Telecommunications Act 2001

Networks - Access to property, involving rights of multiple parties, to deploy fibre optic media and other technology - Statutory rights of access to body corporate administered properties

155Q: Statutory right of access to common areas of body corporate administered properties for designing installations

You could also call this:

"Service providers can enter shared areas of properties to plan fibre installations"

Illustration for Telecommunications Act 2001

When you order a fibre-to-the-premises service for a property that is managed by a body corporate, the service provider has the right to enter certain areas of the property. They can enter areas that are owned by the body corporate and are used by all unit owners, like stairways and walkways, to design the installation. The service provider can also enter other common areas, but they need to get permission from the body corporate first.

If the service provider needs to enter a private area, like your unit, they must get your permission or the permission of the person who has the right to occupy that area. This is because private areas are not common property, like areas in a unit title development or a flat in a building, as described in Part 7A of the Land Transfer Act 1952. The service provider needs to respect your private space and get permission before entering it.

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This page was last updated on 28 May 2025

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM7314742.

Topics:

Housing and property > Home safety and repairsHousing and property > Land useMoney and consumer rights > Consumer protection

155P: Deemed consent to category 2 installation, or

"Agreeing to let someone install internet on your property without you saying yes"

155R: Particular preconditions before exercising statutory right of access to body corporate administered property for carrying out category 1 and 2 installations, or

"Before installing something on private property, you must follow certain steps and get approval first."

Part 4Networks
Access to property, involving rights of multiple parties, to deploy fibre optic media and other technology: Statutory rights of access to body corporate administered properties

155QStatutory right of access to common areas of body corporate administered properties for designing installations

The statutory right of access given by this section applies after a person has placed an order with a retail provider for an FTTP service to be installed in a body corporate administered property.
For the purpose of inspecting the property, to design an installation, an FTTP service provider or a network operator—
has a statutory right to enter those areas of the property that are owned by the body corporate on behalf of unit owners as common property and that unit owners are able to freely access on a day-to-day basis; and
may, with the permission of the body corporate (which must not be unreasonably withheld), enter other areas of the property owned by the body corporate on behalf of unit holders as common property.

Before entering any area of the property that is not common property (for example, a person’s unit in a unit title development or a flat or an office in a building owned by a flat or office owning company within the meaning of Part 7A of the Land Transfer Act 1952), the FTTP service provider or network operator must obtain the permission of the owner or another person who has the legal right to occupy or exclusively use that area of the property.

Example

The owner of an apartment on the top floor of a 3-storey apartment building places an order with a retail provider for an FTTP service to be installed. There are 3 external access ways on the building, one running along the back of each floor, and external staircases that link the access ways. Apartment owners can use these access ways and stairs to move between floors. The FTTP service provider wants to find out whether it will be possible to carry out the installation to the apartment using external conduit alone.

The access ways and staircases are owned and held by the body corporate of the building as common property and there are no barriers restricting free access to those parts of the building. The FTTP service provider therefore has a statutory right to enter the property and inspect the external access ways and staircases up to the top floor for the purposes of finding out whether it will be possible to use external conduit and to design a suitable installation.

Notes

Section 155Q: inserted, on 9 June 2017, by section 13 of the Telecommunications (Property Access and Other Matters) Amendment Act 2017 (2017 No 16).