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Building Act 2004

Regulatory responsibilities and accreditation - Responsibilities of territorial authorities - Powers of territorial authority to carry out inspections and enter land

225: Offence to impersonate authorised officer

You could also call this:

“It's against the law to pretend you're a special inspector when you're not, and you can get in big trouble if you do.”

If you pretend to be an authorised officer named in a warrant mentioned in section 224, you are breaking the law. This is called impersonating an authorised officer. It’s illegal to do this or to falsely claim that you are one of these officers.

If you are found guilty of this offence, you could be fined. The most you could be fined is $50,000. This is a serious offence, so the fine can be quite large.

Remember, it’s important to be honest about who you are, especially when it comes to official roles like authorised officers. These rules help keep everyone safe and make sure that only the right people have certain powers.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM307874.

Topics:

Crime and justice > Criminal law

Housing and property > Home safety and repairs

224: Warrant must be produced, or

“When going into private places, special helpers must show a special permission paper when asked.”

226: Restriction on entry to household unit, or

“You need special permission to enter someone's home for inspections, except in emergencies.”

Part 3 Regulatory responsibilities and accreditation
Responsibilities of territorial authorities: Powers of territorial authority to carry out inspections and enter land

225Offence to impersonate authorised officer

A person commits an offence if the person impersonates or falsely pretends to be an authorised officer named in a warrant referred to in section 224.
A person who commits an offence under this section is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $50,000.

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Notes

Section 225(2): amended, on 8 June 2021, by section 60 of the Building (Building Products and Methods, Modular Components, and Other Matters) Amendment Act 2021 (2021 No 21).