Building consent documents decoded

The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) recently released new guidance on the use of Certificates of Work, Producer Statements and Design Features Reports.

It aims to clarify legislative requirements under the new Restricted Building Work regime, encourage consistent processes and foster good practice for those involved in issuing and accepting certificates of design work (CoWs), producer statements and design feature reports (DFRs) during the building consent process.

While the guidance has a residential focus for properties located in the ‘Canterbury Green Zone’, MBIE’s Building and Housing senior compliance advisor David Gittings says it can and should be applied nationally.

Mr Gettings said that the document offers good explanations about the different type of certificates and statements required to obtain a consent, and who should fill them out.

However, he said it doesn’t refer to Records of Work (RoWs), which are required to be completed by every licensed building practitioner (LBP), who carries out work on a building – LBPs should be aware that none of the documents referred to in this guidance serve as a substitute for RoW.

The guidance also features the background and logic surrounding producer statements, which have no legal status under the Building Act, yet are widely used to assist building consent authorities in determining Building Code compliance.

For more information

To download the full guidance, go to: http://www.dbh.govt.nz/UserFiles/File/Publications/Building/rbw/certificates-of-work-guidance.pdf