Compliance cover
Peace of mind your investment is protected
Breathe easy knowing your tenants are safe and your property remains compliant with the complex and evolving legislation
Smoke alarms
Smoke alarms
Smoke alarm maintenance is governed by both State and Federal legislation and any person who does not comply with the relevant legislation is guilty of an offence. Owners who fail to take every practical step to ensure the safety of their tenants can face a multitude of unpleasant and unwanted consequences that can be easily avoided with the right guidance.
To ensure you are compliant, you are legally required to meet minimum standards which include:
To ensure you are compliant, you are legally required to meet minimum standards which include:
- Smoke alarms must be checked to ensure they are working, and any alarm that has expired or is found to be faulty must be replaced.
- Smoke alarms need to be replaced within 10 years of manufacture, or earlier if specified by the manufacturer.
- Batteries must be installed or replaced every year (or for lithium batteries, in the period specified by the manufacturer).
- Smoke alarms must comply with the Australian Standard AS3786.
- Smoke alarms must be installed on or near the ceiling on any storey that has a bedroom or another room defined as a sleeping area, an alarm must be installed in every corridor or hallway associated with a bedroom or sleeping area. If there’s no hallway or corridor, it must be installed between the part/s of the home containing the bedroom or sleeping area and the rest of the dwelling.
- Smoke alarms must be installed on or near the ceiling on all storeys that don’t contain a bedroom at the most likely exit point from that storey.
- Smoke alarms must be installed in enclosed rooms under the house of high set homes.
To read the full legislation, please review:
Safety switches
Safety switches
Safety switches turn off the power in a fraction of a heartbeat if a leakage of current is detected, protecting your tenants and anyone visiting their home from electric shock. This can happen if there is a faulty power point or electrical appliance, or if a live cable is accidentally damaged or broken (e.g. a tradesperson doing maintenance on the home). Properties with faulty safety switches could also cause serious injury or death to a tenant or contractor. To understand your obligations, please refer to NSW Fair Trading.
Corded blinds
Corded blinds
Due to the potential strangulation hazard, landlords are required to ensure that all corded window coverings are properly fitted and maintained in accordance with complex safety standards. Blind and curtain cords are a strangulation hazard to children; two children die a year in Australia from non-compliant blinds and curtains. All residential properties that have any corded internal window coverings must have the cords fitted with the prescribed safety devices and warning labels. Even if you haven’t installed corded blinds or window fittings, your tenants could at any time so it’s critical that your property is checked by a qualified compliance technician for non-compliance.
To ensure you are compliant, you are legally required to meet minimum standards for installation, which include:
- The corded internal window covering must be installed in a way that ensures a loose cord cannot form a loop 220 mm or longer at or less than 1,600 mm above floor level.
- The corded internal window covering must be installed in accordance with the installation instructions on any retail packaging for the covering
- A cleat used to secure a cord must be installed at least 1,600 mm above floor level.
- A person installing a corded internal window covering must attach a label to it containing the name and contact details of the person or company responsible for the installation and must not remove any warning label or swing tag supplied with the corded internal window covering.
To read the full legislation, please review the Trade Practices (Consumer Product Safety Standard - Corded Internal Window Coverings) Regulations 2010
Water efficiency
Water efficiency
In NSW, landlords can ask a tenant to pay water usage charges if the property is separately metered (or water is delivered by vehicle), the charges are not more than the amount the landlord is billed for by the water supplier, and the property meets the ‘water efficiency’ standards.
A property is only considered water efficient if it meets these standards.
- No leaking taps or toilets anywhere on the property at the start of the tenancy and whenever the other water efficiency measures are installed, repaired or upgraded
- Showerheads have a maximum flow rate of 9 litres per minute
- Internal cold water taps and single mixer taps for kitchen sinks or bathroom hand basins have a maximum flow rate of 9 litres per minute
- From 23 March 2025: all toilets on the property are dual flush and have a minimum 3-star WELS rating
Water efficiency measures should appear on the condition report, and tenants can ask the landlord or agent to provide some evidence. For more information about water efficient products and labelling schemes, visit the Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards (WELS) Scheme. To learn more about water efficiency in rental properties, please refer to NSW Fair Trading.
When it comes to compliance, you can't risk mistakes
4x
more likely there will be a fatality if a fire starts in a home with no working smoke alarms
2
children die a year from non-compliant blinds and curtains
50k+
words of State and Federal legislation rental properties must adhere to
48%
of rental properties are non-compliant on first visit
FAQs
- What is included in my compliance cover?
- What is water efficiency and is my property eligible?
- Is my property eligible to pass water usage charges onto renters?
- Who is Property Compliance Australia?
- How much does it cost?
- What information do you need from me to sign up?
- How do I opt-out of compliance cover?
- I recently paid for a compliance check, so can my new subscription start after the old one expires?
