What Happens If My Pool Does Not Pass?

First: failing an inspection is normal, common, and usually cheap to fix. Around half of first-time inspections find something. Here is exactly what happens next.

You get a list, not a lecture

A proper failed inspection produces an itemised, photo-referenced report: each non-compliant item, why it matters, and what standard the fix must meet. Our rectification advice is written so you or your tradesperson can act on it without a translation call.

State specifics

• Queensland: a failed inspection can trigger a Form 26 Non-Conformity Notice, which sets out the failures and a timeframe to fix them. Ignore it and the inspector is required to notify the QBCC.
• New South Wales: you receive the rectification list, and where the inspection was for sale or lease, the transaction generally waits on compliance, or in some sales the obligation passes to the buyer with a limited rectification window.
• Victoria: council deadlines apply for lodging your certificate, so rectification needs to fit inside the lodgement window on your council notice.

Fix, then reinspect the items, not the pool

Once the listed items are fixed, a reinspection re-checks those items only. With us that costs $190, not a second $350 fee. Most reinspections following our reports pass first time, because the report says precisely what to do.

The usual fixes, and the usual costs

• Move climbable objects out of the zone: free
• Replace a faded CPR sign: about $20
• Adjust gate hinge tension or reposition a latch: minor hardware, minutes of work
• Close gaps, trim branches: a weekend job
• Barrier height or structural issues: the expensive end, and the reason to inspect before a sale deadline rather than during one

Deadlines change the game

If a settlement or new tenancy is waiting on the certificate, tell us. Reinspections for deadline jobs get priority, and agents and conveyancers should call rather than email. The worst version of a failed inspection is the one discovered with two weeks to settle, which is why pre sale inspections exist.

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