1. Best Design Awards is a programme of the Designers Institute of New Zealand Inc (“Designers Institute”),
Designers Institute of New Zealand
PO Box 10 9423, Newmarket
Auckland 1149
Email: info@bestawards.co.nz
Phone: 027 473 2399
2. By entering, you acknowledge and accept the following terms and conditions.
3. Eligible Designers
3.1 Entry is open to any individual, group of individuals or company who has designed or commissioned a design,
3.2 Entrants under 18 years must have a parent/legal guardian contact the Designers Institute to confirm they have permission to enter, and agree to these rules.
3.3 Entrants do not need to be members of the Designers Institute, however, by entering, entrants agree that they will be bound and will abide by the Designers Institute Code of Ethics. Entry in the Best Design Awards does not constitute, nor carry the rights and benefits of, Designers Institute membership.
3.4 DINZ Members to receive the Best Design Award discount must be paid up as full Members (this does not include Affiliate or International Members).
4. Eligible Works
4.1 Works entered into the Best Design Awards must have been released before 1st August in the year of entry.
4.2 There is no restriction to when the work was created up till 1st of August in the year of entry.
4.3 Entries (including all supporting information) must be received before 6.00pm NZST on the specified closing date published under Key Dates, unless stated otherwise by the Organisers.
4.34 Works will not be eligible if they have been entered by another Entrant or submitted in a previous year, unless the work has been entered previously, but changed or updated, with the re-launch representing a significant design development.
4.5 No more than one entry may be entered for a single Work i.e. a studio or a client or other cannot enter the same Work.
4.6 Works must fit into one of the following classifications:
a) The Work has been produced for, and approved by the client. The following categories may be exempt from this requirement: Product Concept/Experimental, student entries
b) The Work has been produced by an agency or entrant pro-bono i.e without paid comission
c) The Entrant is also the client for the work, which falls into the self-promotion category;
d) Student Works eg Works created by a tertiary student at an accredited government learning institute, and accepted for coursework credit; or
e) The Work does not fit into the above classifications, but the Organisers have granted express written permission for the entry of the Work.
4.7 Works must also fit the criteria of at least one of the Awards Categories.
4.8 Works created solely for the purpose of entering competitions are not eligible. The following categories may be exempt from this requirement: Product Concept/Experimental, student entries
4.9 Submissions to the awards are only valid upon receiving payment in full of the entry free as specified by the Best Design Awards Organisers. Entry fees are not refundable as per dates stated under Refunds.
4.10 Without prejudice to the Organisers’ absolute discretion of entry under Rule 8.3, the Organisers may refuse to admit works which are pornographic, profane, discriminatory, inflammatory, illegal in content or in any other way offensive to a person or the principles of the Best Design Awards, the Designers Institute, or Designers Institute sponsors or members.
5. Awards Categories
5.1 The Best Design Awards categories are at the Organisers’ discretion and may be changed/added/varied without notice at any stage prior to judging.
5.2 The Organisers reserve the right to move any entry into a different category, at any time, without notice, if they deem that category to be most suitable.
6. Authorship, Contributors, Acknowledgment, Originality and Licensing
6.1 By submitting your entry, you warrant that:
a) that the Work submitted is original;
b) that you are the originator of the Work (or part of a group of originators);
c) that all originators, contributors, clients, and owners of the work consent to the entry and use of the Work in accordance with these Rules and the general requirements of the Best Design Awards;
d) if you have completed a Work as an employee, that you have gained the permission of your employer to enter the Work; and
e) that you have obtained any required licensing and/or permission to use comprising third-party materials (including typefaces, photography, vector images, trade marks, patents, and other licensed and/or copyrighted materials) for the Work to be entered, published, promoted etc. in accordance with these Rules and the general requirements of the competition.
6.2 Where any contributor/ author/ relevant client or employer objects to the entry, the Work may (in the absolute discretion of the Designers Institute and the Best Design Awards Organiser under Rule 8.3) not be accepted for submission to the Awards. The Organisers reserve the right to remove any entry where authorship and/or acknowledgement is disputed.
