Template

Force Majeure Notice Template: A Sample Letter You Can Adapt

Last updated October 2026 · 8 min read

The access road to Site has been underwater for two days, the Engineer's inbox is silent, and someone on the Project Manager's team just asked whether this even counts as force majeure or just bad luck. It is day two of a fourteen-day clock the team did not know had already started. This guide hands over a force majeure notice template you can fill in now, plus the rules that keep it valid once it is sent.

What a Force Majeure Notice Is — and Why 14 Days, Not 28

A force majeure notice is a short letter telling the Engineer that an exceptional event — one genuinely beyond the Contractor's control, unforeseeable at tender, and not the other Party's fault — is preventing performance of the Works. Like any FIDIC notice, it is the alarm, not the claim. It protects the entitlement; the detailed case follows later.

The trap is timing. Most FIDIC notices run on a 28-day clock from awareness: weather, unforeseen conditions, late access, delayed drawings. A team gets used to that rhythm. Force majeure breaks it. Under Sub-Clause 19.2 of the FIDIC 1999 Red Book, and its direct equivalent Sub-Clause 18.2 of the FIDIC 2017 Second Edition, the notice is due within 14 days of becoming aware, or of when the Contractor should have become aware, of the event — half the usual window.

Miss the 14 days and the clause's protection can be lost even though the underlying event was real and severe. A flood, a riot, or a war does not excuse a late notice — if anything, Engineers scrutinise force majeure notices harder, precisely because the stakes and the potential for abuse are both higher.

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Key Takeaway: A force majeure notice is due in 14 days, not the usual 28, under both Sub-Clause 19.2 (FIDIC 1999) and Sub-Clause 18.2 (FIDIC 2017). The event being extreme does not extend the deadline — if anything, the clock is tighter.

The Anatomy of a Valid Force Majeure Notice

Every valid force majeure notice contains the same building blocks:

A clear label — state plainly that this is a notice under the force majeure (or Exceptional Event) clause.
The clause relied on — Sub-Clause 19.2 (1999) or 18.2 (2017), plus the general claims clause that the entitlement sits subject to.
The date of awareness — when the Contractor knew, or should have known, the event was preventing performance. This date starts the 14-day clock.
A factual description of the event — what happened, where, and why it falls within one of the clause's listed categories rather than being ordinary bad luck.
The obligations prevented — which of the Contractor's obligations are, or will be, prevented by the event, as the clause specifically requires.
A reservation of rights — a statement that detailed particulars will follow within the contractual period.

Leave programme analysis, day counts, and cost figures out of this letter. Those belong in the particulars. The force majeure notice has one job: get the alarm out inside 14 days, correctly labelled and dated.

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Key Takeaway: Six parts make a valid notice — a clear label, the clause, the awareness date, the facts showing the event fits a listed category, the obligations prevented, and a reservation of the right to particulars. Keep the numbers for later.

Force Majeure Notice Template — Copy and Adapt

Here is a skeleton built around the FIDIC 1999 Red Book numbering. Replace everything in square brackets with your own facts, then delete the brackets.

[Date] To: [Engineer's name and company] Project: [Project name and contract reference] Notice of Force Majeure under Sub-Clause 19.2 The Contractor gives notice under Sub-Clause 19.2 of the Conditions of Contract that a Force Majeure event has occurred which is preventing performance of the Contractor's obligations under the Contract. The Contractor became aware of this event on [date of awareness]. The event is described as follows: [factual description of what happened, where on the Site, the relevant dates, and the category of Force Majeure it falls within — e.g. natural catastrophe, war, riot]. The obligations prevented, or expected to be prevented, by this event are: [name the specific obligations and activities affected, and why]. The Contractor reserves its right to an Extension of Time[, and to any associated Cost,] arising from this event, subject to Sub-Clause 20.1. Detailed particulars will be submitted within [42] days in accordance with the Contract, or sooner if practicable. A separate notice under Sub-Clause 20.1 is served by letter of even date to protect the Contractor's general claims entitlement. Yours faithfully, [Name] [Designation, for the Contractor]

Three warnings on the placeholders. First, bracket out ", and to any associated Cost," entirely unless the event falls within a Cost-bearing category — the next section explains which ones do. Second, the "[42] days" figure is the FIDIC 1999 default for particulars; a bespoke contract may set a different number. Third, for the FIDIC 2017 Second Edition, swap Sub-Clause 19.2 for 18.2, Sub-Clause 20.1 for 20.2, and 42 days for 84 — the skeleton itself does not change.

