Delaware Code

10 Del. C. § 8127 (2026)

Alleged deficiencies in the construction of improvements to real property

✓ current as of May 2026

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(a) As used in this section:

(1) “Action” shall include actions at law or in equity, or otherwise, instituted and/or prosecuted by or on behalf of this State, any of its agencies, commissions, departments or political subdivisions, and by or on behalf of any other governmental subdivision, agency, department or body, as well as by or on behalf of private individuals, persons, parties, corporations, partnerships, associations and other entities.

(2) “Construction” shall include construction, erection, building, alteration, reconstruction and destruction of improvements to real property.

(3) “Contract” shall mean the prime or general contract between the general contractor, on the one hand, and the owner or agent of the owner of the real property upon which or to which the construction is to be performed or the owner or agent of the owner of the improvement to be constructed, on the other hand.

(4) “Deficiency” shall include acts and actions performed and failures to act and omissions.

(5) “Improvement” shall include buildings, highways, roads, streets, bridges, entrances and walkways of any type constructed thereon, and other structures affixed to and on land, as well as the land itself, except that such term shall not include buildings, entrances, walkways and structures used or intended to be used at the time of such construction primarily for residential purposes and uses.

(6) “Person” shall include individuals, corporations, partnerships, firms, individual proprietorships and associations of persons.

(b) No action, whether in or based upon a contract (oral or written, sealed or unsealed), in tort, or otherwise, to recover damages or for indemnification or contribution for damages, resulting:

(1) From any alleged deficiency in the construction or manner of construction of an improvement to real property and/or in the designing, planning, supervision and/or observation of any such construction or manner of construction; or

(2) From any alleged injury to property, real, personal or mixed, arising out of any such alleged deficiency; or

(3) From any alleged personal injuries arising out of any such alleged deficiency; or

(4) From any alleged wrongful death arising out of any such alleged deficiency; or

(5) From any alleged trespass arising out of any such alleged deficiency; or

(6) From any alleged injury unaccompanied with force or resulting indirectly from any such alleged deficiency;

shall be brought against any person performing or furnishing, or causing the performance or furnishing of, any such construction of such an improvement or against any person performing or furnishing, or causing the performing or furnishing of, any such designing, planning, supervision, and/or observation of any such construction or manner of construction of such an improvement, after the expiration of 6 years from whichever of the following dates shall be earliest:

a. The date of purported completion of all the work called for by the contract as provided by the contract if such date has been agreed to in the contract itself;

b. The date when the statute of limitations commences to run in relation to the particular phase or segment of work performed pursuant to the contract in which the alleged deficiency occurred, where such date for such phase or segment of work has been specifically provided for in the contract itself;

c. The date when the statute of limitations commences to run in relation to the contract itself where such date has been specifically provided for in the contract itself;

d. The date when payment in full has been received by the person against whom the action is brought for the particular phase of such construction or for the particular phase of such designing, planning, supervision, and/or observation of such construction or manner of such construction, as the case may be, in which such alleged deficiency occurred;

e. The date the person against whom the action is brought has received final payment in full, under the contract for the construction or for the designing, planning, supervision, and/or observation of construction, as the case may be, called for by contract;

f. The date when the construction of such an improvement as called for by the contract has been substantially completed;

g. The date when an improvement has been accepted, as provided in the contract, by the owner or occupant thereof following the commencement of such construction;

h. For alleged personal injuries also, the date upon which it is claimed that such alleged injuries were sustained; or after the period of limitations provided in the contract, if the contract provides such a period and if such period expires prior to the expiration of 2 years from whichever of the foregoing dates is earliest.

(c) Nothing in this section shall extend or lengthen, nor shall anything in this section be construed or interpreted as extending or lengthening, the period otherwise prescribed by the laws of this State for the bringing of any action covered by this section.

(d) The limitations prescribed by this section shall not be available by way of a defense to any person in actual possession or actual control, as owner, tenant or otherwise, of such an improvement at the time when the alleged deficiency in such an improvement constitutes the proximate cause of the injury or death for which it is proposed to bring an action.

10 Del. C. 1953, § 8126; 57 Del. Laws, c. 568, § 1;

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 13 cases (5 in the last 5 years), 1983–2025 · leading case: Windley v. Potts Welding & Boiler Repair, Co., 888 F. Supp. 610 (D. Del. 1995).

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Windley v. Potts Welding & Boiler Repair, Co., 888 F. Supp. 610 (D. Del. 1995). · cites it 5× “” That law is a statute of repose which imposes a six-year limitation on actions for damages resulting from deficiencies in the construction or manner of construction, 2 or in the designing, planning or supervision of the construction of an improvement to real property, except…”

Cheswold Volunteer Fire Co. v. Lambertson Constr. Co., 462 A.2d 416 (Del. Super. Ct. 1983). “As noted earlier, 10 Del.C. § 8127 provides [in pertinent part]: “No action whether in or based upon a contract .”

