Does your rental property need a switchboard upgrade?
On 29 March 2023, the electrical safety rental minimum standard will commence.
The electrical safety standard requires that rental properties must have modern style switchboards, with circuit breakers and electrical safety switches installed. Electrical safety switches are correctly known as residual current devices (RCD, RCCB or RCBO).
Rental providers are responsible for ensuring their rental property complies with the electrical safety standard by engaging a licensed or registered electrician.
Rental providers are encouraged to engage an electrician early to ensure that they are meeting their legislative obligations.
What happens if I don’t meet the minimum standard?
There are penalties for failing to provide a property that meets minimum standards. There are also consequences for not carrying out requested repairs to bring a property up to minimum standards.
- If a rental provider does not respond to a request for an urgent repair, the renter may apply to VCAT for an order requiring the rental provider to carry out the repairs.
- VCAT can order rent payments be redirected into a rent special account for a certain amount of time. A rent special account is a trust account that can hold rent that would usually go to the rental provider.
- If the urgent repairs have been made, the rental provider can apply for VCAT to pay them the rent in the rent special account.
- If the repairs have not been made and the property does not meet the minimum standards, the renter can apply to VCAT to pay them some or all of the rent in the rent special account.
How do I meet the minimum standard?
If your rented premises has a circuit breaker type switchboard
The rented premises can meet the new minimum standard if the electrician adds circuit breaker components to the power outlets and lighting circuits, without the need to add to or modify the circuit protection to other circuits (such as fixed cooking equipment, hot water units or air-conditioning circuits).
The circuit breaker components include:
- an overcurrent circuit breaker and a residual current device (RCDs), or
- an overcurrent circuit breaker and a residual current operated circuit-breakers without integral overcurrent protection (RCCBs), or
- a residual current operated circuit-breaker with integral overcurrent protection (RCBOs).
If your rented premises does not have a circuit breaker type switchboard
Some properties do not have circuit breaker type switchboards, such as older properties that have a panel and fuse board or a federal fuse board.
With these older type fuse boards, an electrician may not have the option of adding circuit breaker components (such as RCDs, RCCBs or RCBOs) and may have to replace the entire switchboard to ensure the rented premises meets the electrical safety standard. In this case, circuit breaker components will be required for all the circuits at the switchboard, including fixed cooking equipment, hot water units and air-conditioning circuits.
Book a consult today!
RCD switchboard & circuit breaker upgrades are compulsory on or before 29 March 2023. Act now to make sure your home is safe.