Earthquake-prone building system changes announced

The Government has announced proposed legislative changes aimed at making the earthquake-prone building (EPB) system more risk-based and proportionate, by focusing on higher seismic risk areas and high-risk buildings.

The changes are designed to target buildings that pose the greatest risk to life safety, while improving affordability, reducing unnecessary costs and disruption, particularly in regional communities.

By enabling more cost-effective approaches to seismic strengthening, remediation will be more accessible for building owners than under the current settings.

The proposed changes include:

• Removing low-risk buildings and buildings in low seismic zones (Auckland, Northland and the Chatham Islands) from the EPB system.

• Introducing tiered risk mitigation requirements, making use of new engineering methodologies, based on location and building type.

• Allowing building owners to apply for deadline extensions, provided they can meet key criteria.

• Reducing barriers to seismic strengthening by removing the requirement for concurrent fire and accessibility upgrades.

A bill containing the proposed changes is expected to be introduced in the coming months.