A Risk-Based Prioritization Framework for Contractual Claim Drivers in Public Construction Projects: Evidence from Kuwait

Disputes are common in the intricate professional setting of the construction sector. When claims cannot be resolved kindly, they often escalate into conflicts that result in litigation. Identifying the root reasons of these claims and understanding their effects on project timelines, costs, and quality can help prevent poor performance in construction contracts. This study makes a unique contribution by developing a cause of claims breakdown structure (CCBS) that systematically categorizes the most frequent roots of claims identified in the building sector through an extensive literature review, and by subsequently assessing these categories using expert-based relative importance indices (RII). Using relative importance indices derived from specialist opinions, the research provides likelihood and influence quantities for 15 typical claim sources in the building sector. These values offer stakeholders in public construction projects a framework for assessing risks and planning mitigation strategies for construction claims. The study reveals the five most significant risk factors for contractual claims in the Kuwait building sector. These issues are ambiguities in contract language, followed by weather-related disruptions, ineffective communication among stakeholders, inadequate planning, and regulatory changes.