This move by the Government to change who is ultimately liable for repairs to defective building work on new houses up to three-storeys high and renovation jobs worth more than $100,000 makes me very nervous.  

At the moment, all parties involved in a project are jointly liable for any defects and repairs.  

Which means, sometimes, if one of them can’t pay or if they’ve all gone under since the work was done, the local council that consented the work ends up carrying the cost to fix things up. 

The Government doesn’t want that falling on ratepayers anymore, so it’s making changes. But I think it runs the risk of homeowners being thrown to the wolves when things go wrong. 

So what’s happening is that if you’re building a new house or getting a decent-sized reno done, you’re going to have to buy a warranty which must include a one-year defect repair period and a 10-year structural warranty. 

Which all sounds great. But as Carl Taylor, who is chief executive of the Combined Building Supplies Co-op says, there aren’t enough warranty providers in New Zealand. There are two connected to the trades and one independent.   

And he’s not so sure about our chance of more options becoming available in New Zealand. 

In theory, the benefit of these changes is that it will mean people responsible for the problems will be the ones who carry the can instead of everyone who worked on the project. And instead of ratepayers if things really go pear-shaped. 

But here’s where I see there being big problems. Let’s say there’s an issue with water tightness and that falls on the builder who did the cladding and the flashings – what if that builder isn’t around anymore? 

If the builder isn’t around anymore, none of the other parties involved in the new build or the reno are going to be liable under these changes, and with the local council no longer the backstop, where does that leave the homeowner? 

It leaves them in the lurch. 

I remember a few months back talking with someone about the experience they had getting a house built and what happened when the builder went under.  

Someone else has been in touch with us today saying that they had a certified builders guarantee for a new build after the quakes, but the scheme went bust and now they have no cover for any of the problems that have emerged.  

How can you make homeowners buy warranties which may not even be worth the paper they’re written on. and, at the same time, limit the backstop options available to them? 

There is no way councils should be completely out of the picture because, even though it costs ratepayers, it’s way better than nothing.  

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