• Hiring a tradesperson?
• What is sanitary plumbing and who can do it?
• What is gasfitting and who can do it?
• What is drainlaying and who can do it?
• Gasfitting certificates
• Licensed Building Practitioners
• Make a complaint

From 1 March 2012, Restricted Building Work came into effect. This applies to most residential building or renovation work and only a Licensed Building Practitioner can undertake or supervise the work. Licensed Building Practitioners include: designers, carpenters, roofers, external plasterers, brick and blocklayers and foundations specialists. Professional engineers, architects, plumbers and gasfitters are treated as Licensed Building Practitioners and can carry out some restricted building work.

To read more about the Licensed Building Practitioners Scheme visit www.builditright.govt.nz

Building consents

All work carried out at your property must meet the requirements of the Building Code, regardless of whether it requires a code of compliance certificate or not.

For more information on codes of compliance, certificates of acceptance and other building matters visit the Department of Building and Housing’s (DBH) website.

There you will also find a useful guide to plumbing, drainlaying and gasfitting work that does not require a building consent.

REMEMBER...

• It’s the homeowners responsibility to ensure a building consent is issued.
  
  
• It’s very important to be aware that persons carrying out sanitary plumbing, gasfitting and drainlaying work must be authorised by the Board to do so. The message is simple - ask a plumber, gasfitter or drainlayer for their authorisation card and if they can’t produce one, call the Board on 0800 743 262 to check they are authorised. Alternatively, you can check the Board’s online register to see if a plumber, gasfitter or drainlayer is authorised to carry out the work.
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• Gasfitting is a self-certifying trade. Certifying gasfitters issue a gas certificate (often referred to as a Energy Works Certificate) on the completion of work. Certain plumbing and drainlaying work may be required to undergo a building inspection, or for the certifier to issue a producer statement for their work.