Structural defects after possession: the five-year RERA liability, the 30-day repair duty and how to claim

Rules and rates as of 14 October 2026.

Cracks in a beam, a terrace that leaks into the top floor, seepage through an external wall, a lift that keeps failing. Defects like these often show up only after a monsoon or two in the new flat. The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 (RERA) gives buyers a specific, time-bound remedy for them in section 14(3). This explainer reads that section closely, shows how two regulators have applied it, and works through a claim in rupees. It is not legal advice. For a serious structural problem you will need a structural engineer's report, and usually a lawyer.

What section 14(3) says

The section is one long sentence. Broken into its parts:

• What is covered: "any structural defect or any other defect in workmanship, quality or provision of services or any other obligations of the promoter as per the agreement for sale".
• The trigger: the defect is "brought to the notice of the promoter within a period of five years by the allottee from the date of handing over possession".
• The duty: the promoter must "rectify such defects without further charge, within thirty days".
• If it does not: "the aggrieved allottees shall be entitled to receive appropriate compensation in the manner as provided under this Act".

Three things follow from the wording.

It is wider than "structural". Poor workmanship, poor quality, services such as lifts or plumbing, and anything else the agreement for sale promised are all included. A buyer does not have to prove that the building is unsafe.

The clock runs from possession. It does not run from the agreement or from your first complaint. What has to happen inside the five years is the notice to the promoter. Keep the possession letter or handover record that shows the date.

Repair is the first remedy, money the second. The builder gets 30 days to fix the defect at no charge. Compensation comes in only if it fails.

Who decides what

Under section 31, any aggrieved person, including an association of allottees, can file a complaint with the RERA authority or its adjudicating officer for a breach of the Act. Section 71(1) gives the adjudicating officer, a serving or former District Judge, the power to decide compensation under sections 12, 14, 18 and 19. Section 72 lists what that officer must weigh: any disproportionate gain or unfair advantage the builder made where it can be measured, the loss caused to you, and whether the default is repeated.

In practice this often means two tracks. You ask the authority to order the repairs, and the adjudicating officer to award compensation. A Bihar order makes the split plain. In RERA/CC/491/2023 and RERA/AO/64/2023 (18 March 2026), the adjudicating officer said there was "no need to pass any order regarding structural defects as this court is only for awarding compensation". He awarded ₹2,00,000 for mental agony and harassment and ₹50,000 in costs, against a claim of ₹1,15,00,000. The builder had argued the claim was outside the five years because possession was given in 2017, and the order records that the authority had taken that view of structural-defect claims in an earlier complaint.

A society that gave notice just in time

A Maharashtra order shows why the notice date matters. In Cosmopolis CHS v Cosmos Homes India (MahaRERA, complaint CC006000000303056, order of 28 April 2025), possession of the flats was handed over between October and December 2017. The society commissioned a structural audit in 2022, sent a legal notice on 11 September 2022 and filed its complaint on 15 October 2022. The order noted the complaint came "beyond the stipulated time period of 5 years", but relied on the notice that followed the audit. The builder filed no rebuttal with proof. MahaRERA directed it to fix all the defects listed in the audit report within two months, warning of penal action under section 63 if it did not. It did not grant the ₹1 crore compensation the society had asked for.

On our arithmetic, the gap from the last handover (27 December 2017) to the legal notice is about 4.7 years. The gap from the first handover (17 October 2017) to the complaint is just under 5 years, about 4.99. The lesson is to send written notice early, not in the final weeks.

Worked example: a seepage claim

Suppose possession of your flat was handed over on 15 March 2022. In October 2026 water starts seeping through the bedroom wall below the terrace. All figures below are illustrative.

• Are you inside five years? 15 March 2022 to 20 October 2026 is 1,680 days, or 1,680 ÷ 365.25 = 4.6 years. The fifth anniversary of possession is 15 March 2027.
• Notice. You email and courier a written notice on 20 October 2026, with photos and a structural engineer's note. Thirty days from then: 20 October 2026 + 30 days = 19 November 2026.
• If the builder repairs it by then, at no charge, section 14(3) is satisfied.
• If it does not, you have a claim for compensation. You might put these documented costs before the adjudicating officer:

Head of claim	Basis	Amount
Waterproofing and replastering	Contractor's written quote	₹1,52,500
Structural engineer's report	Invoice	₹15,000
Temporary stay during repairs	3 weeks × ₹8,000	₹24,000
Total documented loss	₹1,52,500 + ₹15,000 + ₹24,000	₹1,91,500

The total is your evidence of loss, not a guaranteed award. The Act says only "appropriate compensation", and the officer weighs it against the section 72 factors. As the two orders above show, regulators often prefer to order the repair itself, and may award far less than the amount claimed.

How to claim, step by step

1. Fix the dates. Find the possession letter or handover record. Count five years from it.
2. Document the defect. Take dated photos and videos. For cracks, seepage or anything in the frame of the building, get a report from an independent structural engineer.
3. Give written notice to the promoter. Use email and a tracked letter. List each defect, attach the evidence and refer to section 14(3) and the 30-day period. Keep proof of delivery.
4. Allow access. MahaRERA's order told the complainants to cooperate with the repairs. Refusing the builder entry weakens your case.
5. Complain if nothing happens. After 30 days, file under section 31 with your state authority. Ask for rectification, and for compensation before the adjudicating officer. Where defects are in common areas, the society or association can file.

What this section does not do

• It is about the promoter's defects. Expect a builder to argue that damage came from an owner's own alterations, so keep a record of any work you have had done in the flat.
• It does not replace the society's own upkeep once the five years have run. The Bihar order records the authority telling a society to handle structural maintenance after the period.
• It does not fix a single rupee figure. Compensation is decided case by case.