Building or renovation work damaged a neighbour's property in Poland — who is liable?

The crew is knocking through walls, drilling, hauling rubble out by lorry — and a few days later your neighbour is at the door, unhappy: a wall has cracked, the render has scratches, the fence is damaged, or they couldn't get their car onto their own drive for a week. The question that comes up immediately is: who is liable for that — you, as the person who commissioned the work, or the contractor who actually caused the damage? The short answer: if you hired a professional building firm, it is normally the contractor — not you — who is liable for damage caused while carrying out the work, but there are exceptions to that rule, and in practice the neighbour may well approach both of you for an explanation. Here's how to tell the two situations apart, and how to protect yourself before the crew ever sets foot on site.

This guide is general legal information, not legal advice. How the rules apply depends on your individual circumstances, the wording of any contracts, the documents involved, and applicable time limits. Where advice or representation is needed, the matter should be assessed by a qualified Polish lawyer. Twoja Sprawa helps you organise the documents for that assessment.

Key points

• The neighbour has no contract with either you or the contractor — any claim they have rests on the rules governing tort (civil wrongs), not on the renovation contract.
• As a rule, if you hired a firm that carries out this type of work professionally, that firm is liable for damage caused to the neighbour while the work was being carried out — not you as the person who commissioned it.
• Exception: fault in choosing the contractor — if you hired someone with no qualifications, no registered business, "cash in hand, no invoice", liability can fall back on you.
• Documenting the state of the neighbour's property BEFORE work starts is the single most effective safeguard — without it, it is hard to establish what was already damaged and what happened during the works.
• The contractor's liability insurance is key — always ask about it before signing a contract, especially for work that affects the structure of a building.
• The neighbour, despite having no contract, can bring a claim directly against the contractor — it doesn't have to "go through" you first.

Whose liability is it — the person commissioning the work or the contractor

The basis for liability towards a neighbour with whom nobody has a contract is the general rules on tort (civil wrongs): whoever, through their own fault, causes damage to another is obliged to remedy it. The only real question is whose fault it is — yours, as the person commissioning the work, or the contractor who physically carried it out.

Polish civil law contains a useful rule here on liability towards third parties: a person who entrusts the performance of an activity to another person is, as a rule, not liable for damage caused by that other person while carrying out the entrusted activity — provided the activity was entrusted to a professional, meaning a person, business, or firm that carries out that type of work as part of its trade. In practice this means:

• If you hired a registered building firm for the scope of work you commissioned, it is normally the contractor who is liable for damage caused to the neighbour — not you.
• The contractor's own liability for its workers' actions rests on a separate rule — a firm is liable for damage caused through the fault of people who are under its direction while carrying out the work.
• The neighbour does not have to bring the claim against you first — they can go straight to the contractor as the party who caused the damage, even though no contract links the two of them.

Liability in tort towards a neighbour does not depend on whether you are a consumer or a business — these rules apply the same way in both cases. The consumer/business distinction matters more in your own relationship with the contractor, for example if you want to recover from the contractor any costs you've already covered for the neighbour's damage — the level of protection there can differ.

When liability can fall on you as the person who commissioned the work

The "the professional is liable, not you" rule has exceptions. Liability can come back to you if:

• You chose the contractor in a way that can be judged negligent on your part — for example, hiring someone with no registered business and no experience for work affecting the structure, "because it was cheap", despite clear signs they weren't qualified (so-called fault in selection).
• You carried out the work yourself, or decided how it should be done, with the contractor merely following your instructions — in that case it is more your own action than an independent decision by a professional.
• You failed to meet formal requirements applicable to that scope of work (e.g. notifying the relevant authority where required), and that failure was connected to the damage — though this needs to be assessed against the specific facts.
• You knowingly agreed to a risky way of carrying out the work — for example, you knew the crew was working without proper safeguards and did nothing about it.

For most typical renovations, where you hire a registered building firm, the risk of liability shifting onto you is limited — but it's worth keeping in mind, especially for work affecting structural elements, such as knocking down walls, foundation work, or drilling into party walls shared with a neighbour.

The role of the contractor's liability insurance

The contractor's public/professional liability insurance is, in practice, the single most important financial safeguard for both sides — for you and for the neighbour:

• If the contractor holds a current business liability policy, the neighbour's claim can be made directly to the contractor's insurer — this is normally the fastest route to compensation, without involving a court.
• It's worth asking about the liability policy before signing the contract, and ideally recording in the contract that the contractor holds it, and its scope — this makes it easier to pursue a claim if something goes wrong.
• The absence of a liability policy does not release the contractor from liability — it simply makes it harder to actually recover compensation, since you then have to pursue it directly against the contractor's assets.
• Your own home insurance (personal liability cover) usually does not cover damage caused by a professional contractor carrying out business activity — but check the terms of your own policy, as this varies.

How to protect yourself before work starts

The most effective safeguard takes one afternoon, before the crew ever arrives on site:

• Document the state of the neighbour's property — photos, and ideally a short video, of the render, party walls, fence, and driveway, with a date. Best done with the neighbour's knowledge and, ideally, in their presence.
• Suggest a joint condition report with the neighbour before work starts — even an informal one, signed by both of you, describing any existing cracks, damage, or the state of the render. This heads off disputes about "what was already there".
• Tell the neighbour in advance about the scope and nature of the work, especially if hammers, drills, or heavy equipment will be used — this is not just courtesy, it's evidence that you acted in good faith.
• Check whether the contractor has liability insurance, and where possible ask for a copy of the policy, or at least the policy number and insurer's details.
• Agree with the contractor how the neighbouring property will be protected during the work — covers, tarpaulins, limiting vibration — particularly for demolition work.

