International Construction Law Review
WHAT QUALIFIES AS A “DWELLING” UNDER THE DEFECTIVE PREMISES ACT 1972?1
Sheriar Khan and Nicholas Zeolla
Barristers, Atkin Chambers
This paper explores the question of what constitutes a “dwelling” for the purposes of section 1(1) of the Defective Premises Act 1972 (“the DPA”).2 It is a question of essential importance to the construction industry because it defines the type of property that will qualify for a DPA claim.
The DPA has received renewed consideration following the introduction of the Building Safety Act 2022 (“the BSA”) which was introduced in the wake of the 2017 Grenfell Tower tragedy to overhaul the building safety regime in the UK. Section 135 of the BSA puts the DPA at the heart of that transformative programme by retrospectively extending the limitation period for claims pursuant to section 1 of the DPA from six years to 30 years, thus reviving historic defect claims that would otherwise have been statute-barred.
A claim under section 1 of the DPA must be made in relation to work taken on “for or in connection with the provision of a dwelling”.3 The statute does not define the term “dwelling” and where the line should be drawn for the definition in the modern age of occupation is difficult to define.4
The present ambiguity around the definition of a “dwelling” presents arguable defences to claims under the extended limitation period of the BSA on the basis that the relevant building in question is not a dwelling and does not comprise individual dwellings.
1 This paper was a highly commended entry in the Society of Construction Law's Hudson essay competition 2025. It has been published by the SCL at www.scl.org.uk and is published here with the permission of the authors and the SCL. The views expressed by the authors in this paper are theirs alone, and do not necessarily represent the views of the Society of Construction Law or the editor. Neither the authors, the Society, nor the editor can accept any liability in respect of any use to which this paper or any information or views expressed in it may be put, whether arising through negligence or otherwise.
2 The word “dwelling” in this paper is taken to mean the same as the composite noun “dwelling-house”. This is because although “dwelling” is more commonly found in the statutory language, “dwelling” and “dwelling-house” have often been used interchangeably.
3 Section 1(1) DPA.
4 For example, one might spend several weeks in a hotel room; or many months of the year in a “holiday let” or Airbnb. An elderly parent might spend their days in a care home or in a nearby annex to the family home. Teenagers might spend weeknights at boarding school and weekends at home; and then, if they go to university, term time in shared student accommodation.
Pt 3] What Qualifies as a “Dwelling” Under the Defective Premises Act 1972?
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