Local Government New Zealand president and Hastings Mayor Lawrence Yule. Photo / File
Local Government New Zealand president and Hastings Mayor Lawrence Yule. Photo / File
Civil servants and tradespeople alike are erring on the side of caution when it comes to builders signing off on their own work.
This week the Government's rules reduction taskforce announced a recommendation to encourage builders who met certain levels of certification to self-certify.
Local Government New Zealand president Lawrence Yule said that, while he was not exactly aware of what builders could and could not sign off on, he acknowledged there were risks.
"I think the Government needs to tread very carefully in this space, because ultimately there are liabilities associated," he said.
"I doubt they are going to allow self-certification on things that would compromise structural integrity but, nonetheless, one small thing can lead to a bigger thing.
"So I am okay to consider some self-certification, as long as the risk associated with non-performance of that goes back to the builder and not to the council, because the council has no control of that."
I think the Government needs to tread very carefully in this space.
He said the problem local government had at present was that effectively councils took liability for 10 years after staff issued a code compliance certificate.
"So if something is wrong with that house in a 10-year period, [the owners] can potentially sue the council to get it repaired.
"Now councils have insurances and products to deal with that, and fortunately in Hawke's Bay it hardly ever happens," he said.
"But it does happen, and when that happens often you try and say: well, what was the builders' culpability?
"Depending on the scale of the claim, often the builder will wind a company up, so there is no one left."
Offering an industry view, local licensed builder Lans Hasselman from Titan Buildings said he could see the issue from both sides.
He said that, while he was happy to hear other points of view, council inspections were not only good for the industry but for the consumer as well.
"It is good to have that reassurance, a second set of eyes, a second opinion, a second brain and keeping it in check.
"I think it keeps you honest, more so than anything."
The announcement has already been met with resistance from the Home Owners and Buyers Association, and president John Gray said it could lead to another leaky building crisis.
Mr Yule agreed the announcement had the potential to lead to some more significant problems.
He noted, however, that the $12 billion leaky home crisis was systemic and much bigger than just one part of the industry.
"So I don't know if self-certification as being proposed by the minister will get anywhere near as significant a scale of impact," he said.
"But we do need to be mindful of what are the risks and liabilities and who is going to pick up the can if something goes wrong."
My Yule said that, in his capacity as Hastings mayor, one of the things he was hopeful of was that when shared services were looked at the region would gain some standardisation.
