A no-damages-for-delay clause says that if the owner (or someone the owner is responsible for) delays the work, the contractor gets more time but not more money. Extended general conditions, idle equipment, labor inefficiency and home office overhead for the delay period are all off the table under a strict reading.
Courts don’t love these clauses, and enforcement varies widely. Many jurisdictions recognize exceptions, such as delays not contemplated by the parties at signing, delays so long they amount to abandonment, delays caused by the owner’s bad faith or active interference, or breach of a fundamental obligation. Several states void the clauses on public work.
The GC usually flows the same clause down to subcontractors, so the risk sits on whoever is furthest down the chain.
Why it matters
Delay costs on a big job can run thousands of dollars a day in general conditions alone. A clause that cuts off those costs is a major risk transfer, and it should be priced and negotiated at bid time, not discovered at the claim.
Worked example
Illustrative: owner-caused design changes stall a project for 30 calendar days. Extended general conditions run $6,000 per day, so $180,000. Under an enforceable no-damages-for-delay clause, the contractor gets 30 days added to the schedule (and relief from liquidated damages for that period) but not the $180,000, unless an exception applies.
Common mistakes
- Assuming the clause is always enforceable, or always void.
- Failing to document active interference that could fall within an exception.
How os.construction handles it
We’re building change events and daily logs on the same record, so delay events, their causes and their cost are documented as they happen. It’s in development.