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Those who renovate their homes are often forced to deal not only with construction sites, dust and daily hassles, but also with a question that few ask in advance: if during the work the property of the neighbor is damaged, who is required to compensate them?
The matter is far from trivial and involves complex legal aspects concerning civil liability, supply contract and neighborly relations. Cracks in walls, leaks, structural vibrations: the collateral damage in a renovation can be many and costly.
Understanding in advance how the law works in these situations can make the difference between a quickly resolved dispute and years of litigation.
The general rule
A basic principle in this matter is that, when a construction company causes damage to third parties during the execution of the works, the responsibility lies with the contractor and not with the person who commissioned the works. This orientation was recently reiterated by the Court of Messina with sentence no. 93 of January 20, 2026, which specified the way the company operates with full organizational and administrative autonomy.
Being autonomous in its operational choices, the contractor is the one who assumes the risk of execution and is directly responsible for any damage caused to third parties during the work. The owner of the property, however, cannot be equated with an employer who is responsible for the acts of his employees, because there is no relationship of servitude between the client and the company.
In practical terms, this means that the damaged neighbor will have to claim directly from the company carrying out the liability insurance and not from the owner who commissioned the works.
It is also worth remembering that since this is damage suffered by a party unrelated to the contract, the rules for extra-contractual tort apply, with a five-year statute of limitations rather than the shorter two-year period provided for defects in the work.
When the owner can also answer
The general rule has some important exceptions that every customer should be aware of. The first concerns the case in which the owner intervenes directly in the management of the construction site, giving technical instructions so detailed and binding that the company’s autonomy is effectively nullified. In this scenario the company becomes a mere material executor of the orders received, what it calls the doctrine naked minister and responsibility is shifted, at least in part, to the customer.
The second exception is the so-called wrong selection: if the owner deliberately or with gross negligence chooses a company that does not have the necessary technical skills to carry out complex work, he can be held responsible for the damages caused by this reckless choice.
Therefore, it is necessary, before commissioning a renovation, to make sure that the company is regularly registered with the Chamber of Commerce, has the necessary certifications and is covered by an adequate insurance policy. Relying on unknown or unprofessional companies to save money on the appraisal can turn into a much more serious legal and financial problem.
