About 1,250 building projects hit by suspension of approved inspectors
About 1,250 building projects are affected by the suspension of approved inspectors, Housing Minister Boekholt-O'Sullivan says, and a court has only partly lifted the suspension of the largest one.
About 1,250 building projects are affected by the suspension of three quality assurers (kwaliteitsborgers), Housing Minister Boekholt-O'Sullivan told parliament in answer to written questions received on 27 October. The figure comes from the instrument provider, and part of the projects are still in preparation.
For projects already under construction, the minister says building may not continue because no qualified quality assurer is involved any more. Most affected projects belong to one of the three firms. One that works with the KiK instrument has only four projects running.
On 23 September an interim judge (kort geding) ruled that the suspension of the largest firm must be partly lifted. The firm brought the case against its scheme operator. It may resume ongoing projects until a decision in the main proceedings, which have yet to be filed.
According to the instrument provider, about 85% of projects halted between 25 August and 23 September have been resumed by their original quality assurer. The TloKB and the instrument provider both give these projects priority in supervision. Other quality assurers are taking over, or will take over, the rest.
The minister says she understands and shares the concerns about uncertainty, extra costs and delays in completing homes. She says a suspension is justified "if the quality of buildings is questioned on the basis of supervision information". She is holding talks with those involved, will follow developments closely and will look at lessons for the quality assurance system.
The minister says the largest firm was suspended, at least in part, because it did not carry out enough quality assurance. The same applies to a second firm to which it wanted to transfer projects. She says two of the four suspensions had nothing to do with how those parties did their work.
About 1,100 of the affected projects are housing projects, almost always the construction of a single home, and probably owner-occupied homes. The minister says building without an approved inspector is banned by law, and the suspension results in a stop-work order that the competent authority can enforce against a contractor who ignores it.
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kwaliteitsborgers
Quality assurers are private professionals or companies that check whether building projects meet the Dutch building rules before and during construction. Under the Wet kwaliteitsborging voor het bouwen (Wkb), they must be admitted and work within a recognised quality assurance instrument. Their sign-off is part of the permit and inspection process for construction projects in the Netherlands.
instrumentaanbieder
An instrument provider is an organisation that offers an instrument, the system of rules and procedures that private quality assurers use to assess building projects under the Dutch quality assurance framework. The instrument provider is responsible for supervising the quality assurers who work with its instrument. It must be admitted by the TloKB.
TloKB (Toelatingsorganisatie Kwaliteitsborging Bouw)
The TloKB is the Dutch admission body for quality assurance in construction. It decides which instrument providers may be admitted to offer quality assurance instruments under the Wkb. It also takes part in overseeing the quality assurance system for building projects.