NCDOI Building Code Council rules that siding
can go on homes before frames are inspected
North Carolina Construction News staff writer
Should contractors be allowed to install siding on
homes before the framed structures are checked by
building inspectors?
The case reached the North Carolina Department of In-
surance (NCDOI) Building Code Council in Raleigh, where
the state's top building code authority ruled that, indeed,
the siding can go on before the inspection – even if this
may pose risks in high-wind areas.

Port City Daily reported on the case in a recent article,
describing how Robert Privott, a consultant and lobbyist
for the North Carolina Home Builders Association
(NCHBA), appealed an earlier decision by the NCDOI that
stemmed, he argued, from an unclear building code.

"Privott had initially asked for clarification earlier in the
year," the newspaper reported.

The code in question (Section 107.1.5) covers when a
contractor must have a house’s frame inspected, but it
doesn’t specify whether or not the house’s exterior siding
can be installed or not. The code included commentary –
not an official ordinance but supplemental language that
helps clarify the code, suggested the inspection should
come first – but it was removed in 2016.

According to email records supplied by the North Car-
olina Department of Justice (DOJ), in March, Privott was
informed by Clifford Isaac, the deputy commissioner for
NCDOI’s engineering division, that – without the com-
mentary – there was no reason contractors would have to
wait for an inspection before installing exterior walls.

Privott, stating that different jurisdictions around the
state were enforcing the code differently, asked Barry
Gupton, a member of the state’s building code council
and the chief code consultant, for a formal interpretation,
the newspaper reported.

Gupton reversed Isaac’s decision, telling Privott frame
inspection had to come first.

Privott requested an appeal form the NCDOI building
code council and made his case on Oct. 31, joined by
Dan Tingen, the former chairman of the building code
council from 2003 to 2017, who testified on Privott’s be-
half. Assistant Attorney General Heather Freeman made
the case for the state, asking the board to uphold Gup-
ton’s decision.

According to an audio recording of the meeting, pro-
vided to the newspaper by the North Carolina Depart-
ment of Justice, much of the appeal case came down to
whether installing veneers or exterior siding would inter-
fere with an inspectors ability to accurately gauge
whether the building frame was up to code. Gupton sug-
gested it would.

Freeman asked Tingen: “In your professional experi-
ence — you don’t think it’s necessary for inspectors to
view items or framing that are covered by siding?”
Tingen pointed out there are “numerous parts of the
house not visible unless you’re there when they’re built.”
Freeman responded that there are other jurisdictions
that do not allow siding to be installed before framing in-
spections. Tingen answered, “Correct. And I think they’re in error
for doing so.”
Freeman later asked Gupton if had any concerns over
Privott’s request. Gupton said he did.

“More concern is in some parts of the state more than
in others,” he said, adding that his concerns had to do
with the bracing of building frames, specifically in high-
wind areas of the state were sub-code frames could col-
lapse during storms.

Gupton noted that the building code did not differenti-
ate between high-wind and other areas.

The council weighed both sides: Inspectors’ need for
visual access to the entire frame, uneclipsed by siding,
and the potential safety hazard presented by sub-code
frames in high-wind areas. On the other side: the need
for contractors to move construction along at a reason-
able pace, as well as the concern for leaving the frame
exposed to the elements for an undue amount of time.

The council ultimately decided in favor of Pivott and
the NCHBA.

Shumaker’s construction lawyers represent clients across the construction
industry: general contractors, subcontractors, suppliers, owners, develop-
ers, architects, engineers, construction managers, and sureties.

Al Windle • 704.945.2176 • awindle@slk-law.com
The North Carolina Construction News — Winter 2018 — 3