6.3 All significant contributors must be acknowledged with appropriate entry credits, and their contact details must be provided by the Entrant. The Organisers may contact contributors and Entrants to verify details, including authorship and contribution, and may require this information to be modified. Without prejudice to the Organisers’ absolute discretion of entry under Rule 8.3, entries with inadequate or contested contributor acknowledgment may be disqualified.
6.4 In the event judges query the eligibility of an Entry under this section, you will be required to provide documentary evidence (e.g. correspondence, records, design concepts, applicable patents and/or trademarks) to demonstrate the eligibility.
7. Designers Institute and Best Design Awards use of Works and Related Material
7.1 By entering you warrant that:
a) the Designers Institute has the right to reproduce all materials provided by the entrant(s), in whole or in part without payment of release of licensing or royalty fees to the holder of the publication rights and/or copyright;
b) the Designers Institute and the Organisers have permission to use, publish, broadcast, exhibit and promote the name, image, and the content of the submission, works, and any interviews or other material supplied to the Designers Institute/the Best Design Awards, in any way that the Designers Institute deems appropriate, including for the promotion, marketing and commercial motives of the Designers Institute, the Best Design Awards and their sponsors; and
c) Notwithstanding the above, you accept that the Organisers and the Designers Institute have no obligation to display, promote or publish any Work or Entry in any way.
7.2 By entering you warrant that you will use your best endeavours to comply with the reasonable requirements of the Designers Institute and the Organisers to obtain and use the Work in the manner described in Rule 7.1. You agree that you will provide the Organisers / Designers Institute with the opportunity to use, photograph and display the Work.
7.3 The Designers Institute and Organisers will use all reasonable efforts to acknowledge the Entry/Work originators and contributors in accordance with the information provided by the Entrant(s), wherever possible, in any publications by The Designers Institute and/or Organisers.
8. Absolute Discretion of the Designers Institute and Best Design Awards Judges
8.1 All judges are required to sign a Non Disclosure Agreement binding for ten years.
8.2 The decisions of the judges are final and are made at the sole and absolute discretion of the judges.
8.3 Without prejudice to the absolute discretion under Rule 8.3, if the Designers Institute establishes that an Entrant has broken the Awards Rules, the offending Entry shall be suspended from the Awards.
8.4 The Designers Institute and the Best Design Awards Organisers and judges retain an absolute discretion to, without reason or refund:
a) Disqualify an Entrant/Entry from the Awards;
b) Admit/exclude/remove Entries to the Awards;
c) Require any Entrant to modify their Entry;
d) Bar any Entrant from submitting further Entries (including in future Best Design Awards);
e) Refuse to judge an entry;
f) Change the competition dates, including entry, judgment and ceremony dates;
g) Change/replace the prizes without further notice;
h) Refuse future Designers Institute membership and/or revoke/suspend a Designers Institute membership on the grounds of an Entrant’s conduct with regards to these Awards; and/or
i) Strike off an award where a Work or Entrant is later found to be in breach of these Rules.
8.5 Further correspondence (if any) is at the sole discretion of the Designers Institute CEO.
9. Intellectual Property Rights Reserved
9.1 All rights related to the name “DINZ”, “Designers Institute of New Zealand”, “Best Design Awards” and associated images, branding, trade marks and all intellectual property are exclusively owned by the Designers Institute, and may not be used without the express written permission of the Designers Institute CEO.
10. Privacy and Contact Information
10.1 You hereby warrant that you and each significant contributor has authorised the entry of their personal details for these purposes and consented to participating in the Best Design Awards in accordance with the Entry and Competition Rules.
10.2 All contact details provided may be used from time-to-time by the Organisers and the Designers Institute for communications related to the Best Design Awards and promotion of other Designers Institute news and events.
10.3 All other personal information will be kept confidential and used solely by the Designers Institute for the purposes of the Best Design Awards. You can request access to and correction of your details at any time. You may unsubscribe at any time from our email database.
