Plumbers, Gasfitters
and Drainlayers Board
Certification Authorities
About Certification Authorities
Self-containment certification authorities (Certification Authorities) have important responsibilities in the self-contained vehicles regulatory system. Certification Authorities must carry out 'core functions', including appointing motor vehicle inspectors (Vehicle Inspectors), issuing certificates of self-containment (Certificates) for vehicles, and making entries in the register of self-contained vehicles (the Register). These core functions must be carried out in a way that meets the requirements in the Plumbers, Gasfitters, and Drainlayers Act 2006 (Act) and the Plumbers, Gasfitters, and Drainlayers (Self-Contained Vehicles) Regulations 2023 (Regulations).
Organisations and individuals can apply to be appointed as a Certification Authority. Appointments run for a five-year period, after which you can apply to be reappointed.
Working as a Certification Authority
Your core functions as a Certification Authority are:
- appointing motor vehicle inspectors (Vehicle Inspectors)
- issuing Certificates, and
- making entries in the Register
1. Appointing and managing Vehicle Inspectors
As a Certification Authority, you will need to appoint and manage Vehicle Inspectors. Vehicle Inspectors will complete inspections to assess whether vehicles meet the requirements for self-containment contained in the Regulations and provide you with the information you need to make certification decisions.
You need to manage your Vehicle Inspectors to ensure they are performing their role effectively and with integrity. This means that you must:
- ensure that Vehicle Inspectors are aware of and comply with the requirements for self-contained vehicle inspections and certification
- provide Vehicle Inspectors with technical advice and assistance to interpret the requirements for self-containment inspections and certification
- monitor the performance of your inspectors to ensure that they are consistently making correct certification decisions and that their inspections are robust
- assess the Vehicle Inspectors’ ongoing competencies, and
- manage conflicts of interest.
2. Issuing certificates of self-containment
As a Certification Authority, you are responsible for issuing Certificates and warrant cards for vehicles. This means you will need to:
- arrange for one of your appointed Vehicle Inspectors to inspect the vehicle and assess whether it meets the requirements for self-containment
- ensure that the Vehicle Inspector carries out the inspection in accordance with the Regulations (for further information, read the Vehicle inspection guidance ), and
- consider the findings of the inspection.
People who book an inspection for a Certificate or a renewal of the Certificate must pay you a levy of $104.35 excl GST ($120 incl GST). You must transfer the levy to the Board. You may charge a separate amount for your inspection and certification services.
3. Using the Register
You will need to enter vehicle and owner details into the Register.
Once a vehicle has been inspected and you are satisfied it meets the requirements for self-containment you will create a Certificate and Warrant Card, print them, and issue them to the vehicle owner.
We’ve created an infographic that shows a typical vehicle certification process. This shows the steps from when a Certification Authority receives a request to certify a vehicle, through to printing the Certificate and warrant card.
Being appointed as a Certification Authority
To be appointed as a Certification Authority, you need to:
- Compile all the information required (there is a checklist in the application form that details the policies and procedures we need you to supply)
- Submit your information and application form to applications@nzscv.co.nz
- Pay the required fee of $375 (excl GST) to the Board by bank transfer (bank details are on the application form)
If you’re appointed, we will:
- confirm your appointment in writing
- add you to the Register as a Certification Authority
- add you to the publicly searchable list of Certification Authorities at www.nzscv.co.nz (if you opt-in), and
- share further information about how to use the Register
Can I offer remote inspection services?
While the Act, Regulations, and Notice does not specify that a vehicle must be inspected in-person, the Board’s expectation is that inspections are carried out in-person wherever possible.
This expectation recognises that remote inspections present challenges and limitations that if not well managed are more likely to result in certification decisions being based on inaccurate and/or incomplete inspection information.
We appreciate that in some circumstances it may be appropriate for inspections to be carried out remotely, for example, where a vehicle is located in an area with limited access to a certification authority. However, where a vehicle is located in an area with access to other certification authorities that could provide in-person inspections, we would consider the provision of remote services in that instance to be inappropriate.
Where remote inspections are carried out the Board’s recommended vehicle inspection form (or similar) should be used to ensure that the assessment and findings are recorded in sufficient detail alongside any live stream video footage and/or photographs from the inspection. We consider any remote inspection should ideally be carried out over live stream video allowing for a real-time, two-way dialogue and sighting of equipment between the inspector and the vehicle owner.
Any certification authority who provides a remote inspection should clearly record the reason(s) for doing so on the vehicle inspection form and/or in-house files for auditing purposes.
If a certification authority issues a certificate where it could not be satisfied that:
-
the vehicle is equipped with a toilet that is permanently fixed to the vehicle and usable within the vehicle; and
-
it meets the requirements for self-containment prescribed in the Regulations —
from the information it has collected from a remote vehicle inspection, then that certification authority would not be carrying out its core functions lawfully and may risk losing its appointment.
