Making a complaint
The Electrical Workers Registration Board deals with complaints relating to prescribed electrical work.
You can make a complaint about any person or company that has carried out prescribed electrical work that you believe is not up to standard.
Prescribed electrical work is defined in Schedule 1 of the Electricity (Safety) Regulations 2010.
Schedule 1 Prescribed electrical work(external link) — New Zealand Legislation
Reporting safety issues
Contact us if you are worried about the safety of any electrical work:
Contact Energy Safety (part of Worksafe) — if you think an installation or a product is unsafe:
- Freephone: 0800 030 040
- Energy Safety(external link) —WorkSafe
Is there a dispute over electrical work? Email your concerns to:
investigations@mbie.govt.nz
Or, fill out a complaint form:
Who can you complain about?
Registered and authorised workers
You can make a complaint about anyone registered or authorised by the Board to carry out electrical work for the public.
These include:
- electricians
- electrical service technicians
- electrical inspectors
- trainees (apprentices)
- line mechanics
- qualified electrical engineers
- tradespersons (plumbers and gasfitters with an electrical work certificate)
- provisional licence holders.
Search the register to check if a person is registered and licensed:
Search the register(external link)
If your complaint is about a registered or authorised worker, your complaint will be investigated by a Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) appointed Investigator.
You will receive a copy of the investigator’s report. The report will also go to the person you complained about and to the Board. The Board will review the investigator’s report and their recommendations.
Non-registered or unauthorised workers and companies
If your complaint is about an unregistered or unauthorised worker, or a company, an investigator appointed by MBIE will investigate it. The investigator will prepare a report and send it to the Board. The Board will decide what action to take. This can include prosecution, if appropriate.
Prosecutions are handled by the District Court. The court can impose fines of up to $50,000 for an individual and up to $250,000 for a company.
The Board can only consider matters relating to the safety and compliance of electrical work and is unable to assist with any contractual or commercial disputes.
The Board cannot require the work to be fixed and cannot resolve any payment disputes.
More advice is available below:
Disputes Tribunal of New Zealand(external link)
The Disputes Tribunal of New Zealand handles matters relating to overcharging, damage to property or other matters of poor service.
Consumer Guarantees Act(external link) — Consumer Protection
The Consumer Guarantees Act includes guarantees for services. It also explains what you can do when a service is not up to standard.
If your complaint is about a registered or authorised electrical worker, your complaint will be investigated by an Investigator.
Making your complaint
A complaint about electrical work must be made in writing and sent to the Registrar. Provide as much information as you can, including the following:
- scope of electrical work that was to be done
- what electrical work was done
- what you think is wrong with the electrical work
- where and when the electrical work was done
- who asked for the electrical work to be done
- the name of the person who carried out the work and their contact details
- registration details (if known)
- the name and address of any company involved (if applicable)
- your full contact details.
Provide supporting documents
You should provide copies of any relevant documents:
- correspondence including quotes and invoices
- digital photographs of the work (labelled with a description)
- reports that you have received outlining the work
- certificate of compliance
- request for certificate of compliance (if not provided).
Submitting a complaint
Use this form to make your complaint.