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Building Act 2004

Building - Special provisions for earthquake-prone buildings - Application and interpretation

133AC: Meaning of earthquake rating

You could also call this:

“This explains how strong a building is during earthquakes compared to new buildings”

In this law, ‘earthquake rating’ means how well a building or part of a building that’s been found to be earthquake-prone meets the building code rules. These rules are about how a building might handle an earthquake. They’re the same rules you’d use to design a new building in the same spot. The rules that count are the ones that were in place when this law started.

The local council decides the earthquake rating. They use a special method to figure it out. The rating is then put on a notice about the building and recorded in a special list. The rating also decides what kind of notice the building gets.

You might see the earthquake rating as a single percentage or a range of percentages. For example, if the council finds that a building meets 25% of the building code rules, its earthquake rating is 25%. Or, if the council finds that a building meets between 0% and 10% of the rules, its rating would be 0% to 10%.

To learn more about how the council decides the rating, you can look at section 133AK. For information about the notices, check out section 401C(a).

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM7340921.

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133AB: Meaning of earthquake-prone building, or

“A building that could collapse and hurt people or damage property during a moderate earthquake”

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133AD: Meaning of low, medium, and high seismic risk, or

“This explains how to tell if a building is in an area with low, medium, or high earthquake risk based on a special number called the Z factor.”

Part 2 Building
Special provisions for earthquake-prone buildings: Application and interpretation

133ACMeaning of earthquake rating

  1. In this Act, earthquake rating, in relation to a building or a part of a building that a territorial authority has determined is earthquake prone, means the degree to which the building or part meets the requirements of the building code—

  2. that relate to how a building is likely to perform in an earthquake; and
    1. that would be used to design a new building on the same site; and
      1. as they apply on the day on which this section comes into force.

        1. The earthquake rating of a building or a part of a building—

        2. is determined by a territorial authority in accordance with the EPB methodology (see section 133AK); and
          1. is specified on the EPB notice issued for the building or part and recorded in the EPB register; and
            1. determines the form of the EPB notice issued for the building or part (see section 401C(a)).

              1. An earthquake rating may be expressed as a percentage or a percentage range.

                Examples

                If a territorial authority determines that a building meets 25% of the requirements of the building code referred to in subsection (1), the earthquake rating of the building is 25%.

                If a territorial authority determines that a building meets between 0% and 10% of the requirements of the building code referred to in subsection (1), the earthquake rating of the building is the range of 0% to 10%.

              Notes
              • Section 133AC: inserted, on , by section 24 of the Building (Earthquake-prone Buildings) Amendment Act 2016 (2016 No 22).