When a renovation goes wrong: delays, defects and disputes

Most renovation problems are about workmanship and delay. In 2022, CASE said about 39% of complaints against renovation contractors were about unsatisfactory workmanship and 27% about delays. A clear contract, staged payments and written records make every step below easier.

1. Raise it with the contractor, in writing

• Say what’s wrong, where, and what you want done, with photos and dates.
• Point to the contract: the scope, the schedule, the warranty.
• Give a reasonable deadline, and keep copies of everything, including messages.
• Check what your contract says about payments before holding any back. Staged payments tied to finished work make this simpler: the next payment isn’t due until its stage is done.

2. Know where the law is on your side

The Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Act lists unfair practices. For renovations, the relevant ones include:

• charging substantially more than an estimate without your express agreement;
• accepting payment when the firm knows, or ought to know, it can’t deliver in the agreed time (the consumer regulator gives exactly this renovation example);
• demanding payment for work you didn’t ask for (the regulator’s example is extra power points the homeowner never requested);
• putting undue pressure on you to sign, or hiding material facts in small print.

You can sue over an unfair practice for up to S$30,000, within 2 years. The Competition and Consumer Commission says CASE is the first point of contact for consumers.

3. Mediation

4. The Small Claims Tribunals

• They hear claims under contracts for services, and give a renovation contract as their example.
• The limit is S$20,000, or S$30,000 if both parties sign a memorandum of consent.
• If you’re claiming a progress payment, the value of the whole contract counts, and you can’t split a claim to get under the limit.
• File within 2 years of the event that gives rise to the claim, online through the Community Justice and Tribunals System, which also offers e-negotiation and e-mediation.

CASE noted in 2025 that home renovation contracts commonly exceed S$20,000, so larger disputes may need the courts instead. That’s one more reason to pay in stages: see how renovation payments are staged.

In HDB flats: what HDB can and can’t do

HDB isn’t party to your contract and won’t resolve disputes about it. It does act on breaches of its renovation rules, such as unauthorised works or debris dumped in common areas, and it can penalise contractors on its directory. See HDB renovation rules.

SpaceToReno is run by the team behind Junk to Clear, which also handles renovations. Where a guide links to Junk to Clear or a sister site, it’s because that step calls for the service, and the sentence says so. Enquiries sent through the form go to the same team. How SpaceToReno works