On the 16th September 2010 Queensland Parliament formally passed The Building and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2010, which introduced Stage 2 of the Queensland Government’s pool safety laws.
These laws are expected to be enforced from early summer 2010, and mainly affect existing swimming pools. They include:
- Replacing the 11 different pool safety standards previously in place with one pool safety standard. Both new and existing pools must be upgraded to comply with the new standard within five years, unless a unit within the body corporate is sold or leased first.
- An annual safety inspection and certificate will be required for all shared pools from a licensed pool safety inspector. (Non-shared pools must have a certificate every two years)
- An owner must provide a prospective purchaser or tenant of their unit with a copy of the pool safety certificate. Bodies Corporate must ensure they have a copy of the pool safety certificate in their records and it must be updated on an annual basis.
- Portable pools and spas with a depth of more than 300mm will be required to be fenced, bringing State laws into alignment with National Standards.