Construction Defects and Code Compliance

“The International Codes®, or I-Codes®, published by ICC, provide minimum safeguards for people at home, at school and in the workplace. The I-Codes are a complete set of comprehensive, coordinated building safety and fire prevention codes. Building codes benefit public safety and support the industry’s need for one set of codes without regional limitations.”

(Source: International Code Council. (2015). About ICC. Retrieved February 01, 2016, from http://www.iccsafe.org/about-icc/overview/about-international-code-council/)

Construction defects and code compliance issues can be separated by the circumstance of an incident, but they can also be interrelated. It will always be dependent on the given situation. For example, here are three very different situations:

  1. A ramp is constructed in or about a building, but the incline is much steeper than mandated by building codes. This is strictly a building code violation although there may not be any material defects in the ramp itself.
  2. A contractor may use defective or incorrect materials when building though all standard codes have been followed to the letter. This can cause damage to the building and create the potential for future defects.
  3. A building is constructed without reference to the building codes and the construction itself is poor. This situation would involve both code violations and construction defects.

At The Accident Expert™, when working with construction defect or code compliance cases, we apply three basic steps:

  1. Acquire necessary and relevant information
  2. Develop our analysis and issue reports as requested
  3. Participate in any legal proceedings

In gathering our information about the case, we ask many questions, look at all of the evidence provided, and use this information to form our analysis. Our process includes:

  • Examine photographs
  • Review any reports related to the incident
  • Review the original construction plans and related information
  • Consider earthquake zones, weather and climate conditions, etc
  • Collect witness statements
  • Conduct an executive interview with participant(s), gathering information as they tell us what happened from their point of view
  • Inspect the site

The Accident Expert™ welcomes and encourages all inquiries regarding code compliance and construction defect cases.