Secret fire-safety deals

The systemic failure by cost-cutting apartment developers to build fire-safe apartment blocks in New Zealand's major city is being kept under wraps by secret legal settlements.

The Sunday Star-Times has learned of a number of secret settlements to homeowners involving professional fire engineers and the Auckland Council for sub-standard fire systems in multi-unit dwellings although the council denies its involvement.

While the fire safety problems are not restricted to Auckland or apartment buildings, the Star-Times understands settlements so far have related to Auckland apartment complexes.

The fire engineers are on the hook if they have certified systems that don't meet the required building consent conditions while the building consent authority is legally liable under the Building Act to ensure the consent documents accurately reflect the work carried out before issuing a code compliance certificate.

The leaky building crisis has been well publicised. But lawyers for leaky building claimants say around one in five claims for defective and shoddily-constructed apartment blocks also involve claims to fix faulty and sub-standard fire systems.

Leaky building litigator Paul Grimshaw's firm currently represents about 6000 clients with leaky properties; the majority are body corporates for apartment blocks in Auckland.

He says the problems with apartment buildings would be better described as construction defects rather than weathertightness issues.

"Leaking doesn't really cover it . . . There are fire issues, there are structural issues, there are cladding issues."

He says builders and developers have cut corners by not correctly fire rating buildings.

Inadequate fire rating means a building will burn too quickly, not slowing the spread of fire enough to allow residents to escape, or may cause the building to collapse.

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Secret fire-safety deals