Victorians need to act now to avoid the bottleneck

Blog Victorians Need To Act Now To Avoid The Bottleneck

Melanie Tazelaar, Marketing Manager for Smoke Alarm Solutions, reports on the smoke alarm legislation requirements for the Victorian market and the changes that will occur in 2021.

Victorians have experienced a lot of change in 2020 and there is now some confusion surrounding the proposed new legislation. Smoke Alarm Solutions are the experts in legislation and are across all the changes to the rental reforms. Initially, the legislation was to be enacted by the 1st of July 2020, however, with COVID-19, the date was extended to 2021.

The REIV has widely communicated the changes and the additional requirements to smoke alarm legislation in Victoria. This does not mean that we stop meeting the current requirements, it means there will be additional requirements to meet as well, from 2021.

Landlords need to ensure rental properties meet all current requirements in terms of legislation. Property managers have an ongoing duty of care to landlords and their tenants to ensure the property is safe for the tenant. This will also ensure they avoid any potential litigation, fines, or risks associated with non-compliance.

So what does this new Victorian legislation mean for a landlord or a property manager? The two main parts of the smoke alarm related activities from the legislation are:

  • That the upgrades are carried out by a suitably qualified person, and
  • Inspections occur annually

As part of our annual service, Smoke Alarm Solutions will work with owners to meet those two requirements. Our suitably qualified and incredibly well-trained technicians carry out at least one inspection per year at each property to make sure they meet both the current and the new requirements.

The $99 platinum subscription includes an inspection of all smoke alarms in the property to confirm their locations are correct, they meet Australian standards and have the required audible output. A Compliance Report is provided after each inspection as a record that the property has been inspected as per the requirements

Any landlords choosing to carry out smoke alarm activities themselves, won’t have access to the detailed Compliance Reports that form part of the Smoke Alarm Solutions service. The reports provide information such as the last time the property was inspected, where the alarms are located, making sure all requirements have been met.

Whilst there has been an extension to the legislation start date, Victorians are still not acting quick enough to meet the new legislation.

The current trend in Queensland with the change of legislation, is that property owners are leaving upgrades to the last minute. We are now urging Victorian owners to act now to meet the new requirements and avoid the bottleneck of work, which could result in not meeting the legislation deadline.

Melanie concludes that Smoke Alarm Solutions are here to help all Victorians through this legislation change. We’re here to provide a cost-effective, comprehensive, and easy solution to meet requirements sooner rather than later. After-all, it is all about protecting property and people.

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