11. Prizes
11.1 Any prizes offered are non-transferrable, not substitutable with cash, and subject to change without notice.
11.2 Awards Pins and Certificates will not be couriered at organisers cost (DINZ/Best) to international addresses.
12. Warranties
12.1 The Best Design Awards, Organisers, Designers Institute and its sponsors and members shall not be liable for any loss, injury, liability, expense or damage suffered by the Entrant(s) or any third party whatsoever, whether indirectly or directly, howsoever arising, including that resulting from the negligence of the Organisers and/or Designers Institute, by our cancellations, terminations, disqualifications, modifications, variations, or through the failure or omission on the part of Organisers and/or Designers Institute to comply with obligations under these Rules, or arising by operation of law and whether suffered by the Entrants, contributors and/or a third party for any amount that exceeds any entry fee actually paid by the Entrant to pursuant to these Rules.
12.2 Without prejudice to Rule 12.1, the Best Design Awards, Organisers, Designers Institute and its sponsors and members:
a) do not warrant the safety or protection of your property. Any property is entered and held at the Entrant’s risk;
b) will not be responsible for the content/editorial control for entries and associated information submitted by entrants, including the legality and/or veracity of that information;
c) do not make any claims or warranties as to the ownership of copyright or intellectual property of the designs entered in the Best Design Awards, and will assume no liability on work submitted accused of plagiarism, copyright issues, intellectual property rights issues or contractual disputes related to the entries and works submitted. The Entrants must take sole responsibility and in such case, the Entrant(s) shall indemnify the Designers Institute, the Best Design Awards and sponsors for any loss or damages and his/her/its admission to the competition shall be terminated immediately.
12.3 By entering, you warrant that you have the legal standing and relevant permissions to make the commitments required by these Rules and the general nature of the Best Design Awards, and that you indemnify the Best Design Awards, Organisers, Designers Institute and its sponsors for any loss or damage incurred (directly or indirectly) by you, a contributor or any third party, in relation to your entry in the Best Design Awards.
13. Cancellation of Entry and Tickets
13.1 Entrants may cancel or remove Entries via written request (email us at info@bestawards.co.nz) up until 5pm Wednesday 2nd July 2025 after which point no Entries may be withdrawn.
13.2 AGDA & DIA Members need to be Ticked In to receive the DINZ Member rate before 8.00NZpm Friday 27th June and Wednesday 2nd July (DINZ Team will have gone home after that time).
13.3 Entry refunds, The Designers Institute is under no obligation to refund payments made for any Entries from 5pm Wednesday 2nd July 2025.
13.4 Ticket refunds for the awards evening will not be given after 5pm Friday 12th September 2025, or, as advertised on the eDM's.
13.5 Tickets close Friday 3rd October 2025.
13.6 All online payments incur third party Stripe fees. The refund for entries or tickets will have this fee deducted and reflected in the refund.
14. Interpretation
14.1 Singular words include the plural and vice versa.
14.2 References to any party shall mean and include a reference to that party, its successor, executors or personal representatives (as the case may be), and transferees.
14.3 Any covenant on the Entrant not to do something shall also constitute an obligation not to suffer, permit, cause or assist any other person to do that thing.
14.4 Any reference to any legislation, regulation, or code includes reference to any modification, substitute for, c13.3 onsolidation or re-enactment of it.
14.5 In these Rules, the following definitions shall apply:
“Awards Categories” Means the categories of awards available in the Best Design Awards, as specified from time to time by the Organisers
“Closing Date” Means the final date that entries will be accepted by the Organiser for judgment in the Best Design Awards, as notified by the Organisers
“DINZ” or “Designers Institute” Means the Designers Institute of New Zealand Incorporated
“Entrant” or “You” Means the person submitting the Work for entry in the Best Design Awards
“Entry” or “Entries” Means the Work(s) submitted in the Best Design Awards, together with any other documentation or materials, including the entry form
“Intellectual Property” Means all and any patents, patent applications, trade marks, service marks, trade names, copyrights, know-how, trade secrets, domain names, rights in confidential information, and all and any other intellectual property rights, including all applications and rights to apply for any of the same
“Organisers” Means the Designers Institute of New Zealand and its delegates and sponsors, in their capacity as proprietors/organisers of the Best Design Awards
“Work” or “Works” Means the creative work product which is submitted for judgment in the Best Design Awards
