Where do I find authoritative answers to my questions?

Overview

There’s no single place to find correct, authoritative answers to the many questions you and your fellow licensed electrical workers will have in the course of your work.

Before you do seek the advice from third parties, it’s important to ensure you’ve had a look through the information available to you in regulations, standards and similar guidance documents.

Questions typically are likely to fall into 2 categories:

• technical/engineering questions relating to design of electrical systems, or installation of equipment and interpretation of standards
• regulatory questions on the Electricity Act, interpretation of the Electricity Safety Regulations, testing, certification, registration, licensing and limits of work.

Technical questions

Assistance in finding answers to these could be found through:

Standards New Zealand

• which standards are mandatory or cited in in legislation
• which standards are being updated.

Standards New Zealand(external link) website has the New Zealand Standards for all electrical installations and appliances.

Your local electrical inspector

• establish a good working relationship with your local inspectors and use their expertise to assist with technical questions.

Manufacturers and suppliers of equipment and fittings

• technical information can be available from their websites and technical bulletins
• manufacturers instructions can detail installation requirements and procedures. 

Electrical wholesalers

• they can direct you to their suppliers of electrical equipment.

Your local electrical distribution and retail company

• for information on mains and metering.

Electrical engineers and consultants

• they can provide you with certified designs for non-standard installations.

Regulatory questions

Assistance in finding answers or interpretation to rules and regulations can be found with:

Energy Safety

Provides authoritative information and resources including:

• videos on certification of electrical work
• information and clarification on risk categories for electrical work, inspection, connectable installations, electrical warrant of fitness and plenty more.

Energy Safety(external link)

Electrical Workers Registration Board (EWRB)

Provides authoritative information and resources including:

• electrical registration, limits of work, licensing, and training requirements
• exams, training providers, safety and competency programmes
• news and resources.

Contact us(external link) if you can't find what you are looking for on the website.

Your local electrical inspector

• establish good working relationship with your local inspectors and use their expertise to assist with regulatory questions.

Approved providers of the EWRB’s competency programme

• take the opportunity during you next competency programme to ask your facilitator relevant questions.

Training providers

• electrical instructors at a local technical institutes or industry training organisations.

Responsibility

While it is often helpful to seek advice, it is extremely important to understand that as a licensed electrical worker you remain fully responsible for the work you do even with or on the advice of a third party.

Irrespective of what prescribed electrical work your licence allows you to do, you are only allowed to work within your current understanding, knowledge and skills.

If you don’t know, or have doubts about the work you are doing then you need to stop. Do not carry on with the work until you are confident you can so competently. Better still, don’t attempt the work until you have the knowledge, skill and experience to complete it competently.

Undertaking work outside areas of your current competency is risky, it can to lead to unsafe situations and problems which can be difficult and costly to resolve.