BDW Trading Ltd v Ardmore Construction Ltd

[2024] EWHC 3235 (TCC) — TCC, 16 December 2024 (Joanna Smith J)

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Issue

Fire safety defects discovered at the Crown Heights residential development, Hampshire, nearly 20 years post-completion.

Following adjudication, the adjudicator ordered Ardmore to pay approximately £14.5 million for breach of contract and breaches of the Defective Premises Act 1972.
Ardmore resisted enforcement, arguing the adjudicator lacked jurisdiction because the statutory DPA claim did not arise “under the contract”.
TCC rejected this argument and enforced the adjudicator’s decision, holding that contractual adjudication clauses referring to disputes “under the contract” are broad enough to encompass statutory claims arising from the same works.

Confirms adjudication is available for historic defect claims under the DPA, given the Building Safety Act 2022’s extended limitation periods.
Gives developers a faster enforcement route for historic safety claims than full litigation.

Wilson v HB (SWA) — also confirms adjudication availability for historic DPA claims
URS Corporation v BDW Trading — same claimant group (BDW), different defendant/mechanism
Scope and Method