326 Assocs. LP v. Progressive Servs. Inc (Del. Super. Ct. 2016). · cites it 6× “Progressive filed a motion to dismiss on December 7, 2015, arguing that 326 Associates is barred from maintaining an action against Progressive due to a six year statute of repose under 10 Del. C. § 8127 (“Section 8127”).1 326 Associates responded to Progressive’s motion to…”

The Cincinnati Ins. Co. a/s/a Green Recovery Tech., LLC v. The Commonwealth Grp. (Del. Super. Ct. 2024). · cites it 4× “”14 A statute of repose, however, can begin to run before the cause of action arises15 because it begins irrespective of the date of injury.”

Maple v. Delaware Dep't of Nat. Resources & Env't Control (D. Del. 2023). · cites it 4× “Stated another way, the Builders’ Statute provides a six-year limitation period for actions for damages, indemnification, or contribution for property damage, real, personal, or mixed, arising out of any deficiency in the construction of an improvement to real property or the…”

Wilmington Sav. Fund Soc'y, FSB v. E. Sign Tech, LLC (D.N.J. 2025). · cites it 3× “” 10 Del. C. § 8127. The six-year period, it argues, expired well before WSFS filed its Complaint and EST filed its crossclaim.”

Summers v. Cabela's Wholesale, Inc. (Del. Super. Ct. 2019). · cites it 2× “1982)) (holding that 10 Del. C. § 8127 does not violate the Remedy for Injury Clause of the Article l, Section 9 of the Delaware Constitution).”

August v. Hernandez (Del. Super. Ct. 2020). · cites it 2× “””? Plaintiff seeks leave to amend to add the Statute of Repose, 10 Del. C. § 8127.*° She wishes to use the statute to add a statutory cause of action.”

Rummel Klepper & Kalh, LLP v. Delaware River & Bay Auth. (Del. Ch. 2022). · cites it 2× “43 Section 8127, sometimes referred to as the Delaware “Builder’s Statute,” provides a six-year limitations period on actions for damages, indemnification, or contribution for damages resulting from any deficiency in the construction of an improvement to real property or the…”

Two Farms, Inc. v. Davis (Del. Super. Ct. 2017). “Whether Two Farms’s Complaint is Barred Silicato’s final ground for dismissal is that the Statute of Repose found at 10 Del. C. § 8127 (hereinafcer the “Builder’s Statute”) allegedly bars Two Farms’s claims since they were brought more than six years after Work by DBF was…”

St. Philip's Evangelical Lutheran Church of Wilmington, Delaware v. Delmarva Power & Light Co. (Del. Super. Ct. 2018). “”10 The designated dates include the date of completion set forth in the contract, the date of payment and the date of substantial completion.11 Plaintiff’s Complaint was filed January 10, 2018.”

JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. v. Claudio Ballard (Del. Ch. 2019). “The statute thereby precludes legal challenges by those whose harm was discovered and accrued after the sixty days have passed, such of any improvement to real property .”

Show all 13 citing cases →

— 10 Del. C. § 8127(a)(2) — 1 case

The Cincinnati Ins. Co. a/s/a Green Recovery Tech., LLC v. The Commonwealth Grp. (Del. Super. Ct. 2024). “”14 A statute of repose, however, can begin to run before the cause of action arises15 because it begins irrespective of the date of injury.”

— 10 Del. C. § 8127(a)(4) — 1 case

Windley v. Potts Welding & Boiler Repair, Co., 888 F. Supp. 610 (D. Del. 1995). “” That law is a statute of repose which imposes a six-year limitation on actions for damages resulting from deficiencies in the construction or manner of construction, 2 or in the designing, planning or supervision of the construction of an improvement to real property, except…”

— 10 Del. C. § 8127(a)(5) — 1 case

Wilmington Sav. Fund Soc'y, FSB v. E. Sign Tech, LLC (D.N.J. 2025). “” 10 Del. C. § 8127. The six-year period, it argues, expired well before WSFS filed its Complaint and EST filed its crossclaim.”

— 10 Del. C. § 8127(b) — 2 cases

Rummel Klepper & Kalh, LLP v. Delaware River & Bay Auth. (Del. Ch. 2022). “43 Section 8127, sometimes referred to as the Delaware “Builder’s Statute,” provides a six-year limitations period on actions for damages, indemnification, or contribution for damages resulting from any deficiency in the construction of an improvement to real property or the…”

— 10 Del. C. § 8127(b)(1) — 2 cases

Maple v. Delaware Dep't of Nat. Resources & Env't Control (D. Del. 2023). “Stated another way, the Builders’ Statute provides a six-year limitation period for actions for damages, indemnification, or contribution for property damage, real, personal, or mixed, arising out of any deficiency in the construction of an improvement to real property or the…”

— 10 Del. C. § 8127(b)(6) — 1 case

326 Assocs. LP v. Progressive Servs. Inc (Del. Super. Ct. 2016). “Progressive filed a motion to dismiss on December 7, 2015, arguing that 326 Associates is barred from maintaining an action against Progressive due to a six year statute of repose under 10 Del. C. § 8127 (“Section 8127”).1 326 Associates responded to Progressive’s motion to…”

— 10 Del. C. § 8127(b)(6)(a) — 1 case

— 10 Del. C. § 8127(b)(6)(d) — 1 case

— 10 Del. C. § 8127(b)(6)(f) — 1 case

— 10 Del. C. § 8127(d) — 1 case

Maple v. Delaware Dep't of Nat. Resources & Env't Control (D. Del. 2024).

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