The document pack
- As-built drawings — especially the electrical and plumbing layouts, showing where conduits and pipes actually run. You will need these the first time anyone drills a wall.
- Warranty certificates for joinery, hardware, appliances and waterproofing, with start dates.
- Material schedule — laminate codes, paint shades and codes, tile names and batch, stone supplier.
- Appliance manuals and registered warranties in your name.
- Spares — two spare tiles per type, a laminate offcut, touch-up paint, spare hinges.
- Contact list for the trades, for the next five years.
What to test before you sign
| System | Test |
|---|---|
| Electrical | Every socket with a tester, every switch, every circuit at the DB |
| Plumbing | Run every tap for two minutes; check under every trap for drips |
| Drainage | Fill and empty each basin and the shower; watch the fall |
| Joinery | Open and close every shutter and drawer twice |
| Lighting | All circuits, all dimmers, at night |
| Water pressure | Two outlets running at once in the same bathroom |
Cleaning and the state of the space
Handover should include a deep clean: construction dust removed from inside cabinets and lofts, protective film peeled off every surface, silicone haze removed from glass, grout haze off tiles, and the flat left ready to occupy. A space handed over dirty is usually a space handed over early, and the two problems tend to arrive together.
Administrative handover matters as much as the physical one. Collect every key and duplicate, the access cards or fobs, the gate pass returns, the society deposit acknowledgement and any utility meter readings taken on the day. These are trivial to gather at handover and tedious to chase a month later.
Partial and phased handover
On a phased project — an occupied flat done room by room, or an office wing by wing — each phase gets its own handover, its own snag list and its own sign-off. Do not let phases accumulate into a single handover at the end; by then nobody remembers which defect belonged to which phase. See warranty, AMC and our warranty and guarantee terms.
Frequently asked questions
What documents should I get at handover?+
As-built electrical and plumbing drawings, warranty certificates with start dates, the material and shade schedule, appliance manuals registered in your name, spares, and a trade contact list. Ask for these in the contract, not on the day.
Should I sign the handover before snags are closed?+
You can sign handover with an open snag list attached and a retention held against it — that is normal. What you should not do is sign a clean completion certificate while items are outstanding.
Who is responsible for cleaning at handover?+
The contractor. A deep clean including inside cabinets, protective film removal and grout haze is part of completing the work, not an extra. It should be listed in the scope.
When does the warranty period start?+
At handover, and the certificate should carry that date. Where handover is phased, each phase starts its own period — which is another reason to document each phase separately rather than bundling them.