Pool Safety Crackdown Delayed

You probably didn’t realise it but until a couple of weeks ago, a huge number of unit blocks in NSW faced having their swimming pools locked up and even drained  so that owners could sell or lease their properties.

After a deadline at the end of this month (April) you would not have been allowed  to sell or lease your home, if it has a pool,  unless you had a valid compliance certificate.

This applied to strata schemes as well as free-standing homes and  many strata unit owners could have been at the mercy of owners corporations that had little interest in inviting council inspectors round for a look-see.

Even for those that did, some councils were ‘failing’ most pools – one reputedly inspected 300 and didn’t pass one of them – and it was taking months to rectify the issues.

Unit sales and rentals would have ceased as owners discovered they needed a piece of paper they had no chance of acquiring.

That’s why last month the NSW Department of Local Government pushed the time limit for inspections and certifications back a full year to April 2015.

Welcoming the delay was Chris Mo’ane  of strata building consultants Integrated (IBC), and a member of the swimming pool consultation group convened by the Builders Professional Board (BPB) and the department.

“Part of the problem was that council inspectors were likely to have a look around to see if buildings were compliant in other areas, such as fire ordinances,” say Chris. “They are also not required to offer advice on how to remedy the pool’s alleged failings.”

Professional surveyors who, unlike council inspectors, have to be qualified were expensive, thin on the ground and, in many cases, reluctant to do the work.

But the point of all this is to prevent kids from drowning. Chris Mo’ane say the delay gives the industry time to set up a new category of inspectors who can not only check pool safety but advise on cost-effective and timely remedies.