Ensuring pool safety is a critical responsibility for property owners in Victoria. The state has specific regulations and standards in place to protect residents, especially young children, from pool-related accidents. It’s important to understand the obligations that pool owners must adhere to, including obtaining necessary certificates, maintaining safety standards, and understanding the potential consequences of non-compliance. By familiarising yourself with these regulations, you can help ensure that your pool is both safe and legally compliant.
It is the owner of land’s responsibility to register any pool that may be located on the land with the relevant local council. The registration will remain indefinitely until it is deregistered, which is generally when the pool is removed from the property for any reason.
Aside from registering the pool, the owner must also arrange an inspection of the safety barrier to determine if the barrier is compliant with the applicable barrier standards. This certificate must be lodged with the council. This compliance certificate needs to be renewed every four years.
A regulated swimming pool is any excavation or structure capable of being filled with water to a depth of 300mm or more including a pool, spa or wading pool, but generally does not include a fishpond (or similar ornamental water feature), dam, water tank, watercourse, spa bath in a bathroom (unless continually filled with 300mm or more of water) or birthing pool.
All swimming pools and spas capable of containing water to a depth greater than 300 mm (30 cm) must have a compliant safety barrier to restrict access to the pool area by young children (under the age of five). Barriers are required for:
In Victoria, the design, construction and installation of swimming pools, spas and safety barriers are subject to strict requirements under the Building Regulations 2018 (the Regulations).
Swimming pools, spas and safety barriers must comply with several requirements, including:
Property owners and occupants are responsible for making sure pool barriers are maintained, repaired and kept in working order. A new outdoor pool or spa area must not be directly accessible via a building.
On 1 December 2019, new laws to improve swimming pool and spa safety came into effect in Victoria. Itis mandatory for owners of land where a swimming pool or spa is located to register their pool or spa with the relevant council. The laws apply to swimming pools and spas that are capable of holding more than 300 mm(30 cm) of water. This includes permanent pools, above ground pools, indoor pools, hot tubs, bathing or wading pools, and some relocatable pools.
Relocatable pools that do not consist of multiple components and do not require any assembly are not subject to the barrier requirements. An example of such a product is a small inflatable pool that requires no assembly other than inflation.
Pool and spa owners are also required to obtain and lodge compliance certificates for their safety barriers.
On 1 December 2019, laws to improve swimming pool and spa safety came into effect in Victoria. It is mandatory for owners of land where a swimming pool or spa is located to register their pool or spa with the relevant council. Owners are also required to have their safety barriers inspected and to lodge a certificate of barrier compliance with their council. If a safety barrier is not compliant, it is the owner’s responsibility to make the barrier compliant.
The laws apply to swimming pools and spas that are capable of holding more than 300 mm (30 cm) of water. This includes permanent pools, above ground pools, indoor pools, hot tubs, bathing or wading pools, and some relocatable pools. Relocatable pools that do not consist of multiple components and do not require any assembly are not subject to the barrier requirements. An example of such a product is a small inflatable pool that requires no assembly other than inflation.
Once your swimming pool or spa has been registered, you need to arrange an inspection of the safety barrier to determine if the barrier is compliant with the applicable barrier standard.
An inspection of your pool or spa barriercan only be carried out by:
If the inspector determines that your safety barrier complies with the applicable barrier standard, they will issue a certificate of barrier compliance. As the owner of the land with the pool or spa, you then need to lodge the certificate with your council within 30 days of the date of issue of the certificate. Contact your council for more information.
When the council receives the certificate, they will send you a written notice, which confirms:
You will need to pay a fee to the council when you lodge the certificate and you are required to lodge a certificate of barrier compliance every four years. You may check with your council for exact dates.
If the inspector determines that your safety barrier is not compliant, they can either:
After re-inspection, if the inspector determines that the pool barrier is compliant, they will issue a certificate of barrier compliance, which you must then lodge with council.
If the barrier remains non-compliant, but the inspector is satisfied that progress has been made towards bringing the barrier into compliance, they may allow you an additional seven days to rectify the barrier. Otherwise, they will issue a certificate of barrier non-compliance.
If an inspector issues a certificate of barrier non-compliance, they will lodge it with the relevant council and provide you with a copy. The council will notify you and you will have to pay a fee by the due date specified in the notice.
When the council receives the certificate of barrier non-compliance, the municipal building surveyor will issue either:
A barrier improvement notice may be issued by a municipal building surveyor after the council receives a certificate of barrier non-compliance. A barrier improvement notice is usually issued for minor non-compliance matters. The notice specifies what you must fix to make the barrier compliant, as well as the period that you must take this action within.
If you do not comply with the barrier improvement notice within the time specified, you may face an on-the-spot fine of approximately $330 and a penalty of up to $1,652.20 if the certificate of swimming pool barrier compliance is not lodged as required.
In addition, the municipal building surveyor may then issue other notices or orders under the Building Act1993.
When a pool or spa is on common property managed by an owners corporation, the owners corporation is responsible for arranging the registration, inspection and certification of the pool or spa barrier.
The owner is responsible for registering the pool or spa with council and arranging for the inspection and certification of the barriers. However, as an occupier you may inspect the council's register for information relating to the pool or spa on the property you are renting, including whether the pool or spa is registered, and whether the barrier has a current compliance certificate.
There are substantial penalties for non-compliance, including fines and possible legal action to enforce compliance.