The excesses on professional indemnity insurance policies are threatening to put building surveyors out of business, a NSW parliamentary committee inquiry has heard.

“Excess is the big thing at the moment because you can have somebody who is registered practicing and they have got excesses of $100,000 or $200,000,” Australian Institute of Building Surveyors CEO Brett Mace told the Public Accountability Committee hearing last week.

“One or two claims, whether they are responsible or not, and they are out of business.”

Mr Mace says relaxing rules to allow surveyors to hold professional indemnity cover with cladding exclusions mean they can continue to work, but only under difficult circumstances as their exposure increases and they face higher premiums and excesses.

Institute NSW/ACT Director Tim Tuxford called for wider accreditation and insurance requirements for practitioners and professionals involved in the construction sector to improve accountability and share responsibility.

“Anecdotally, we are aware that certifiers in NSW are largely joined in proceedings against builders and the like because the certifier carries insurance, whereas few other professionals in that group are required to have statutory insurance,” he told the committee.

Association of Accredited Certifiers Vice-President Robert Marinelli also believes a broader framework should be in effect for those involved in the process.

“We want people to be able to have a number, be accredited and have insurance, which then will mean something to them,” he said.

“If they do not have that, they cannot price work, and they cannot do work, whether it is design, or whether it is installation and construction.”

Bronwyn Weir, co-author of the Shergold Weir report into improving construction code compliance, told the committee she is hopeful an implementation team agreed at the July Building Ministers’ Forum would drive forward the recommendations.

But she says the report dealt with how to make buildings better, rather than how to respond to existing defective structures or how to assist consumers.

Ms Weir says she supports Victoria’s $600 million program to rectify cladding problems in private high-rise buildings, as individual apartment owners have battled to navigate issues and quickly deal with safety problems.

“My own personal view has been that governments would need to pick up the tab,” she said. “I agree with what Victoria has done.”

The Public Accountability Committee’s inquiry into building issues will deliver an interim report “as soon as practical” before a final report by February 14.