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How the Building Regulations are enforced and your right to appeal

You should always ensure that Building Regulations are met as they are intended to ensure the safety, health, welfare and convenience of people in and around buildings. They are also designed to further the conservation of fuel and energy.

Contravention of the Building Regulations can generally be categorised as one of the following:

  • failure to deposit plans before commencing building works
  • failure by the builder to give the required notice at specified stages of the work
  • failure to comply with the requirements of the Building Regulations in carrying out work on site

Council powers

The local council has legal powers to deal with each type of contravention.

Building Control will seek co-operation with the builder to rectify a contravention but failing this legal action will be taken. Legal action is usually taken only as a last resort, normally after all other avenues for resolution have been exhausted. Where the building work does not comply with the Building Regulations, a council is empowered to serve a Building Regulations Contravention Notice. The Notice will specify the contravention and the period of time, normally 28 days, within which work must be made good, altered or removed.

On receipt of a Contravention Notice there are three courses of action open:

  • compliance with the Notice – making good or removing the defective work
  • challenging the Notice – obtaining a report from a suitably qualified person who will set out reasons why the Notice should not have been served - this should be submitted to the council and if it refuses to accept the report, there is a right of appeal
  • appealing to the Department of Finance and Personnel (DFP) - this is a direct appeal  against the serving of the Notice of Contravention

The address for submitting an appeal to DFP is:

Department of Finance and Personnel
Building Regulations Unit
Level 5 Causeway Exchange
1-7 Bedford Street,
Belfast
BT2 7EG

You may appeal to DFP against a decision of a council to:

  • reject plans
  • serve a Contravention Notice in respect of defective work
  • refuse to relax Building Regulations
  • deem that your plans include materials unsuitable for permanent buildings

In respect of rejected plans, an appeal must be lodged with DFP within 56 days of the date of notification of the decision. With Contravention Notices, the period for lodging an appeal is 28 days.

The Building Control Department will advise you on the procedure to be followed in lodging an appeal.

In the role of protecting people and the environment and ensuring access to buildings for everyone, it may be that on some occasions, legal action is taken to enforce Building Regulations. However, these situations are usually quickly resolved by persuasion. There are, however, instances where some people do not respond to this approach.

In order to protect the interests of all people using the property – currently, or in the future – Building Control must ensure that Building Regulations are complied with. Enforcement will be carried out in an open, fair and equitable manner.

Building Control personnel are open to innovative ideas and solutions and are flexible in approach, but will not compromise on health and safety issues.

Many councils and groups in Northern Ireland have formally adopted the principles of the Enforcement Concordat published by the Home Office. For more information, you should use the link below to access your local council's website:

More useful links