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.
What are the pool safety requirements for swimming pools in Victoria?
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.
What qualifies as a ‘swimming pool’ in Victoria?
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.
What are the barrier requirements in Victoria?
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-ground pools and spas.
- above-ground pools and spas, including relocatable and inflatable pools that are capable of holding more than 300 mm (30 cm) depth of water and require assembly on site.
- indoor pools and spas.
- bathing and wading pools capable of containing more than 300 mm (30 cm) depth of water.
Barriers aren't required for:
- inflatable swimming pools (typically toddler or wading pools) that cannot contain a water depth greater than 300 mm (30cm).
- small inflatable pools that do not consist of multiple components and do not require any assembly. An example of such a product is a small inflatable pool that requires no assembly other than inflation.
- bird baths.
- fountains.
- water supply/storage tanks.
- fish ponds.
- Dams.
- baths used for personal hygiene and emptied after each use.
- spas inside a building (e.g. in a bathroom) used for personal hygiene and emptied after each use.
- pools or spas that cannot contain a water depth of more than 300 mm.
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:
- being constructed by a builder registered in an appropriate category or class, or an owner-builder who has an owner-builder certificate of consent.
- have self-latching and self-closing pool gates.
- safety barriers must comply with AS1926.1-2012.
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.
What are the pool and spa registration requirements in Victoria?
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.
What are the pool and spa inspection and compliance requirements in Victoria?
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.
Who can carry out barrier inspections?
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:
- a registered building surveyor
- a registered building inspector
- a municipal building surveyor.
How to lodge a certificate of barrier compliance?
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:
- the date the certificate was lodged.
- the date by which the next certificate is required to be lodged, which is four years after the previous certificate.
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.
What would happen if the barriers are not compliant?
If the inspector determines that your safety barrier is not compliant, they can either:
- immediately issue a certificate of barrier non-compliance.
- issue you a written notice specifying:
- the matters which must be addressed to bring the pool barrier into compliance.
- the period in which the barrier must be made compliant (within a maximum of 60 days).
- the date and time they intend to reinspect the barrier
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.
What happens if the council receives the certificate of barrier non-compliance?
When the council receives the certificate of barrier non-compliance, the municipal building surveyor will issue either:
- a barrier improvement notice.
- a notice or order under the Building Act 1993 (if the municipal building surveyor considers that this is appropriate, depending on the nature of the non-compliance).
What is a barrier improvement notice in Victoria?
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.
What are the requirements and responsibilities for shared residential pools in an owners corporation?
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.
If I am renting a property which has a pool or spa. Whose responsibility it is to ensure the registration and compliance of the pool or spa?
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.
What are the consequences of non-compliance?
There are substantial penalties for non-compliance, including fines and possible legal action to enforce compliance.
