NEC contracts

NEC contracts

About the NEC contracts

The NEC4 suite of contracts was published by the Institution of Civil Engineers on 22 June 2017. Some minor amendments were published in March 2019 (see News Analysis: Amendments to NEC4 contracts published), a second set of amendments was published in October 2020 (see News Analysis: NEC4 contracts—October 2020 amendments) and a third set was published in January 2023.

The previous suite of NEC contracts, NEC3, was published in 2005 and then revised in 2013 (see Practice Note: NEC3 contracts—April 2013 changes [Archived]).

For information about the key differences between NEC3 and NEC4, see Practice Note: NEC4 contracts—what’s changed? [Archived].

The NEC3 and NEC4 forms (together referred to as NEC contracts) are written in a different style of language and use different terminology to most other standard form contracts, and focus on good project management, co-operation and communication. The core principles are flexibility, simplicity and clarity and a stimulus for good management. For a glossary of NEC terms, see Practice Note: NEC contracts—glossary.

The contracts are designed to be flexible so that they can be used for all types of

To view the latest version of this document and thousands of others like it, sign-in with LexisNexis or register for a free trial.

TAKE A FREE TRIAL

Latest Construction News

DESNZ publishes onshore wind strategy

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) has published its onshore wind strategy, detailing how the UK government plans to scale up the deployment of onshore wind to support its 2030 clean power targets. The strategy sets out 42 government commitments aimed at removing barriers to onshore wind deployment and serves as the primary output from the Onshore Wind Taskforce, which was established in July 2024 and has since disbanded.

LCIA publishes 2024 casework report showing growth in international arbitration

The London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) has published its 2024 Annual Casework Report showing 362 referrals, with 318 under LCIA Rules. The report reveals 95% of cases were international, spanning 101 jurisdictions, with Kenya, the United States, Switzerland, UAE and Russia as top users. Transport and commodities led sectoral distribution at 29%. The report highlights lower costs compared to other institutions, particularly for disputes exceeding $100m, and increased use of procedural mechanisms including 19 expedited/emergency applications and 40 consolidation requests.

Construction weekly highlights—3 July 2025

This week's edition of Construction weekly highlights includes an analysis of the key features of the Joint Contracts Tribunal (JCT) Target Cost Contract 2024 suite, publication of four guides by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) on the JCT Target Cost Contract 2024 suite, proposed reforms by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) to the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) aimed at accelerating housebuilding and remediation work, guidance from MHCLG for Responsible Entities on the Developer Remediation Contract, the launch of the UK Climate Resilience Roadmap by UK Green Building Council (UKGBC), and a consultation from the Single Source Regulations Office (SSRO) on proposed updates to the baseline profit rate methodology for defence-related single source contracts.

HSE updates guidance on registered building inspectors

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has updated its guidance on registered building inspectors (RBIs), clarifying that individuals seeking to register as a class 2 or 3 RBI must complete a competency assessment through an approved scheme. As there is no such requirement for class 4 RBIs, references to competency assessments for class 4 registration have been removed from the guidance.