Building Inspections
Building Team Update
Under the Building Act 2004 the statutory clock stops on 20 December 2024 and restarts on 10 January 2025. The Building Team continues to receive and work on consents up to 24 December 2024 and recommences on 6 January 2025.
The last day for Building Inspections will be 24 December 2024 and will resume again on 6 January 2025.
New procedures with inspections
The building team will experience some resourcing challenges during November and December 2024.
To reduce any potential impacts, external contractors have been engaged to assist in the processing of building consents in a timely manner. This will enable the CODC team to continue to prioritise inspections.
We would like to thank everyone in advance for their patience and understanding during this time.
More information about booking an inspection is listed below.
Booking Building Inspections
Building Inspectors will inspect your building activities to ensure they comply with the approved plans. Some consents will require several different inspections depending on the nature and purpose of the building. The number of inspections required will depend on the complexity of the building and the systems within it.
Once your building consent has been granted and issued, we will send it to your digitally, allowing you to book inspections. Your building consent contains valuable information, such as advice notes, conditions and the list of inspections that will be needed for your project.
If it is determined that a resource consent is needed to undertake the activity, a certificate is issued under Section 37 of the Building Act. This certificate prohibits work commencing until resource consent issues have been resolved, even if your building consent has been issued. A building inspection will not be able to be booked until the Section 37 has been lifted. If you are unsure why you require a resource consent, please contact resource.consents@codc.govt.nz
***
Building inspection waiting times
Waiting is much easier if you have a guide on how long you'll be waiting right? Below are the current waiting times for booking a building inspection. We hope that our daily updates on this page will help you manage the projects you are working on:
As of Thursday 3 October 2024, our inspection waiting times are as follows:
Alexandra: 6 Business Days
Roxburgh: 4 Business Days
Maniototo: 8 Business days
Queensbury: 10 Business Days
Cromwell: 11 Business Days
Types of Inspections
While we are processing your building consent application, we will determine what inspections will be necessary for us to be satisfied on reasonable grounds that compliance with the NZ Building Code will be achieved.
Each inspection will be identified along with the requirements for that particular inspection. A list of the inspections we need to carry out will be attached to your building consent. Your building consent must be available on site if requested for inspections. It is not necessary for someone to be on site providing the inspector has full access to the site.
If non-compliant work is discovered during an inspection a site notice will be issued. If it is a serious non-compliance, then a Notice to Fix may be issued requiring all work to stop or a conditional continuation of work until the non-compliance is resolved.
Some of the things we will be checking for include:
- drainage, including drains under buildings
- excavation for a foundation
- reinforcing steel for a foundation
- any other steel to be embedded in concrete
- any damp proof membrane or tanking to be covered (including tiles over a membrane)
- any flashing/sill wrapping/cavity batten that will be concealed on completion
- lintels and half high veneer
- coating of any monolithic cladding
- pre-wrap - where structure is to be enclosed
- pre-lining - plumbing, timber framing and insulation
- post-lining but before plaster stopping - firewalls and bracing walls
- heating appliance clearances
- a final inspection to confirm all work as complete
Specialist Inspections
In addition to the inspections by Council inspectors, inspections may be required by specialists including structural, geotechnical and fire engineers. You will need to liaise directly with your specialist about the inspections he/she will need to make. Your specialist may not be able to give you the required Producer Statement if you have failed to arrange for inspections at the appropriate times.
***
Book an Inspection
For Restricted Building Work (RBW) you must notify Council in writing of the Licensed Building Practitioner(s) (LBPs) who will be doing the work before you can book the first inspection. (If you filled them in on the building consent application form in the first instance and they have not changed you are able to book an inspection.)
Key Personnel and Licenced Building Practitioners Form - PDF
Request an inspection – online form
Phone (03) 440 0056 to arrange an inspection. Please note that the more notice you can give us the better, as inspection capability can vary as the demand for inspections vary. We need a minimum of 72 hours notice, but are currently booking inspections a week out. Due to the size of the Central Otago district, our building inspectors are only in some areas on certain days of the week (e.g., Roxburgh and surrounding areas we visit on a Wednesday and the Māniototo we visit on Tuesdays and Thursdays).
Cancel a building inspection
We understand that things change, so if you need to cancel an inspection, please phone us on (03) 440 0056 to cancel your building inspection.
You need to cancel your inspection by midday the day before it is scheduled if you want to avoid a fee.
If you cancel on the day of the inspection, you will still need to pay a full inspection fee.
Inspection Process
The Building Inspector will check that the building work is in accordance with the building consent documents. For Restricted Building Work, the LBP on site must be able to prove he is licensed by showing his card to the Building Inspector (if requested to).
Each inspection must be passed by the Building Inspector before the work can continue. The owner/agent is responsible for ensuring that all inspections identified on the site inspection sheet are approved.
For off ground areas that cannot be easily accessed and/or seen from ground level, you will need to provide the inspector with a safe and suitable method for accessing the area.
What happens next?
The Building Inspector can either pass or fail the on-site inspection.
For a pass - this will be recorded by the Building Inspector and shared with you digitally (if requested).
For a fail - this will be recorded by the Building Inspector and shared with you digitally. This will mean a re-inspection is needed once the work in question has been rectified. A letter may also be sent confirming what re-work is required. If additional inspections are required, we may have to charge a fee, as re-inspections are not provided for in the initial building consent fees.
If the work is not remedied to the satisfaction of the Building Inspector, or is in serious breach of the Building Act, a notice to fix may be issued.
A notice to fix is a formal notice issued by the Council advising that certain works have not been carried out in accordance with the Building Act. If a notice to fix is issued, you must address the issues identified within a prescribed time frame to prevent further action being taken. Enforcement of a notice to fix is undertaken by Council.
If you wish to make changes to the consented plans during the construction process you can do so by following our process on the Building Consents page for amending a building consent.