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Key Takeaway: One skeleton serves both FIDIC editions — swap 19.2 for 18.2, 20.1 for 20.2, and 42 days for 84 on the 2017 form. Only claim Cost in the bracket if the event's category actually carries it.

Worked Example: A Filled-In Force Majeure Notice

Here is the template filled in for a natural catastrophe — a typhoon that floods the only access road to Site, stopping all deliveries and labour movement. Notice how short it stays, and that it does not ask for Cost.

22 September 2026 To: Ms L. Fennimore, Resident Engineer, Fennimore & Partners Project: North Causeway Interchange — Contract NCI-2025-14 Notice of Force Majeure under Sub-Clause 19.2 The Contractor gives notice under Sub-Clause 19.2 of the Conditions of Contract that a Force Majeure event has occurred which is preventing performance of the Contractor's obligations under the Contract. The Contractor became aware of this event on 19 September 2026. On that date, Typhoon Marisol made landfall and flooded the single access road connecting Site to the regional highway to a depth of approximately 1.2 metres, a natural catastrophe within the meaning of the clause. Local authorities closed the road to all vehicles from 19 to 23 September 2026. The obligations prevented by this event are the delivery of precast girder segments scheduled for 20 and 21 September 2026, and the attendance of all Site labour, both of which depend on the flooded access road and cannot proceed by any alternative route. The Contractor reserves its right to an Extension of Time arising from this event, subject to Sub-Clause 20.1. Detailed particulars will be submitted within 42 days in accordance with the Contract, or sooner if practicable. A separate notice under Sub-Clause 20.1 is served by letter of even date to protect the Contractor's general claims entitlement. Yours faithfully, S. Adeyemi Project Manager, for the Contractor

That is the whole notice. It names the clause, fixes the awareness date, ties the event to a listed category, names the obligations prevented, and reserves only the right it is actually entitled to — time, not Cost, because a typhoon is a natural catastrophe.

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Key Takeaway: A real force majeure notice is short and precise about category. The worked example claims time only for a natural catastrophe — reserving Cost here would be a drafting error, not caution.

Time Only, or Time and Cost? Check the Category First

The clause lists several categories of qualifying event, and they do not all carry the same entitlement. War, hostilities, rebellion, terrorism, revolution, insurrection, riot and civil commotion by persons other than the Contractor's own personnel, and contamination by radioactivity or munitions of war can support a claim for Cost as well as time. Natural catastrophes — earthquake, hurricane, typhoon, volcanic activity — support an extension of time only.

The logic is deliberate: an act of nature is nobody's doing, so no Party pays the other's cost for it; the human-conflict categories are different, and Cost is available there. Draft the notice to match. Reserving Cost after a typhoon or an earthquake signals, before the Engineer reads a single further word, that the clause has not been read closely — and it can taint an otherwise valid time claim.

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Key Takeaway: Time is available for any qualifying Force Majeure event. Cost is available only for the human-conflict categories — war, terrorism, riot, radiation — never for a natural catastrophe like a typhoon or earthquake.

Don't Rely on the Force Majeure Notice Alone

The entitlement under the force majeure clause is expressed as being subject to the Contract's general claims machinery — Sub-Clause 20.1 under FIDIC 1999, Sub-Clause 20.2 under FIDIC 2017. In practice that means two separate obligations run in parallel, not one in place of the other.

A prudent Contractor treats the 14-day force majeure notice as the first, fastest alarm, and also serves the ordinary 28-day general claims notice on its own clock, even though both are usually triggered by the same event on the same day. Serving only the faster notice and assuming it covers everything is how the Cost element — where the category allows one — ends up unprotected.

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Key Takeaway: The 14-day force majeure notice and the 28-day general claims notice (Sub-Clause 20.1 or 20.2) are two separate obligations running in parallel. Serve both — one does not substitute for the other.

