In Aotearoa New Zealand, the interpretation of seismic risk information and the subsequent demands put on building owners and developers to address seismic risk are shaping the performance of our building stock. Commercial building tenants in particular can significantly influence property developers and landlords, who respond to tenant preferences to ensure they can lease and make a return on their property investment(s). However, there are many cases that indicate commercial building tenants do not fully understand the seismic risk information they receive nor how to incorporate the information into their decision-making regarding leasing or vacating a building. This research identified key challenges with current approaches for communicating seismic building risk with commercial building tenants through a series of interviews with commercial building tenants, property managers and structural engineers.