Minister commends home building compliance in hunter
4 March 2008
NSW Fair Trading Minister, Linda Burney, today praised the high level of compliance with home building laws amongst contractors and owner-builders in the Hunter region.
Ms Burney said following a recent compliance blitz of the home building sector in the area, including the Cessnock, Maitland and Port Stephens council areas, Fair Trading inspectors identified a compliance rate of almost 94 per cent.
“284 sites were visited during the campaign and over 460 people were spoken to. This resulted in a total of 28 penalty notices being issued with a total monetary value of $22,500,” Ms Burney said.
“Of the penalty notices issued, only two were issued for non-compliance with home warranty insurance provisions.
Other offences were contracting and undertaking residential building work without a licence, failure to display a sign on site and failure of the licence holder to supervise specialist work.
“This high level of compliance with home building laws is a direct reflection of the wider industry compliance in the area. Fair Trading’s continuous education and provision of information to contractors and owner-builders in the area regarding licensing requirements is definitely paying off.”
Ms Burney said the campaign – Operation Jigsaw – targeted traders undertaking major renovations and those contracting with owner-builders. They also followed up on unlicensed contractors and the principal contractors engaging them.
“The campaign set out to determine the level of compliance with laws and also focused on home warranty insurance.
“Informing traders and consumers of their rights and obligations under the law formed an integral part of the operation.
“Consumers and traders were provided with information sheets and booklets about home warranty insurance, continuing professional development and electricity compliance certificates.”
Ms Burney said home building laws exist to protect both consumers and tradespeople and Fair Trading will persist with inspection programs like this to continue providing this protection.
Find out at this website if a contractor is appropriately licensed or call 13 32 20.
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