Home warranties open the door to real reform, time to free builders from council bottlenecks

ACT Building and Construction spokesperson Cameron Luxton welcomes reforms for a more productive building system, saying the Government is moving in the right direction to fix long‑standing problems.

"These changes are welcome. For years, joint and several liability has pushed councils into risk‑averse behaviour, slowed consenting, and left ratepayers carrying costs that should never have been theirs. Moving to proportionate liability is the right call and it aligns closely with what ACT has pushed for," says Mr Luxton, who is also a Licenced Building Practitioner.

"Requiring designers to hold professional indemnity insurance and introducing mandatory home warranties strengthens accountability across the system. Homeowners deserve confidence that the people involved in their build can stand behind their work. That part is absolutely right.

"The warranty system also moves towards ambitious reform. With mandatory warranties in place, there is no reason builders should remain stuck in the old council‑granted permission model. The Government's own changes make it clear that responsibility should sit with the professionals doing the work. If builders are carrying insurance and warranties that protect consumers, then they should not be waiting around for a council inspector to show up. That is exactly why ACT secured a coalition commitment to explore allowing builders to opt out of consents where they have long‑term insurance for the building work.

"That commitment matters. Because councils have been required to be Building Consent Authorities, without incentives to allow building they have contributed to unreasonable delays in peak building periods, created bottlenecks, and increased the cost of compliance. Their liability under the old system meant they only ever saw risk, and that drove up the cost and time involved in getting anything built.

"Builders across the country have stories about the LBP scheme not functioning as it was supposed to. The few who cut corners have damaged the reputation of the many. Strengthening penalties is overdue, but we can go further by giving high‑quality builders more freedom and making sure those who fall short are held to account.

"Reducing building costs must remain the primary goal. New Zealanders are paying far too much to build a home. Restricted choice of materials, slow consenting authorities, and unnecessary delays are all contributing to the cost blowouts we see across the country. If we can shift responsibility to the people doing the work, backed by proper insurance, we can free builders to innovate, reduce delays, widen material choices, and get houses built faster.

"Today's announcement is a strong foundation. Now we need to build on it by delivering the next stage of reform. ACT will keep pushing to ensure that professionals who take responsibility for their work are rewarded with the freedom to get on with the job and that homeowners are protected without paying for layers of bureaucracy that add cost without adding value."