Chapter 558, also known as the Florida Construction Defect Statute, involves a pre-suit process if a construction defect is found upon completion. Chapter 558 has undergone several changes which are crucial to know and understand before pursuing a construction claim. Meeting with an attorney before a contract is signed will allow you to obtain important information regarding Chapter 558.
An owner who has detected a construction defect, must strictly comply with Chapter 558. The Notice of Claim must contain mandatory information such as detail describing the nature of the alleged defect, the damage or loss as a result of the defect and the location of the defect. Potential recipients of the Notice of Claim are “contractors”, “developers”, “subcontractors”, “suppliers”, and “design professionals”.
As a contractor, if you receive a Chapter 558 Notice of Claim from a property owner, it is important to contact and meet with an attorney to ensure compliance and obtain information on deadlines and the next steps to be taken. A contractor is required to provide a written response within an allotted amount of time. In the response, the contractor must include one or more offers that are specified in (5)(a)-(e) of Chapter 558, along with all information required for the offer and any reports of the scope of inspections on the property.
One of the recent changes in Chapter 558 is defining when a building is considered complete. This is very important for any persons involved because the process does not begin until the building is considered “substantially complete” as defined in §558.003. If the Notice of Claim does not come to a resolution between both contractor and owner, the claim can now be brought to court. Our attorneys at Kinsey, Vincent, Pyle, P.L. pride ourselves with the experience and knowledge regarding Chapter 558 claims.
To learn more, call our office at (386) 252-1561 or click here to contact us via email.
