Photo:
A suspended building practitioner has been fined $10,000 for using her employer's identity to falsely declare she was licensed and carry out work she was not allowed to do.
Lucy Walsh was sentenced for two offences under the Building Act 2004 and one of forgery in the Alexandra District Court earlier this year following an investigation into design work for a Central Otago dwelling.
All restricted building work - including work that affected the weathertightness of residential buildings - has to be supervised or carried out by a licensed practitioner.
At the time, her Licensed Building Practitioner licence had been suspended in September 2021 for not complying with conditions.
Despite this, she carried out restricted building work without supervision, declared herself to be licensed when she applied for building consent and used her employer's practitioner number and electronic signature without permission.
When the Central Otago District Council raised concerns about the work with her employer, her employer confirmed they did not know about the project, did not supervise Walsh and had not given permission for licence number or signature to be used.
Licensed Building Practitioners registrar Duncan Connor said the fine reflected the seriousness of the offending
"There was a clear breach of professional trust when another (Licensed Building Practitioner's) identity was used to support a false certificate," he said.
He urged homeowners to check the public register before hiring anyone to do restricted building work.
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
