Earthquake-prone Buildings
From 1 July 2017 the Building (Earthquake-prone Buildings) Amendment Act 2016 came into force.
The Act introduced a nationally consistent system for managing earthquake-prone buildings, changing the way these buildings are identified, assessed and managed.
Under this system, territorial authorities (councils) are responsible for identifying potentially earthquake-prone buildings and notifying building owners. Councils also determine whether a building is earthquake-prone and, if so, assign an earthquake rating based on an engineering assessment and issue an EPB notice to the building owner.
The system for managing earthquake-prone buildings aims to strike a balance between protecting people from harm in an earthquake, managing the costs of strengthening or removing buildings, and considering the impact on heritage.
Key features of the Act include:
- Clarifying the definition of an earthquake-prone building
- Establishing a national register of earthquake-prone buildings
- Categorising New Zealand into three areas of high, medium and low seismic risk
- Defining a category of 'priority buildings' in high and medium seismic risk areas, with shorter identification and remediation timeframes
- Providing for an opt-in extension of time to remediate our most important heritage buildings
- Providing for an opt-in exemption from the requirement to remediate for some buildings
How the process works
Council identifies buildings or parts of buildings that may be potentially earthquake-prone and notifies the building owner.
The building owner is generally required to obtain an engineering assessment from a suitably qualified engineer and provide it to Council within 12 months of being notified. In certain circumstances, the building owner can apply for one extension of up to 12 months. Council considers the engineering assessment and determines whether the building or part of the building is earthquake-prone.
If it is determined to be earthquake-prone, Council assigns an earthquake rating and issues an EPB notice. Building owners must display the notice and complete the required seismic work within the applicable timeframe.
Changes to earthquake-prone building deadlines
In November 2024, legislation extended remediation deadlines for many earthquake-prone buildings by four years. The extension applies to EPB notices with deadlines on or after 2 April 2024. Notices that expired on or before 1 April 2024 are not covered by the extension.
The Government has also announced proposed reforms to the earthquake-prone building system. Building owners should continue to meet the requirements of the current system and the deadline shown on their current EPB notice.
What is an earthquake-prone building?
A building, or part of a building, is earthquake prone if it will have its ultimate capacity exceeded in a moderate earthquake, and if it were to collapse, would do so in a way that is likely to cause injury or death to persons in or near the building or on any other property, or damage to any other property.
An engineering assessment is used as part of determining whether a building or part of a building is earthquake-prone. A building's earthquake rating is expressed as a percentage of the New Building Standard (%NBS). More information about earthquake ratings and assessments is available from MBIE.
Earthquake-prone building register
Councils provide MBIE with information about buildings they have determined to be earthquake-prone. This information is published on the national Earthquake-prone Building Register (EPB Register), which is publicly accessible online.
Seismic risk area
Rangitīkei District is within a high seismic risk area. The seismic risk area determines the timeframes that apply for identifying and remediating earthquake-prone buildings.
Priority buildings
Priority buildings are certain buildings in high and medium seismic risk areas that are considered to present a higher risk because of their construction, type, use or location. This can include buildings that pose a higher risk to life safety or buildings that are critical to recovery following an emergency.
Priority buildings must be identified and remediated within half the time allowed for other earthquake-prone buildings in the same seismic risk area.
MBIE provides guidance for councils and building owners on priority buildings.
Earthquake-prone building resources
MBIE provides guidance and resources for building owners, territorial authorities, engineers and other building professionals on identifying, assessing and managing earthquake-prone buildings.
MBIE's Earthquake-prone building resources include links to the relevant legislation, regulations, engineering assessment guidance and EPB methodology.
The EPB methodology and the Seismic Assessment of Existing Buildings: Technical Guidelines for Engineering Assessments are key tools used by councils and engineers to identify, assess and make decisions on potentially earthquake-prone buildings.