renovations and faulty work

Work is faulty if it does not comply with the contract or good construction practice, known as lex artis. Examples include uneven wall tiles, a shower without fall towards its drain, electrics without protection, materials differing from the quote, or charged items never completed. An expert in renovation work and faulty workmanship identifies and documents each defect and explains why the work is unacceptable.

First document the defects through an expert report describing, photographing and valuing their repair. Then send the business or contractor a written demand, for example by burofax, a Spanish communication service providing proof of delivery, attaching the report and proposing repairs within a deadline or payment of rectification costs. If agreement is not reached, the report supports a court claim. Keep the quote, invoices, payment records and messages.

Withholding an outstanding payment may be justified where defects are significant and you notify the contractor in writing: with reciprocal contractual obligations, a party who has not performed cannot demand performance from the other. However, this is a sensitive decision. If defects are minor or cannot be proved, the contractor may pursue payment. Before withholding money, document the defects in an expert report and consult a solicitor.

Require the contractor in writing to resume within a stated period, explaining that otherwise you will end the contract and appoint someone else. Before anyone alters the work, commission an expert report measuring what was actually completed and its quality, comparing it with the quote and payments, and valuing unfinished or defective work. This establishes how much you have overpaid and allows you to claim it.

Actual completed units are measured on site, item by item, and compared with the quote: square metres of tiling, lighting points, pipe lengths and so on. Each item is valued at its quoted price, deducting defective work that must be redone. The result is the actual percentage and value of completed work, compared with payments already made. This provides an objective basis for establishing whether money is owed to you.

Provide the accepted quote, any contract, invoices and payment evidence, messages and emails with the contractor, photographs before and during the works, and any changes agreed during construction. These allow comparison of the contract with actual delivery. If there is no written quote, messages and payments help reconstruct the agreement, although proving it becomes harder. Keep the documents in date order so that the original agreement and later changes can be followed separately.

Yes. A contrato de obra, the Spanish contract for building work, remains valid if agreed verbally, but you must prove the agreement. WhatsApp messages, emails, bank transfers with payment descriptions, witnesses and photographs can help. If you are a consumer, the business should have provided advance information on price and scope. The expert can assess completed work and quality independently of a quote, and compare charges with market prices.

This is a contractual breach. You can require replacement with the quoted materials or reimbursement of the price difference and, where the substitution affects quality or durability, the cost of correcting it. The expert identifies the installed material, compares it with the quote and values the difference. Quotes should therefore specify brand, model or quality rather than merely describing materials as similar.

Usually because waterproofing beneath the tiles is inadequate or poorly detailed, falls towards the outlet are insufficient, the outlet is poorly sealed, or joints are not watertight. This is a common bathroom-renovation defect and often causes damp in the home below. The expert report locates the source, documents damage to your property and others, and values repair, which often requires lifting the shower base or floor.

Signs include uneven edges between tiles, poor flatness, hollow tiles that sound when tapped, irregular joints, badly finished cuts at corners and junctions, or missing required movement joints. Many defects are measured using a straightedge and level and compared with good-practice tolerances. Hollow tiles matter because they eventually break or detach. The report measures and photographs each defect. Numbered photographs help you and the contractor refer to the same tile or area when discussing the findings.

If the renovation includes a new electrical installation or substantial alteration, an authorised installation company must carry it out and issue a certificado de instalación eléctrica, commonly called the boletín, under the Reglamento Electrotécnico para Baja Tensión. Without it, arranging or changing the electricity supply and dealing with insurance may be problematic. Failure to provide the certificate or a non-compliant installation is a breach that can be claimed.

Almost always some municipal authorisation is needed: a comunicación previa or declaración responsable for minor work, or a building permit for major work affecting structure, façade or layout. In a shared building, work affecting communal elements may also require the owners' association's agreement. The company usually handles the application, but responsibility rests with the owner. Check with your local council rather than assuming the contractor has completed the necessary procedure.

The owner who commissioned the work is normally liable to the neighbour and can recover from the company responsible for the damage. If that company has liability insurance, it may cover the loss under the policy conditions. Typical examples include leaks from inadequately waterproofed showers or cracks next door following partition demolition. Document neighbouring properties before major works begin to avoid disputes. Dated photographs help explain the condition before the renovation, particularly if you are managing the work from abroad.

The contractor is liable for defects under the Código Civil, Spain's Civil Code, and the contract. Consumers also have the service guarantees provided by consumer legislation. Where work affects structure, such as an extension, liability rules under the Ley de Ordenación de la Edificación (LOE), Spain's building law, also apply. Request the company's guarantee in writing and keep invoices for materials and installations.

Generally, an action for breach of a building-work contract has a five-year prescription period under article 1964 of the Código Civil, Spain's Civil Code, although other periods and actions may apply depending on the case. A long deadline does not justify waiting: prompt documentation makes it easier to show that defects resulted from the works rather than use. Your solicitor will confirm the applicable period.

Obtain an independent assessment. An expert report compares the work with the contract and good construction practice, measures defects and explains technically why they are unacceptable. This changes the discussion from competing opinions into a signed technical analysis. Contractors often agree to repairs or a price reduction after seeing the report. Provide the contractor's explanation to the expert alongside your photographs so the disputed points can be examined directly.

First define the work needed to put each defect right, from dismantling and removing faulty work to completing it correctly. Each task is then measured and valued item by item using real local market prices, including materials, labour, ancillary equipment and waste management. Only genuine, necessary items are included. An inflated valuation can be challenged in court and undermine the entire claim.

Yes. As the client, the comunidad de propietarios, the owners' association, can claim against the contractor for defective façade refurbishment, roof waterproofing or other communal work. A meeting makes the decision and the president acts on the association's behalf. The expert report must document defects before the final work certificates are paid or an agreed retention is withheld. Provide the shared contract and meeting records so the expert can identify the work commissioned by the association.

Yes, but follow the proper sequence. First document the defects in an expert report and require the original contractor in writing to repair within a reasonable period. If they refuse or fail to act, you can instruct another company and claim its cost. Keep the new company's quote and invoices. Repairing before documenting the defects leaves you unable to prove the previous condition.

It compares agreed and completed work, lists numbered defects with photographs and measurements, technically explains why each is faulty workmanship, measures actual completed work, values unfinished items and work needing replacement item by item, and calculates the balance against payments. It is signed by the perito judicial en obras de reforma, the expert witness specialising in renovation work, and prepared for negotiation or court proceedings.