Nelson City Council

What inspections will be needed

The officer processing your application will do an assessment to determine what inspections will be necessary so that the Council can be satisfied that the building works will achieve compliance with the plans as approved.  A list of inspections and requirements for each inspection will be attached to the building consent.

Please ensure that you read the inspection requirements and are familiar with them before starting building work.

Stages of construction that require inspection

Inspections are required for all stages of construction:

• Excavation/Foundation/Reinforcing or Piled Foundation
• Concrete floor/Damp proof membrane or timber floor framing
• Building framing and exterior building wrap
• Flashings
• Exterior cladding
• Pre-lining including insulation to floors, walls and ceilings
• Plumbing and drainage
• Roof framing and roof underlay
• Internal linings and bracing
• Bathroom/wet areas waterproofing
• Final inspection of all building works including exterior and finished ground levels

Any safety equipment required for the inspection, such as scaffolding or high ladders, are expected to be provided on site for the inspection.

Inspections by external specialists

In addition to the Council’s inspection, it may be necessary, in special circumstances, for external specialists to conduct inspections that fall outside the normal building inspection process, eg. having a geo-technical engineer confirm ground stability, or having an aspect of specific structural design checked by a chartered professional engineer.

If a specialist inspection is necessary, you will be advised before the consent is issued.  This would be included in the inspection codes or addendum to building consent.

Booking an inspection

When you are fully ready for an inspection, please contact the inspection administrators on +64 3 546 0334 and make sure you have the following information available:

• Site address
• Building consent number
• Name and phone number of contact person on site
• Date and time the inspection is required
• Type of inspection, eg. plumbing, drainage, foundation etc.
• LBP number.

Important notes

Please give at least 3 working days advance notice of your inspection request.  Council endeavours to arrange inspections as soon as possible, however in periods of high building activity or staff absence, the inspection may need to be slightly later.

It is your responsibility (or your builder’s) to notify Council that you require an inspection.

Make sure you have the approved plans and documentation on-site.  If these are not available when the inspector arrives, the inspection may not take place, and you may be charged extra for a re-inspection.

The owner, or builder, or agent (eg. architect) should be on site for all inspections.

Make sure that you, or your agent, arranges for any inspections that your engineer or consultant is required to carry out, and advise Council when these are completed.  If these inspections are not carried out, the Council may have difficulty issuing the Code Compliance Certificate.

Result of the inspection

If the work passes

The Inspector will advise the person on-site if the inspection has been passed.

If the work fails the inspection

The work to be rectified will be recorded on the site inspection sheet, and a “Notice fo Fix”  or “advice notice” will be issued.  Another inspection will be required, to inspect this remedial work.

You may be charged for a re-inspection; if so, this will need to be paid before the Code Compliance Certificate can be issued.

Notice to Fix

This is a formal notice issued by the building consent authority, advising that certain works have not been carried out in accordance with the building consent or Building Code. If issued, a letter explaining the process will accompany it.

If a Notice to Fix is issued, you are required to address the issues identified within a prescribed timeframe, to prevent further action being taken.

Code Compliance Certificate

When all the building work is completed in accordance with the building consent, a Code Compliance Certificate (CCC) can be issued.  This is a verification from the building consent authority that all works undertaken comply with the building consent and the NZ Building Code.

It is an important document, and should be retained for future reference.

You can apply for a Code Compliance Certificate by sending Council the completed application form, after your final inspection has been passed. The application form must include all necessary paperwork eg. Memoranda (Records of Building Work) (download in PDF format (153KB PDF)and as a Word document (52KB DOC)) or a Notice of Owner-Builder form (download in PDF format (9.6KB PDF) or as a Word document (49KB DOC)).

Council has 20 days in which to decide whether to issue, or refuse to issue, a Code Compliance Certificate.

If the building consent was issued under the 1991 Act, Council may issue a Code Compliance Certificate, if we are satisfied that the building work complies with the Building Code and the Building Act.

Older building consents do present Council with a problem when considering the issue of a Code Compliance Certificate, particularly when we are looking at construction details and the maintenance history.  If Council is not able to confirm the necessary details, we may decline to issue a Code Compliance Certificate.

If Council refuses to issue a Code Compliance Certificate, and if you consider this is not justified, you can apply to the Department of Building & Housing for a determination –details on their website www.dbh.govt.nz

918843