Snagging & Defects

Snagging is the systematic inspection of a newly completed unit to identify defects before you accept handover — paint and finishing flaws, tiling and grouting issues, misaligned doors and joinery, plumbing leaks, electrical faults, air conditioning performance, balcony drainage, and waterproofing. It matters because your leverage is highest before acceptance: documented snags become the developer's rectification list, whereas issues discovered after you have signed and moved in are easier for a contractor to deprioritise or dispute.

Under Dubai's established norms, the developer is liable for structural defects for 10 years from the completion certificate, and for defects in mechanical, electrical, and plumbing installations — air conditioning, wiring, pipework, and similar — for one year. These liability periods are anchored in the legal framework and standard SPA terms rather than optional goodwill. The one-year MEP window is the practical one for most owners: report faults formally and in writing within it, because claims raised afterwards are far harder to enforce.

For most buyers, yes. Professional inspectors typically survey a unit systematically with thermal imaging, moisture meters, and MEP testing, and produce a photographic report that can run to hundreds of items — far beyond what an untrained walkthrough catches, particularly for hidden issues like poor insulation, ductwork faults, or waterproofing gaps. Fees are modest relative to the purchase price. A formal third-party report also carries more weight with developer handover teams than a hand-written list, and supports re-inspection after rectification.

The developer's handover or customer care team logs the reported defects and schedules rectification by its contractors, after which you re-inspect — called de-snagging — to confirm items are properly closed rather than cosmetically patched. Agree timelines in writing and keep the full paper trail: original report, correspondence, and the de-snag results. Reasonable defects should not be used to delay handover indefinitely on either side, but you are entitled to have legitimate items rectified; persistent non-performance can be escalated to the DLD.

Report them to the developer in writing immediately, referencing the applicable liability period — one year for MEP systems, ten for structural matters — and keep dated photographic evidence. Most established developers operate customer-care processes that handle warranty claims routinely. If the developer does not respond, escalation paths include formal complaint to the DLD/RERA and, for significant losses, the Dubai courts, where expert technical reports carry weight. For building-wide defects in common areas, the owners' association management leads the claim.

Yes, though differently. Your personal snagging covers your unit; common areas — lobbies, lifts, pools, gyms, parking, facades, landscaping — are inspected and taken over from the developer by the owners' association management, which holds the developer to the same defect liability framework on behalf of all owners. Early owners in a new tower benefit from engaging with the OA process, because a rigorous common-area handover affects service charges and long-term building condition far more than any single unit's paintwork.