Building Control Bodies should communicate with clients, consultees and others in writing. Where the client is not the building owner the Building Control Body should take reasonable steps to ensure that the building owner is aware of whether the local authority or an Approved Inspector is carrying out the Building Control function for the building work to their property.

Building Control Bodies are required to provide site inspection records to the building owner on request for all building work that has been issued with a final/completion certificate or where an initial notice has been cancelled. The request must be in writing and made within 15 years of the final/completion certificate being issued.

All records relating to the building control service provided to individual projects shall be stored in a retrievable format and wherever practicable electronically by every Building Control Body for a minimum period of 15 years. Arrangements shall be made for their transfer into safe keeping in the event of a Building Control Body ceasing trading.

If the client is not the building owner the Building Control Body shall communicate in writing to the building owner that it is the Building Control Body being used for their building work, or be satisfied, e.g. has seen correspondence between the client and building owner, that the client has informed the building owner of which Building Control Body is being used. Records relating to each building control project should be retained for at least 15 years as they may be needed in the case of legal action or warranty disputes. Records should if practical be stored electronically. Building Control Bodies must make all records available in the case of court action, warranty disputes, a complaint to the Local Government Ombudsman or a complaint to CICAIR Limited.

In addition, Building Control Bodies shall make available full records of site inspections for building work that has been issued with a final/completion certificate or where an initial notice was cancelled to the building owner where a request is made for them in writing within 15 years of the final/completion certificate being issued or the initial notice cancelled. However, such parts of records that contain personal information covered by the Data Protection Act and/or where there are security considerations may be redacted or withheld (.) A Building Control Body may charge for the provision of the records on a cost recovery basis.

Where an initial notice is cancelled and the approved inspector passes inspection records to the subsequent Building Control Body, whether a local authority or approved inspector, the subsequent Building Control Body will make these records available to the building owner. If the approved inspector does not pass on any inspection records to a subsequent Building Control Body that approved inspector shall make them available to the building owner on request.

Records kept by Building Control Bodies should include as a minimum:

• approved/accepted proposals and design principles

• records of any work carried out by professional consultants on behalf of the Building Control Body

• records of consultations

• records of site inspections

• client design and contractor details

• certificates and notices including Completion or Final certificates

If a Building Control Body ceases to trade it must ensure the safe transfer and on-going storage of its records for the above periods.