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Stage 7 — DLP (Defects Liability Period)

The warranty window after handover. You monitor and rectify defects until the clock runs out.

The Defects Liability Period (DLP) is the warranty window that follows handover — typically 12 to 24 months. The client is using the space; your job is to put right anything that fails or was missed.

What happens here​

  • Defects are raised, ticketed and rectified as they come up.
  • The works are monitored over the period — there's no day-to-day site activity, but the obligation to fix defects is live.
  • At the end of the DLP, the second half of retention is released, assuming outstanding defects have been cleared. See Retention.

Your job at this stage​

Stay responsive and keep the paper trail. Log every defect and its rectification so that, when the DLP ends, you can show the works are sound and claim the final retention release without argument.

What comes next​

Once the DLP closes and final retention is released, the project is Archived.