Check the organisation first
For private building control in England, use the official route to the register of registered building control approvers. Match the organisation's legal name to the name on the proposed appointment and initial notice. Do not assume that a trading name, an associated consultancy or a former company is the registered body you intend to appoint. [1]
Keep a dated record of the result with the quotation and contact details. If the names do not match, ask the organisation to explain the relationship before you instruct it. Registration is especially important when a project has been offered to you through an intermediary.
Then check the individual
The registered building inspector register concerns the person carrying out relevant building control activities. The entry identifies matters including the registration class and scope. Check that these fit the kind of building and work involved; registration is not a statement that every inspector can undertake every type of project without restriction. [2]
Ask who will examine the plans, who is expected to inspect on site and how cover will be arranged. An organisation may use more than one person, so checking a single director's name is not necessarily a check of the actual inspection team.
Understand the two roles
An approver is the private building control body. An inspector is an individual whose registration governs the relevant professional activities they can undertake. The 2024 registration changes apply to the building control profession; using the current titles avoids confusing historic arrangements with the present system. [3] [4]
For a council service, ask which registered inspectors will undertake the relevant activities. For work within the higher-risk regime, establish the Building Safety Regulator route rather than assuming an independently registered person can accept the project privately. [2] [5]
Registration is not the whole appointment
Also agree the scope of checking, inspection booking arrangements, communication and completion requirements. A register entry does not tell you whether the proposed fee includes extra visits or whether the named person will be available on the dates your builder needs. [6] [7]
Recheck when the team changes
Ask for updated details if the appointed organisation or key inspection personnel change. If an approver cannot continue, follow the formal transfer or reversion process rather than treating the replacement inspector's registration as sufficient by itself. [8]
Keep the registration evidence alongside the initial notice, inspection correspondence and final certificate so the compliance record identifies who actually handled the work.