What to do once a neighbour reports damage

If damage has already occurred:

• Don't admit fault on the spot and don't make binding financial promises — the cause and extent of the damage need to be established first.
• Record the neighbour's report — the date, description, and any photos they show you.
• Tell the contractor about the report and ask for their position and their liability insurance details.
• Propose a joint inspection involving you, the neighbour, the contractor and, if the damage is significant, an independent expert (rzeczoznawca — a court-recognised technical valuer).
• Don't push for a quick, makeshift repair before the damage has been properly documented — that makes it harder to value and settle later, including with an insurer.

Documents and evidence to gather

Common mistakes

• No documentation of the neighbour's property before the renovation — without it, it's hard to prove a given crack didn't already exist.
• Hiring an unregistered, unqualified person for work affecting the structure "to save money" — this increases the risk that liability falls back on you.
• Ignoring the neighbour's report, hoping it will "blow over" — this escalates the dispute and makes an amicable solution harder.
• Quick, undocumented repairs to the neighbour's damage without prior photos and a cost estimate.
• Not telling the contractor about the reported damage and not immediately asking for their liability insurance details.
• Promising the neighbour a specific compensation figure before the cause has been established and without consulting the contractor or insurer.

Step-by-step

1. Before the renovation starts — document the state of the neighbour's property and check the contractor's liability insurance.
2. When a damage report comes in — accept it, document it (date, description, the neighbour's photos), and don't admit fault on the spot.
3. Tell the contractor and ask for their position and their liability insurer's details.
4. Propose a joint inspection — you, the neighbour, the contractor, and an expert if needed.
5. Establish whether the claim will be made against the contractor's liability policy, or pursued directly against the contractor.
6. Get a repair cost estimate and pass it to the party responsible for covering the damage.
7. If the matter doesn't progress amicably, consider a written letter before action and legal advice — particularly where the sum involved is significant.

Time limits

Because the neighbour's claim against the contractor (or, in exceptional cases, against you) is based on the rules on tort, different time limits apply than in an ordinary dispute with a contractor over a defect in the renovation itself:

• A claim for damages arising from a tort generally becomes time-barred 3 years from the date the injured party learned of the damage and of the person liable to remedy it, but no later than 10 years from the date of the event that caused the damage.
• If the neighbour's claim were based on some other footing (for example, if you personally entered into some arrangement about the works), different time limits could apply — each such situation needs to be assessed individually.
• Despite the relatively long time limit, the sooner the matter is reported and documented, the easier it is to establish the cause of the damage — evidence fades and witnesses' memories weaken over time.

Frequently asked questions

Can my neighbour sue me instead of the contractor? In theory they can pursue a claim against either of you, but if you hired a professional building firm, it is normally the contractor — not you — who is liable for damage caused while the work was carried out. That said, this doesn't rule out the neighbour approaching you first, simply because they know you and may not know the contractor.

Do I need my neighbour's consent to document the state of their property before the renovation? It's best done with their knowledge and, where possible, jointly — this strengthens the evidence and helps keep good neighbourly relations. Photographing your own side of a fence or render visible from your own property usually doesn't require consent, but stepping onto the neighbour's land does.

What if the contractor has no liability insurance at all? They are still liable for the damage caused, but recovering compensation is harder — you then have to go directly after their assets rather than an insurer. That's an additional reason to check for liability insurance at the point of choosing a contractor.

Are small cracks in the plaster always the renovation next door's fault? Not necessarily — cracks can have several causes, such as a building settling, pre-existing defects, or the age of the structure. That's why documenting the condition of the property before the renovation matters so much, and why, in disputed cases, an independent expert's opinion on the likely cause is valuable.

Is it worth reporting minor damage, or only serious damage? Even minor damage is worth reporting and documenting straight away — it's far easier to sort out at the time than to revisit months later, when it's hard to establish what actually happened.

Legal basis

This guide refers to the provisions of the Polish Civil Code on liability for tort and on liability for persons entrusted with carrying out an activity — among others, Articles 415, 429, 430 and 442¹ of the Act of 23 April 1964 – Civil Code (consolidated text: Dz.U. 2026 poz. 795) (the Polish Journal of Laws — the official publication of Polish statutes). Markers reading "to verify" indicate points whose current wording and application to a specific set of facts should be confirmed by a lawyer before publication — particularly the scope of the "fault in selecting the contractor" exception.

Related guides

• Liability of the site manager, designer and subcontractor for building defects (in Polish) — where the defect is on your own property and several firms worked on the build.
• Flooding during a renovation — who is liable and how to claim? (in Polish) — where the neighbour's damage is specifically water damage, not cracks or scratches.
• The building firm did poor-quality work — what are your options? (in Polish) — your own claims against the contractor for defects on your property.
• All guides on disputes with businesses (in Polish) — the full knowledge base on this topic.

Is a neighbour reporting damage after your renovation, or are you the neighbour who's been affected? Send us the photos, correspondence and the contractor's details — we'll help you organise the documents for further assessment. Submitting the form does not create a contract and does not commit you to anything.