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pestinspections.au
Guide 4 of 5

Who may do a timber pest inspection depends on the state you are in

Queensland’s rule is a licence for the work: only a licensed pest controller can complete termite inspections there.

New South Wales needs no EPA licence for timber pest inspections done without pesticides.

Two panels. To scale: the house inside the band the inspection covers, its outline offset 30 metres, with a scale bar from 0 at the wall to 30 metres. The house, enlarged and not to scale: the same walls as three plans pulled apart, roof space over rooms over subfloor, with ink on the places a source names to look at, tap or test for moisture, the paper inside the walls hatched and marked not inspected, and the band’s conditions around the walls. The house is not any particular home. To scale the house the band 30 m 0, the wall Ticks every 5 m. The band is the property within 30 metres of the building, as Queensland’s building regulator (QBCC) describes the standard’s inspection. LOOKa visual inspection TAPnon-marking sounding of elements MOISTUREthe moisture content of materials garden beds and mulch against the wall materials stacked against the wall paving that sends water towards the house trees or bush near the building The house, enlarged · not to scale ROOF SPACE roof timbers ROOMS skirting boards, architraves, cornices, the wet rooms SUBFLOOR piers or stumps, ant caps, the slab edge inside the walls: not inspected an open door or window Who may inspect, by stateWho may inspect in QueenslandQLDWho may inspect in New South WalesNSWWho may inspect in the ACTACTWho may inspect in VictoriaVICWho may inspect in Western AustraliaWA What the inspection checks 1 What it cannot see 2 How far it reaches 3 Who may inspect, by state 4 Drywood termites and the roof space 5
The band and the small house in it are to scale; the enlarged house is not, and is no particular home. The 30 metres and the three ways of reading are the QBCC’s account of AS 4349.3.

LOOK visual. TAP non-marking sounding. MOISTURE content of materials. QBCC’s words for the standard.

Who may inspect, by state QLDNSWACTVICWA

The house, enlarged

Roof space roof timbers inside the timber: not inspected Rooms skirting boards, architraves, cornices, the wet rooms inside the walls: not inspected Subfloor piers or stumps and ant caps, the slab edge on a slab floor, termites are more likely to go undetected

The band, 0 to 30 m

0 m, against the wall Garden beds and mulch built up against the wall. Materials stacked against the wall. 30 m, the band’s edge (QBCC) The surrounding property within 30 metres of the building, in QBCC’s account of the standard. Near the building, no stated distance Paving that sends water towards the house. Trees or bush near the building.

Four kinds of rule, side by side

A licence to do the work is the first kind. Queensland requires one: only a licensed pest controller can complete termite inspections, and the QBCC tells buyers to check an inspector’s licence before hiring them.

An exemption is the second kind. In New South Wales, timber pest inspections carried out without pesticides, or without installing barriers that contain them, do not need a licence from the EPA.

A rule about the report is the third kind. The ACT writes the document itself into regulation, requiring that a pest inspection report be completed in accordance with AS 4349.3.

Advice about competence is the fourth kind. Victoria’s building authority tells a buyer to engage a pest inspector who is properly qualified, experienced and insured.

Each state in its own words

Queensland

Only a licensed pest controller can complete termite inspections, and a contractor needs a termite management licence from the QBCC to give advice or a report about termite management systems or infestations. QBCC: Before you buy and sell

New South Wales

Timber pest inspections on their own, without pesticides or pesticide-bearing barriers, need no licence from the EPA.

For treating termites and other timber pests with pesticides, New South Wales is phasing in a timber pest management technician licence. NSW EPA: pest management technicians

ACT

A pest inspection report must be completed in accordance with AS 4349.3, and must state the dates of the inspection and the report in a prominent place.

The report must also give the report author’s indemnity insurance policy number and expiry date, or travel with a certificate of currency that carries the expiry date. ACT: Civil Law (Sale of Residential Property) Regulation 2004, s 10

Victoria

The Victorian Building Authority advises buyers to engage a pest inspector who is properly qualified, experienced and insured. Consumer Affairs Victoria advises using an inspection service with full professional indemnity insurance. Victorian Building Authority: Termites

Western Australia

Building and Energy recommends a yearly inspection at the least, by a licensed pest control operator, looking for signs of infestation. WA Building and Energy: Termites and your home

The detail inside each rule

Queensland splits its licensing in two. The termite management licences cover chemical and physical systems, and a contractor must hold one of them to give advice or a report about termite management systems or infestations.

Queensland Health says that where you need termite advice or a report on termite management systems or infestations, you should check that the technician holds a QBCC licence, which is required on top of their pest management technician licence.

The QBCC’s booklet adds a professional indemnity requirement: licensees holding a Termite Management Chemical licence must carry insurance of at least $500,000.

New South Wales is phasing in a timber pest management technician licence for using pesticides on termites and other timber pests.

A timber pest management technician licence, being phased in, asks for extra nationally recognised training on top of the pest management technician requirements.

The ACT’s regulation sets the report’s face: the inspection and report dates in a prominent place, and the report author’s professional indemnity policy number and expiry, or a certificate of currency with the expiry date.

The ACT’s regulation provides that the report must include statements to the effect that no reliance may be placed on the report for any contract entered into more than 180 days after the date of the inspection.

Consumer Affairs Victoria puts its advice the same way, from the buyer’s side: use an inspection service with full professional indemnity insurance.

Western Australia’s Building and Energy stays with the work itself, advising a licensed pest controller for early detection across all accessible timber and potential entry points.

Building and pest together

A pre-purchase timber pest inspection is recommended on top of a building inspection, according to the QBCC’s booklet, which also says it should be carried out by a contractor appropriately licensed by the QBCC.

Who may inspect, by state: Queensland’s rule, New South Wales’, the ACT’s, Victoria’s, and Western Australia’s.