Registration of residential building inspectors

Have your say on proposed requirements for building inspectors to be registered in South Australia.

What's being decided?

Consumer and Business Services (CBS) is proposing a new registration scheme for residential building inspectors in SA. This may require changes to the Building Work Contractors Act 1995.

We are seeking feedback from industry and members of the public on possible registration requirements, to protect homeowners and industry workers while keeping the administrative impact for building inspectors to a minimum.

Why?

Building inspections are often arranged by home buyers to find out about issues with a property before making a purchase. Inspections can also be arranged for renovation projects or if a dispute arises with a builder. However, there are currently no requirements in SA for building inspectors to hold qualifications or demonstrate experience in the construction industry. This adds risk for consumers and other building industry workers if defective work is not appropriately identified.

Background

CBS led a review of the building and construction industry in South Australia which included several proposals to better meet industry and consumer needs. This review closed in January 2025 and the State Government has been considering the feedback received.

The review included improving regulation of building inspectors who undertake residential pre-purchase inspections or who identify defects in residential developments prior to building completion and handover. The majority of responses from stakeholders supported the proposal to require building inspectors to be registered.

The feedback received has informed the discussion paper that we now invite you to read. We would like your feedback on requirements residential building inspectors would need to meet to be eligible for registration such as qualifications, experience, insurance and other financial requirements. We are also seeking feedback about ongoing requirements for residential building inspectors such as continuing professional development.

Get involved

Find out more:

• read the Discussion Paper outlining the proposed changes

Have your say about the proposed changes by:

• sharing a comment on the guestbook for this consultation (please see below)

• emailing a submission to: CBSReforms@sa.gov.au

• posting your written submission to:

Regulatory Services - Reform
Consumer and Business Services
GPO Box 1719
ADELAIDE SA 5001.

Please note that submissions (including name and address details) may be made publicly available. If you do not wish for your submission - or any part of your submission - to be made public, please mark it ‘Confidential - Not for Publication’ and provide your reasons for this.

Please be aware that unless a request for confidentiality is made, information contained in any submission may be referred to publicly or published. Any material identified as ‘confidential’ is still subject to the Freedom of Information Act 1991 and, while efforts will be made to keep the material confidential, in some circumstances it may be disclosed under that Act. Where disclosure of information may identify you, attempts will be made to consult with you under the Freedom of Information Act 1991 before the documents are disclosed.

What are the next steps?

We will consider your feedback about the proposed changes and provide a report to the Minister for Consumer and Business Affairs.

A summary of your feedback will be published on this website.