Exploring the Causes of Claims During the Project Life Cycle in the Iraqi Construction Sector

Abstract

The construction industry is complicated by many project partners and the difference in disciplines, opinions, and goals. These factors may lead to claims occurring between the parties. This research aims to find and arrange the most important root causes of construction claims in Iraq and classify them according to the causal category (owner, consultant, contractor, external factors) in the five stages of the project life cycle (feasibility study, planning, design, contracting, implementation). Through studying and analyzing the previous literature, a matrix was created consisting of a set of reasons for construction claims and reviewed by experts in construction claims management by conducting personal interviews and questionnaires.Then 128 projects were collected from eight ministries in Iraq and analyzed the reasons for the construction claims. The final results show a high percentage of matches between experts and real projects' opinions, at 81%. The owner was the most demanding category in Iraqi construction projects.The results also showed that the reasons for high claims occurring were related to three classes (owner, contractor, and consultant). At the same time, there were no reasons for extreme necessity about external factors.