Common Force Majeure Notice Mistakes

Most rejected force majeure notices fail for a short, repeatable list of reasons:

Applying the 28-day habit. The single most common error — serving the notice on day 20, well past the 14-day cutoff that this clause actually sets.
Claiming Cost for a natural catastrophe. Only the human-conflict categories carry Cost; asking for it after a flood, storm, or earthquake invites an easy rejection.
No category stated. A letter that complains about disruption without tying it to a listed category reads as a general complaint, not a force majeure notice.
Serving only the force majeure notice. Skipping the parallel general claims notice can leave the Cost element unprotected even when the 14-day notice itself was on time.
Vague obligations. Saying the Works are "affected" without naming which specific obligations are prevented leaves the notice open to challenge.
Wrong particulars deadline. Writing 28 days where the 42-day (1999) or 84-day (2017) particulars period belongs — two different deadlines, never swap them.

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Key Takeaway: Notices fail for applying the wrong 28-day habit, claiming Cost on a natural catastrophe, no stated category, skipping the parallel claims notice, vague obligations, and swapped deadlines. A trusted template prompts for each part.

Sending, Logging, and Proving Delivery

A perfect notice that cannot be proven delivered is only half a notice, and with a 14-day window there is even less room to recover from a delivery dispute than with the usual 28 days.

Check the contract's notices clause first — many FIDIC contracts specify the valid address and method, sometimes a named email, sometimes a physical address. Send by that method, and keep the proof: for email, the sent message with its timestamp and any read receipt; for a registered letter or courier, the signed proof of delivery.

Then log it immediately, before the flood, the riot, or the aftermath of either takes attention elsewhere. Record the date sent, the clause, the event, the method, and where the proof of delivery is filed. On a 14-day clock, the record needs to exist from day one, not reconstructed from memory weeks later.

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Key Takeaway: Send by the contract's specified method, keep proof of delivery, and log the notice the same day it is sent. The 14-day window leaves far less margin to fix a delivery problem than the usual 28 days does.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many days does the Contractor have to send a force majeure notice?

14 days from when the Contractor became aware, or should have become aware, of the event — under both Sub-Clause 19.2 of the FIDIC 1999 Red Book and Sub-Clause 18.2 of the FIDIC 2017 Second Edition. That is half the usual 28-day window most other FIDIC notices allow, so it is the deadline most often missed by a team applying the wrong clock.

Is a separate particulars submission needed after the force majeure notice?

Yes. The 14-day notice is only the alarm. The entitlement to an extension of time and, where it applies, Cost is expressed as subject to the Contract's general claims machinery — Sub-Clause 20.1 under FIDIC 1999 or Sub-Clause 20.2 under FIDIC 2017 — so detailed particulars are still due within 42 days (1999) or 84 days (2017), and the parallel general claims notice should be served on its own clock too.

Does a force majeure notice entitle the Contractor to Cost as well as time?

It depends on the category of event. War, hostilities, rebellion, terrorism, riot, and contamination by radioactivity or munitions of war can support a Cost claim as well as time. Natural catastrophes such as earthquake, hurricane, typhoon, or volcanic activity support an extension of time only, not Cost. Check the category before drafting the notice.

Can the same template be used for an Exceptional Event under the FIDIC 2017 edition?

Yes. The skeleton is identical — only the clause numbers and the particulars period change. Swap Sub-Clause 19.2 for 18.2, Sub-Clause 20.1 for 20.2, and the 42-day particulars period for 84 days. The 14-day notice deadline itself is the same under both editions.

What is the single biggest reason a force majeure notice gets rejected?

Treating it like an ordinary FIDIC notice and serving it on the usual 28-day rhythm — by day 15 the 14-day window has already closed. The second most common reason is claiming Cost for a natural catastrophe, a category that only ever carries time.

Authoritative Sources

This guide reflects the FIDIC Conditions of Contract and established construction-law authority. For the primary materials, see:

FIDIC Conditions of Contract — the official contract suite published by the International Federation of Consulting Engineers, which sets out the Force Majeure / Exceptional Event provisions in Clause 19 (1999) and Clause 18 (2017), and the Sub-Clause 20.1/20.2 claims procedure they sit subject to.
Obrascon Huarte Lain SA v HM Attorney General for Gibraltar — the leading authority on the validity and timing of a notice of claim under the general FIDIC claims clause that a force majeure notice runs alongside.

About the Author

Muhammad M. Jiwani is a Project Director with 15 years' experience on major infrastructure and energy projects administered under FIDIC contracts. He writes from first-hand experience serving notices and managing contractual claims on live projects.

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