Building Consent Reform: How Digital Technology Can Secure New Liability Rules in New Zealand
By Dat Tien Doan, Ali Ghaffarian Hoseini, and Amir Ghaffarianhoseini, Auckland University of Technology
Published: September 8, 2025
The New Zealand government is poised to implement the most significant reform to the country’s building consent system since 2004. This overhaul aims to fundamentally change the allocation of liability for building failures, spreading responsibility across all parties involved in construction projects rather than concentrating risk on local councils. While these reforms promise faster consenting processes and fewer bottlenecks in construction activities, their success hinges on robust digital accountability systems that thoroughly document the entire building consent lifecycle.
Spreading Liability to Improve Efficiency
Currently, homeowners who experience structural problems can claim full reparations from any one responsible party, which often leaves councils vulnerable if builders become insolvent. The proposed reforms will institute a system where each stakeholder—builders, designers, and consent authorities—pays only their share of remedial costs. This shared liability model is expected to embolden councils to approve consents with reduced risk aversion, accelerating construction processes nationwide.
However, this shift naturally generates concern over homeowner protection if defects arise. Proposed mitigations include mandating home warranties and requiring professional indemnity insurance, measures successfully implemented in countries like Australia and the United Kingdom. Additionally, consolidation of New Zealand’s 67 relatively autonomous building consent authorities is under consideration to harmonize how regulations are interpreted and applied.
The Need for Digital Accountability
The critical challenge resides in ensuring clear, traceable accountability in building design and construction. The country’s prior "leaky homes crisis" exposed the dire consequences of poor documentation and unreliable paper-based records. To prevent repeating such costly mistakes, New Zealand’s reform must embrace a digital record-keeping system that offers a comprehensive and accessible history of every step from approval through construction and inspection.
This digital “logbook” would capture detailed, time-stamped records of inspections, approvals, and changes during the consenting process. Much like the United Kingdom’s “golden thread” requirement for higher-risk developments, such a system guarantees that critical building information is preserved digitally, remains current, and is accessible throughout a building’s lifecycle. This transparency allows homeowners, councils, and builders to know exactly who approved what and when—even years later.
Tools for Modernising the Consent Process
Digital technologies promise several efficiencies for the building consent ecosystem:
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Digital Twins and 3D Models: Virtual representations of buildings can embed compliance information directly into the design models, enabling stakeholders to visualize and verify adherence to standards from the outset. The UK’s Building Information Modelling (BIM) framework exemplifies how standardized digital data management can enhance consistency across projects.
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National Online Portals: New Zealand currently suffers delays due to fragmented council systems. Introducing a single secure online platform, akin to Singapore’s CORENET X regulatory system, would allow builders to submit and track all applications efficiently in one place, minimizing confusion and processing times.
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Remote Inspections: Utilizing video calls, drones, and photographs as inspection tools can reduce the need for in-person visits, speeding up approvals and decreasing bottlenecks. The Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment (MBIE) has already issued guidance to facilitate such remote inspections.
Together, these technologies promise to transform the building consent system into a transparent, uniform, and efficient process. In stark contrast, New Zealand’s reliance on paper and uneven council practices currently hinders productivity and accountability.
Restoring Trust and Building for the Future
The proposed reforms have the potential to make the building consent process fairer and more efficient. Yet, without embedding digital accountability at their core, these changes risk leaving homeowners exposed if liability cannot be clearly assigned. To fully realize the reforms’ benefits, three critical steps are necessary:
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Mandatory Digital Record-Keeping: All approvals, inspections, and construction activities must be recorded digitally to create a reliable audit trail.
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Integrated National Data Platforms: Combining design, approval, and compliance information on a shared platform accessible to all stakeholders will unify fragmented data and improve transparency.
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Clear Data Standards and Accessibility: Ensuring that digital records are securely stored, standardized, and accessible to homeowners for many decades is vital for maintaining trust and utility.
Without these fundamentals, the new proportional liability system could leave homeowners caught in limbo during disputes. Conversely, these measures will help New Zealand establish a consent system that is not only fair and fast but also robust and future-proof.
Turning Challenges into Opportunities
This reform moment provides a rare chance to digitize and modernize an essential government function, serving to protect homeowners, rebuild public trust, and close the longstanding productivity gap in the construction sector. When implemented effectively, the new system could transform from a perennial bottleneck into a platform for innovation, transparency, and improved quality assurance.
Digital accountability must not be an afterthought but should be built into the framework from inception. New Zealand’s success will depend on how rigorously it integrates technology with policy to safeguard the interests of all parties involved in the building process.
For more discussions on the evolution of New Zealand’s building regulations and digital transformation, visit The Conversation UK.
Related Topics:
New Zealand Building Reform, Construction Accountability, Digital Twins, Building Information Modelling, Remote Inspection Technology
Disclosure: The authors are academics at Auckland University of Technology and have disclosed no conflicting interests.
