KEEPING YOUR RECORDS STRAIGHT

It’s important to provide a Record of Work upon completion of Restricted Building Work

Records of Work must be filled in on time, every time, to avoid complaints being made against you and potential disciplinary action. The Building Practitioners Board received a disappointingly high number of complaints this year about ROWs.

Don’t withhold records of work

(LBPs) hold back the ROW because they are in a dispute or because the client is behind in their payment. This is done under the belief that they can use the ROW as leverage. This is bad practice, as the disgruntled client can complain to the Board that the LBP did not complete the ROW. The Board will then have to discipline the LBP for failing to provide their ROW, regardless of any commercial dispute, as this is not a valid reason to withhold an ROW according to the Building Act.

The Board has no jurisdiction over contractual disputes – it only addresses the conduct of LBPs. Therefore, the LBP can be fined, even if the client hasn’t paid for the work.

Knowing when work is over

Usually it is easy to know when to complete the ROW. The job is finished, so you complete the ROW before moving on. However, sometimes a job ends unexpectedly. Perhaps there is a dispute between contractors, or the client stops paying the bills. If the job isn’t finished, but you won’t be returning to finish it, you should submit an ROW. On it, you can detail what work you did complete, even though the overall job was unfinished.

Sometimes it is uncertain if you will return or not. When in doubt, you can still submit an ROW on what you have done thus far. In the unlikely event you do return, you can add to your records.

Submit your own RoW, don’t pass to others

There is still the myth that if you’re a labour-only contractor to another LBP, the head contractor will do the ROW. This is not the case. Each LBP who does RBW must complete an ROW.

Another mistake is to provide the ROW to the head contractor, who does not then pass it on to the homeowner or council. The Building Act puts the responsibility on the LBP to ensure the ROW is sent to the homeowner and council. You can still be disciplined even if you did provide the ROW to the head contractor.

Typical penalties 

When a complaint against an LBP for failing to provide an ROW is upheld, the Board usually issues a fine and requires a payment towards the cost of the hearing. If this was the only offence  committed by the LBP, the fine is typically $1,000 to $3,000 and costs are around $500.

This article is an excerpt from Codewords Issue 93. Reading Codewords articles that are relevant to your licence class is a mandatory requirement for Licensed Building Practitioners. These questions can be answered through the LBP portal, online on the Under Construction website or recorded on the magazine, then provided at the time of renewal.