More than 10 Taupō District Council staff and contracted engineers are poring over hundreds of building consents to try to unravel the extent of any problems stemming from a person allegedly signing off plans using the signatures of other chartered engineers.

A council spokesperson said they had been in direct contact with property owners who may have been affected.

“We’re continuing to work through this, so we don’t yet have a definite number.”

The spokesperson said there was a range of building work involved and, while they don’t have a firm number on how many projects were involved, they “expect it will be several hundred”.

“We have nine council staff working on this project, with help from other areas around council as well. We also have several external chartered professional engineers in support.”

The council had also been in contact with builders and designers working on current projects that might be affected.

Council chief executive Julie Gardyne said the council was working with other councils and acknowledged the support of Engineering New Zealand.

“We also recognise the concern this will cause in parts of the community. We have a special project team working as quickly as possible to confirm which buildings are affected and what actions are needed going forward and we will be in direct contact with affected property owners as we work through this process.”

Engineering New Zealand (ENZ) chief executive Dr Richard Templer said the title of “Chartered Professional Engineer” is a protected title and quality mark reserved for engineers who have committed to and been assessed for a given level of competency.

“We are committed to upholding that quality mark and take matters of alleged misrepresentation very seriously.”

He said the documents in question included producer statements, which were used to give councils assurance that new designs would be or had been constructed to meet the Building Code and consent requirements.

He said concerns related to designs in the Central North Island, Bay of Plenty and Waikato, but may not be limited to designs in these regions.

“We have referred the matter to the police and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, and we are passing on any information to assist their investigations.”

ENZ was working with councils and engineers to determine the best way forward for all “relevant stakeholders”.

“We are fully aware affected councils will want to provide owners in their communities with certainty about impacted designs as quickly as possible,” said Templer.

ENZ is New Zealand’s professional body for engineers, with about 22,000 members.

It represents and regulates its members - not all of whom are chartered professional engineers - but it does act as the registration authority for chartered professional engineers.

ENZ’s website has a public search to check whether members and chartered professional engineers had any outstanding notices. You can find this on its website.

He said concerns were first raised with ENZ on May 20, 2023.

“We have responded by reporting the matter to police shortly after becoming aware of the seriousness of the alleged conduct, as well as contacting councils and government to ensure the public are safe.”

He said councils are accountable for their consenting processes but the allegations related to “serious misrepresentation”.

“Engineering New Zealand’s interest is that chartered professional engineers are trusted engineering professionals, and councils should be able to accept CPEng as a quality mark.”

Anyone with concerns about their building should contact their local council first. Additionally, Engineering New Zealand’s website has a public search to check whether members and chartered professional engineers had any outstanding notices.

People can also get in touch with Engineering New Zealand’s complaints team at [email protected] for further guidance.

Taupō mayor David Trewavas said it was “pretty upsetting” to hear about possible problems with building consents, especially given the “unprecedented” level of building activity in the district in recent years.

He said the matter was in the hands of police now and it would be fully investigated.