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WA surveyor fined for compliance failures
A West Australian building surveyor has been fined $5,000 after a probe found serious failures in compliance, documentation, and supervision, breaching Western Australia’s Code of Conduct.
A Jindalee building surveyor, Chad Robert Harvey, trading as Core Building Surveyors, was fined $5,000 for neglecting to adequately manage and oversee surveying work on projects in Balga and Wanneroo.
The fine comes after a Building and Energy probe found serious failures in compliance, documentation, and supervision, breaching Western Australia’s Code of Conduct.
The Building Services Board said Harvey demonstrated a troubling failure to grasp the duties and responsibilities expected of a registered building surveyor.
At the Balga development site, where a two-storey group dwelling was proposed, Harvey issued a certificate of design compliance (CDC) confirming that the plans met building standards.
However, the Building Services Board determined that his CDC did not demonstrate compliance in key areas, including stormwater drainage, stairways and balustrades, floor levels, steel framing, wall cladding, and fire safety.
The board found that the lack of compliance in key areas could create multiple hazards, including fire, structural, waterproofing, drainage, and fall issues.
At the Wanneroo project, the board found that Harvey had not supplied the necessary documentation or proof to justify a change of use for a commercial unit.
Instead of issuing a required CDC, he provided a certificate of building compliance (CBC) that failed to demonstrate the building met several key standards.
Although Harvey cooperated with WA Building and Energy during the investigation, the board concluded he had not met the standards set out in Western Australia’s 2022 Code of Conduct for Building Surveyors, which outlines their legal and public duty obligations.
Building and Energy executive director Daniel Kearney said that building surveyors are legally required to uphold building standards, and the public rightly expects them to act with diligence and professionalism.
“The decision by the board should be an important reminder to all WA building surveyors to adhere to the standards in the Code of Conduct in all areas of their practice,” Kearney said.
