The Government has agreed on new consumer rights and remedies in relation to residential building work. The measures, which came into force on January 1, 2015, include:

• Mandatory written contracts for residential building work costing $30,000 or more (including GST)
• A requirement for building contractors to provide checklists and disclose certain information for residential building work $30,000 or more (including GST) or when they are asked for this
• Minimum content that must be included in all residential building contracts
• Clauses that are taken to be included in a residential building contract that does not contain all of the minimum content, or in a contract for work $30,000 or more (including GST) that is not in writing
• Information that a building contractor must provide to their client after the building work is completed
• Infringement fees of $500 for breaching the contract, disclosure or checklist requirements.

See the information available on this Government website page (under the heading “New Consumer protection Measures”).