Note
Chasing Overdue Retention in Writing
Retention is the one part of a construction contract where the subcontractor holds all the risk and none of the initiative. The main contractor keeps a percentage of every payment. The defects period runs. Unless somebody on the subcontract side sends a formal written request for release, the retention stays where it is, often long after the right to release it has passed.
Most overdue retention does not stay overdue because the main contractor decided to keep it. It stays overdue because nobody asked for it in writing. A verbal reminder in a site meeting does not count. A mention at the end of a phone call does not count. What the contract responds to is a written request, sent to the right person, citing the right clause, at the right time.
Why does the defects period end date matter so much?
The defects period is the window after practical completion during which the subcontractor is expected to return and fix any defects the main contractor identifies. When that period ends, one of two things happens.
In a well-written contract, the retention is released automatically or within a defined number of days of the period ending. In a common subcontract, the release requires an active step from the main contractor, such as issuing a written release notice, but no timeframe is defined for that step.
In either case, the expiry of the defects period is the moment your right to release vests. Whether the contract requires their active step or not, a written request on or before that date creates a dated record that you asked, and it starts any clock that is defined in the clause. A paper trail that begins one week before the period ends is more useful than one that begins three months after.
What should a written retention release request contain?
The request does not have to be a formal letter. It can be an email or a LINE message, provided you keep a screenshot filed by contract reference. It needs to include six things to remain useful if the release is later disputed:
Contract reference. Name the contract by its document number and the date it was signed. This anchors the request to the specific agreement the main contractor’s accounts team will look up.
The retention clause. Quote the clause number, not a paraphrase. “Clause 14.2” tells the accounts team which paragraph to open. A paraphrase opens an argument about interpretation before the request has even been read.
The completion date and the defects period end date. State both in the same message. “Practical completion was certified on 12 March 2026. The 12-month defects period therefore ends on 12 March 2027.” Do not assume the accounts team is tracking this. Their file may list a different completion date. Putting both dates on the record surfaces any disagreement before it becomes a delay.
The amount you are requesting. State the total retention held across all stages and the amount covered by this release. If the contract provides for partial release at practical completion and a second tranche at end of defects, state which tranche this request covers.
Your current banking details. A common delay is the accounts team not knowing which account to use because the subcontractor’s details changed since signing. Include them in the request, even if unchanged.
A response date. Even when the contract does not define a timeframe, naming one in your request creates the basis for a follow-up and signals that this is a formal request, not a casual enquiry.
A worked example: three stages, one defects period
A partitions and ceiling subcontractor completed installation across three project phases. The main contractor withheld a retention percentage from each stage payment. The same defects period applied to all three phases.
Practical completion was certified in February 2025. The 12-month defects period ended in February 2026. No defects had been reported in writing during the period.
One week before the defects period ended, the subcontractor sent an email citing the contract number, the clause, both dates, the three retention amounts by invoice number, current bank account details, and a response date of ten working days. The main contractor’s accounts team responded in nine days, confirmed the amounts, and released payment on the next scheduled payment run.
Had the subcontractor waited for the main contractor’s side to notice the period had expired, nothing would have moved. The project manager who handled this contract had already moved to a different project. Accounts teams do not monitor subcontract defects periods on their own.
What to do when the request goes unanswered
Send a second written request with one addition: “This is a follow-up to my request dated [date], to which I have not received a response.” Copy it to the same address and add one level up in the organisation if you have that contact.
Repeat at intervals of no more than two weeks. Each message adds a dated record of the request and the non-response.
If several written requests produce nothing, two further steps become relevant: a formal letter of demand by registered mail, which is harder to ignore and whose receipt is recorded, and a conversation through whoever holds the commercial relationship with the main contractor.
What you should not do is wait in silence. Every week without follow-up is a week in which the main contractor’s file contains one fewer dated request. The paper trail is the asset that makes any later conversation, or any escalation, easier to support.
FAQ
Does it matter whether I send the request by LINE or email?
Both create a dated record, which is the core requirement. Email is preferable because the timestamp is harder to dispute and the thread is straightforward to forward if the matter escalates. A LINE message works, but screenshot it and file the image by contract reference rather than leaving it in the app’s archive. If the defects period has already expired and a previous request went unanswered, send the follow-up by email and follow it with a registered letter.
What if the contract does not define a release trigger?
A contract without a defined release trigger does not remove your right to request release. It removes the defined clock that starts running when you make the request. Send the request anyway, name a reasonable response date in the message, and keep the send record. The absence of a specific clause only becomes a significant risk if the matter escalates to a formal dispute, at which point your dated request is the evidence that you asked and received no response.
Can the main contractor withhold retention after the defects period on the basis of defects they never reported in writing?
A defect claim that arrives after the defects period ends, and after a written release request has been submitted, is on weaker ground than a defect reported during the period and left open. If a defect is raised for the first time in response to your release request, your dated paper trail shows that no defect was reported in writing before you asked. That is a materially different position from a defect that was reported and remains unresolved.
Knowing which retention is overdue and building the written requests are two different jobs. If you want to count what is outstanding and draft the release requests with the right references, a 45-minute call is the right format. We open one contract together and build the paper trail from what we find.