How we check

Where the data comes from

• beforeUdig's published member list — the roster of asset owners registered with the service, read directly from beforeudig.co.nz.
• beforeUdig's Non-Member Utilities List — asset owners beforeUdig names as having opted out. beforeUdig says that list "is not exhaustive but is compiled to the best of our knowledge".
• Each operator's own website — the contact numbers, locate and plan-request processes, safe-dig guidance and asset maps we link to. Where an operator states its own beforeUdig status, we take that over a third-party list.

What "beforeUdig member" does and does not mean

When we say an operator is a beforeUdig member, we mean one specific, checkable thing: they are named on beforeUdig's published member list as at the sweep date above. 117 of the 251 operators we list are. It is a citation, not a promise about what comes back.

Two things can make a listed member still not answer for the pipes under your worksite.

The first is who gets notified. beforeUdig's own terms of use split members into two kinds on the confirmation sheet. "Notified" members are contacted by beforeUdig on your behalf. "Not Notified" members appear on your sheet with their contact details, but beforeUdig does not contact them — the terms put that on you:

Contact the Asset Owners listed on the Confirmation Sheet as "Not Notified" directly to check their requirements including arranging for plans, information and/or locating your dig site.beforeUdig Terms of Use, clause 4(b)

Which members are which is not published anywhere — it appears only on the confirmation sheet for a real enquiry. So we do not tell you an operator is "covered by one enquiry", because no public source can support that. Read your confirmation sheet, and ring anyone marked Not Notified.

The second is scope. A registration can cover some of an operator's assets and not others. beforeUdig itself publishes this: its non-member list names five councils under Water & Waste that are also on the member list. Those councils say the same thing in their own words — Kāpiti Coast bluntly:

The "Before U Dig" service has no information on Council's buried water, wastewater or stormwater assets.

We checked every council in the country for statements like that. Where an operator has said something either way, it is quoted on its own page under "What beforeUdig covers here", with a link to the source. Most operators have never said, and we do not guess on their behalf.

Known limits

• Registration is per asset type, not per organisation. beforeUdig's non-member list carries a utility-type column, and five councils are named there under Water & Waste while also appearing on the member list. They are registered — just not for their pipes. Where that happens we quote it on the operator's page.
• Membership changes in both directions. Operators join and leave. Anything more than a few months past the sweep date above should be treated as needing confirmation.
• Some operators publish nothing. Small irrigation schemes, private sites and a few network owners have no usable public contact. We leave those blank rather than substitute a switchboard that cannot help you.
• Owners change, and we keep the old name listed. When a network transfers to a new operator we do not delete the old record, because plans, site markings and duct labels still carry the old name. We add a note saying who runs it now and who to ring.