View the responsibilities of building contractors

The building regulations have been amended with significant changes to the building control process.

Part 2A has been added, explaining requirements for the competence of Dutyholders involved in building work.

Dutyholders are:

• Clients/Domestic Clients
• Designers/Principal Designers
• Contractors/Principal Contractors

If you are a contractor carrying out building work requiring a Building Regulation application, the new regulations will affect you.

A client needs to appoint a principal designer and a principal contractor for the work. Where there is only one contractor they will be considered as the principal contractor. A contractor may also act as the principal designer.

Any person carrying out any building work must ensure the work carried out by them (and by any workers under their control) is planned, managed and monitored to be in compliance with all relevant requirements.

Any person carrying out any building work must cooperate with the client, designers and contractors (including the principal designer and principal contractor, if any) to the extent necessary to ensure that the work is in compliance with all relevant requirements.

Any person carrying out any building work must have the skills, knowledge, experience and behaviours necessary to carry out the building work in accordance with all relevant requirements. Where the person is not an individual, then the company must have the organisational capability to carry out the building work in accordance with all relevant requirements.

This is the main contractor who is appointed to perform the duties of a Principal Contractor where there is more than one contractor.

Additional duties of the Principal Contractor are to:

• plan, manage and monitor the building work during the construction phase
• co-ordinate matters relating to building work to ensure the building work complies with the Building Regulations
• ensure co-operation amongst all Dutyholders (for example Client/Domestic Client, Designer/Principal Designer)
• ensure all contractors comply with their duties
• liaise with the Principal Designer and share information as required
• have regard to comments from the Principal Designer concerning compliance with the Building Regulations
• assist the Client in providing information to contractors
• review the arrangements of any previous Principal Contractor
• notify Building Control in writing, where applicable, that the work is being carried out on behalf of a Domestic Client eg homeowner
• sign the declarations as referred to below when work is complete

This is any person including a client, but not a domestic client (homeowner), who carries out, manages or controls any building work.

Additional Duties of Contractors are to:

• not start any building work unless satisfied that the Client is aware of the duties owed by the Client
• ensure the building work they carry out is in compliance with all relevant requirements
• provide each worker under their control with appropriate supervision, instructions and information so as to ensure that the building work is in compliance with all relevant requirements
• provide sufficient information about the work to assist the client, other contractors and designers to comply with all relevant requirements
• consider any other work and report any compliance concerns
• advise the Principal Contractor or the Client whether any work is Higher-Risk building work

On completion of the work the client must give a notice to building control stating that the work is compliant all relevant requirements.

This notice needs to be signed by the:

• client
• principal designer
• principal contractor

Without this declaration building control will not be able to issue a completion certificate.