So you’ve been in the industry for years, running your own jobs, minding your own business, doing the right thing to keep your customers happy and offering good service and quality work.
Or maybe you’ve been thinking seriously about going out on your own because you’re sick of working for others and think you can do it better and make more money than you’re currently getting paid.
Well, this information is definitely for you to get yourself in a position to avoid costly fines, penalties and even prosecution for the work you’re doing.
The rule is simple… You must have a Builder Registration in Victoria when the work you are doing is over $10,000.
So if the value of the work including labour and materials is over this amount you are automatically breaking the law. If you think that you can get around this by getting the customer to go out and buy the materials or to order the fixtures to try and break up the cost of the job then forget it! If the total cost of the job is over the $10,000 then you’re simply breaking the law.
There are massive fines and prosecution handed out every year to people who are caught doing work without a Builders Licence in Victoria. Remember, that by taking on work over the $10,000 you are telling the customer you are a builder when in fact you’re not. This does not go down well with the VBA (Victorian Building Authority). Keep in mind, that this may also prevent you from getting your Builders Registration in Victoria in the future.
Check out these courses available.
If the work you are doing is over $16,000 you are required by law to provide the customer a Certificate of Insurance called Domestic Building Insurance (DBI).
Domestic Building Insurance protects homeowners in Victoria from financial loss caused by unfinished or unsatisfactory work carried out. This insurance provides cover to the owner for the work that is done.
What is domestic building insurance in Victoria?
This is insurance that you as the builder, tradesperson, renovator or handyman must give to the customer on the work you are doing if the work is over the $16,000 amount. Before you take any money from the customer in the form of a deposit you must provide a copy of a policy called a Certificate of Currency that covers them for work you are doing on their property.
You may have heard this called many things over the years like Builders Warranty or Builders Insurance and today it is referred to as DBI or Domestic Building Insurance.
It is against the law to commence any work without providing this insurance to your customer. Just so you know, insurances like contracts work insurance and public liability insurance are not the same and do not substitute the need for Domestic Building Insurance that you take out for works over $16,000.
Just so you know there are massive fines and prosecution handed out every year to people who take on work over $16,000 without providing there customers Domestic Building Insurance. This also does not go down well with the VBA (Victorian Building Authority). Keep in mind, that this may also prevent you from getting your Builders Registration in Victoria in the future also.
Because you can get certified after studying only 6-week with us! Have a look here.
And the classes are all online and super small groups – so you will get my full attention!
Before commencing any building work there’s a good chance that the job you’re about to is going to need a building permit. A Building Permit must be granted to ensure that the work meets the standard requirements and regulations as inspected by a Building Surveyor. Building Permits almost always are needed for new homes, demolitions, extensions and alterations. Other areas requiring a building permit can include structural alterations and repairs including moving or adding internal walls, pergolas, decks, pool fencing, retaining walls and fences. These are just to name a few.
There is a very good chance that if you are doing any work involving a Building Permit then without your Victorian Builders Registration then you simply cannot do the work. It doesn’t matter how experienced or handy you are no Builder Licence means no work involving a Building Permit!
The VBA have the power to prosecute any person doing work unregistered particularly when it comes to work requiring a building permit. Noncompliance by an unregistered person can lead to prosecution and may issue severe fines for doing work without a Builder License.
Let’s say you want to do a job for a customer that involves- plastering and painting. If you intend to carry out more than one type of building work, such as plastering and painting, where the cost (including labour and materials) is greater than $10,000 stop now! If you do not have a Builders License then you are not registered.
It is an offence to enter into a contract to perform work that requires a registered builder to carry out that work. You may face a range of penalties for doing any work that exceeds that $10,000 mark. Remember that this includes both your labour and materials for those jobs even if the client is paying for the materials.
There is no way out of this but to get your Builders Registration with the VBA.
Is it worth trying to run a business and looking over your shoulder all the time, worrying about getting caught? The VBA employs investigators and inspectors who are authorised to carry out investigations and inspections to dig up unregistered people who are breaking the law which simply means that you should be worried. Prosecutions, fines and visits to court is no way to try to run a business and make money in the industry.
Every day someone calls me and starts by telling me they’re a Qualified Chippy, Qualified Landscaper, Qualified Tiler etc.
Let me get one thing straight, There is no such thing as a “Qualified” anything! If you did an Apprenticeship and have a piece of paper that gives you a Certificate 3 in something, then today unfortunately, that qualification means nothing and it’s not worth the paper it’s written on.
Sorry to break it to you but there is no such thing as a Qualified trade anymore. If you want to go out and work for yourself and do work for your own customers, you either have a Builders License or you are pretty well finished.
There are over 30 different Domestic Building Licences to choose from which means you have plenty of options to cover the type of work you do.
Here’s the list:
If you intend to carry out only one of the below components of work, you do not need to be registered
I hope this has set you straight on why it is so important to have the Builder Registration in Victoria.
That keeps you from getting yourself in hot water with the Victorian Building Authority (VBA).
We work with over 400 people a year with a 97% success rate. We’re coming up to over 10 years in helping Victorians get the Builders Licence they want and they deserve!
So Why You Must Have a Builders License in Vic?
What about you? Time to get your Builders Registration in Victoria?
Give us a call on 0488278899
Cheers
Michael & The Team at Builders Licence Made Easy
