NZ plumbing compliance software: PGDB licensing + NZ Building Code G1–G13 for plumbers, gasfitters and drainlayers

• The plumber trade covers sanitary plumbing, including the plumbing side of hot-water systems and water supplies. A person carrying out restricted sanitary plumbing needs the relevant current practising licence; non-certifying plumbers work under supervision, while a certifying plumber tests and certifies within scope.
• Plumber registration does not automatically confer drainlayer authority. Where work is drainlaying, the relevant drainlayer scope and certifying practitioner must be identified rather than treating every drain job as plumber work.
• The current competence and any restricted-work thresholds are refreshed in PGDB Board notices — read the current Board guidance before relying on a specific number for an audit.

• Covers gasfitting work that overlaps with the PGDB frame, governed by PGDB on the practitioner side and the Gas Act 2008 + Gas (Safety and Measurement) Regulations 2010 on the install side — the class that signs off gas safety certificates and ICPs, not CoCs.
• A Registered Gasfitter works alongside a Registered Plumber on the same crew and, in PGDB, sits inside the same Board as the plumber and the drainlayer — covered in depth on /blog/nz-gasfitting-compliance rather than this post.
• A current gasfitter practising licence is distinct from certifying gasfitter registration. A registered (non-certifying) gasfitter works under the required supervision, while the certifying practitioner signs off the Gas Safety Certificate within the relevant scope.

• Covers drainage work, on-site sewage disposal, and the G13 foul-water-side detail — a separate PGDB trade registered independently from the plumber, with its own current practising licence and certifying scope.
• A certifying drainlayer signs off the drainage / G13 record within the certifying scope and is responsible for the people they supervise; a registered (non-certifying) drainlayer works under the required supervision arrangement, with the BCA expecting the retainable record against the source install.
• Whether a given install sits inside the Drainlayer scope alone, or sits across the plumber / drainlayer boundary (a common case on a new-build), follows the PGDB class boundary notices — check with the practising-licence team at PGDB before assuming the Drainlayer scope applies.

PGDB complaints and disciplinary exposure — across all three registered classes

PGDB complaints follow paperwork failures that look sloppy only after the fact. The risk isn’t the install — it’s the records proving the install was checked, signed, and supervised consistent with the Plumbers, Gasfitters and Drainlayers Act 2006 and the registered class you’re held under. Mis-attributed supervision on a plumber / gasfitter / drainlayer boundary job is the failure the complaints process reaches for first.

Tradie-side enforcement — statutory maximums plus Board discipline

Section 123 of the current Act sets maximum fines, not automatic outcomes: up to $10,000 for unauthorised sanitary plumbing or drainlaying; up to $50,000 for an individual or $250,000 for a body corporate for unauthorised gasfitting. Employer offences have separate maximums: up to $10,000 for employing unauthorised sanitary plumbing or drainlaying, and up to $10,000 for an individual or $25,000 for a body corporate for unauthorised gasfitting. Section 125 separately provides a maximum fine of $10,000 for a registered, licensed, or authorised person doing sanitary plumbing or drainlaying they are not entitled to do. PGDB complaints can also lead to disciplinary proceedings. This is general information, not legal advice — check the current Act and Board notices.

BCA inspection rejection + CCC refusal when G12 / G13 records are missing

A Building Consents Authority can refuse a Code Compliance Certificate (CCC) at final inspection when the G12 water-supply or G13 foul-water test record behind the install is missing or unrecoverable. The install may be correct; the record behind it isn’t, and the BCA can’t green-stamp a CCC without the record that proves the Building Code clause was met. Re-inspection fees and weeks of delay are the visible cost.

Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 exposure when the tradie isn’t PGDB-registered

Under the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993, work supplied to a consumer carries an “acceptable quality” guarantee. If the tradie isn’t PGDB-registered, the work may not pass the reasonable-person test on quality, the homeowner / consumer loses the ability to rely on PGDB complaints as a backstop (PGDB has no jurisdiction over unregistered practitioners), and the consumer can claim against the homeowner — who then has no recourse against the unregistered tradie. The CGA exposure doesn’t depend on whether the install looks fine; it depends on whether the work was carried out by a registered practitioner with retainable records behind it.

G12 / G13 rework, weathertightness, and unconsented plumbing discovered at sale

Unconsented plumbing work discovered at sale or refinance lists as “rework needed” and runs into weathertightness clauses when the rework disturbs cladding or external penetrations (E2/AS1 territory). The remediation cost is paid by whoever owns the property on discovery day; retainable G12 / G13 records and a supervision attestation cut the discovery-day cost down to a paperwork lookup rather than a rework negotiation.

NZ-based

A team that has worked with NZ trade businesses understands the PGDB frame, the Plumbers, Gasfitters and Drainlayers Act 2006, and the audit posture Building Consents Authorities bring on residential and commercial plumbing work. Built in Christchurch, supported in business hours NZST.

Built for the PGDB + Building Code frame

Maps directly to the working obligations — Certificate of Compliance, G12 / G13 test logs, supervision attestation against your PGDB-registered class, E2/AS1 detail, BCA inspection paperwork, retention. Drafted against your templates, not adapted from a generic trade form.

Reach a real person

You can email the team behind the build at hello@koruai.co.nz. Replies come from a real person, usually the same day. No support-ticket queue, no chatbot intermediary.