Builders Playing the Force Majeure Card? Find Out What RERA Has To Say

RERA I Force Majeure: Are you unable to access your flat or home even after making your EMI payments linked to your home loan on time? This could be the case if the developer is utlising the term "force majeure" everytime you ask for your house keys. What this term essentially mean is "uncontrollable circumstances". 

Well, the query you should be raising is what is the legal recourse under RERA (Real Estate Regulatory Authority) to address delays which fall under the category of force majuere. 

The force majeure clause Section 6 under the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act 2016 allows developers to apply for extensions when their projects face delays caused by ‘force majeure’ events.

Usually, these events could be categorised as unforeseeable and beyond the builder's control, and so, they need more time to finish the project.

A ‘force majeure’ event is considered as a “case of war, flood, drought, fire, cyclone, earthquake or any other calamity caused by nature affecting the regular development of the real estate project,” according to the Act.

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Reportedly, real estate players are known to use events like earthquakes, floods, and court injunctions as resonable grounds for invoking force majeure.

While force majeure is considered a legitimate defense, its undocumented or wrongful use is a frequent point of litigation. Builders often attempt to classify generic commercial difficulties under this clause, but courts have insisted on a strict interpretation. Judicial pronouncements require developers to show a causal nexus, which means that the event must directly impede performance.

To avail relief under this clause, real estate developers are required to submit credible documentary evidence and a formal application using the Form REP-V. 

While RERA has no statutory obligation to grant extensions, it generally does provide extra time to builders in cases of court orders, or the pandemic, where such extensions were granted en masse.