Why geotechnical documents need an independent check – a legal obligation that also protects the client

In everyday design and construction practice, the geotechnical documents are among the foundations of the whole technical process. Even so, the importance of an independent technical check is often underestimated and treated as a formality. In fact, the check carried out by a specialist certified in field Af is both a legal requirement and an essential safeguard for the client's investment.

The legal framework – a clearly defined obligation

Since 25 August 2026, the technical check of designs in Romania is governed by Law no. 169/2026, the Code of Spatial Planning, Urbanism and Construction (art. 440–449). For buildings in consequence classes CC2, CC3 and CC4, the design must be checked by a certified design checker, at levels NVP2, NVP3 and NVP4 respectively. For geotechnics and foundations, this is the design checker certified in field Af (strength and stability of the foundation ground and of earth masses).

Beyond the stamp on the drawings, a real check results in a Check Report (Referat de verificare), attached to the building-permit application. The checker is liable for the conclusions of the check for 10 years from acceptance of the works and must hold professional liability insurance (art. 445–446). For CC1 buildings the check is no longer mandatory and responsibility lies solely with the designers (art. 441), but the client may still ask for one.

Why the geotechnical check matters in practice

Geotechnics deals with a heterogeneous natural material. A rigorous check, carried out as a constructive dialogue between the designer and the Af checker, can identify early on design assumptions that are optimistic or not supported by data.

The errors found most often

Field experience shows recurring deficiencies which, if left uncorrected, can generate very large costs:

• Insufficient ground investigation: too few boreholes, or investigation that stops above the depth of the foundation's stress bulb.
• Wrong groundwater level: seasonal variations of the water table ignored, leading to ineffective waterproofing or flooded basements.
• Unsupported parameter correlations: strength parameters (cohesion c, friction angle φ) taken from published tables, not confirmed by laboratory tests on the samples recovered.
• Report and design that do not match: the designer uses a conventional design pressure to size the foundations, without carrying out the mandatory resistance and stability verifications.
• Frost action or swelling and shrinkage left out: typical of sensitive soils such as active clays, which can crack the structure soon after completion.

Direct benefits for the client

From the client's point of view, the check is a risk management tool:

1. Fewer unforeseen costs: avoiding “surprises” during excavation that call for expensive emergency solutions.
2. Better solutions: the checker can see when a solution is needlessly over-designed and suggest a more economical one.
3. A documented record: the Check Report shows the authorities that the design was checked at the level the law requires.

Summary: what the Af check prevents

Conclusion

A well-prepared and properly checked geotechnical document is the basis of a safe building. For the client, asking for a real check, not a formal one, turns a bureaucratic obligation into a safeguard for the future of the building.