Causes of contractual disputes in construction projects

This article reports on the main causes of contractual disputes in Chilean construction projects, a subject not much studied in the country. The research included an extensive review of international literature looking for the main causes of contractual disputes in construction as a reference and framework. Then, a detailed study of 98 dispute arbitrations processes of construction projects was carried out in search of the main causes of disputes. It was found that the main causes of contractual disputes were those related to the category of design and information and that the most frequent cause in general was non-payment or delay in payment. This result is consistent with causes of contractual disputes as reported in international literature. From the 98 arbitrations studied it was possible to establish that the duration of an arbitration was 531 days on average, but that this depends on the cause of termination of the arbitration. It was also observed that the amount requested from the arbitrator by the plaintiff was 80% of the original amount of the contract on average and that the compensation after the sentence was 28% on average of what was initially requested. This information might be useful for companies that anticipate carrying out construction works in Chile and in Latin-American countries to reduce the potential for claims in their works.