Evaluation of Dispute Prone Areas in Construction Projects

Construction projects experience claims and disputes due to increased complexity of contract documentation, which subsequently affects the cost performance of projects. Majority of the previous studies on disputes and cost overrun have mainly focused on finding the causes of cost overrun or disputes in the industry. Identification of dispute prone areas and the associated range of cost overrun due to the disputes are less explored. Previous research findings indicate that the various factors resulting in cost overrun itself are the causes of disputes. It is necessary to understand, assess and take appropriate actions for increasing the predictability of claims and disputes in order to improve the cost performance of construction projects. In this study, an attempt is made to identify and prioritize the dispute prone areas in Indian construction projects by analytical hierarchy process (AHP). Suspension of works, changes in scope and definition of project and delay in handing over the site and work permissions were ranked as the top three causes of claims in the study. Rankings on the various causes of disputes obtained using AHP are similar to that reported in literature. Dispute resolution is a great challenge in today’s construction industry. An understanding of the dispute prone areas in construction projects can prompt parties in contract to take appropriate actions to resolve them prior to costly and time-consuming litigation procedures.