Box 2 of 6 Checked
Checking a plumber’s registration or licence in Victoria
Look the plumber up with the Building and Plumbing Commission’s (BPC) public search tools and read three things: whether their registration or licence is current, what type of work it covers, and whether it carries conditions or limits. Do it before a contract is signed or work begins; the BPC says not to lean only on an advert, a business card, a quote or what someone tells you.
General information about Victoria’s rules, not legal advice. The BPC keeps the registers and is the place to check.
What you can search by
The BPC’s practitioner search lets you search by:
- the practitioner’s name
- a business name
- a registration or licence number
- a location
- a type of work.
A business name is one way in, but in Victoria plumbing accreditation is granted only to individuals; the BPC does not register or license plumbing companies. Whatever you search by, the registration or licence you end up reading is a person’s.
What to read on the result
The BPC gives a short list of things to confirm before you appoint anyone. In its order, in plain words:
- The type of work. Are they registered or licensed for the kind of work you want done? Plumbing is held class by class; the guide to licences and registrations explains the classes.
- Current, not lapsed. Is the registration or licence in force today?
- Conditions or limits. Does it carry any?
- Insurance. Does the work need insurance? Work that needs a compliance certificate does, as the certificate guide explains.
Registration and licence are different levels. A registered plumber may do the work in their classes but may not issue compliance certificates; a licensed plumber may. If your job needs a certificate, the person who signs it must be licensed.
The card on the day
Registered and licensed plumbers must carry their BPC practitioner ID card whenever they do plumbing work, and show it when asked. The back of the card lists the classes they are registered or licensed in.
“When they attend the site, ask to check their licence card and the registered classes listed on the back of the card.”
That is Energy Safe Victoria’s advice for finding a gasfitter. For a gas appliance service with a carbon monoxide check, it adds, the licence needs to show “gas servicing Type-A”. Gasfitters are covered by the same search: in Victoria a registered or licensed gasfitter is a plumber who holds a BPC registration or licence for gasfitting work.
The second register
Alongside the practitioner search, the BPC keeps a Compliance and Enforcement Register. It shows whether certain disciplinary or prosecution action has been taken against a plumber, builder, building company or other registered practitioner. An entry may cover:
| Kind of entry | In plain words |
|---|---|
| Disciplinary action | Action the BPC has taken against a registered practitioner. |
| Prosecutions | Prosecutions and how they ended in court. |
| Status changes | A registration or licence suspended, cancelled or given conditions. |
| Other outcomes | Further outcomes the BPC is permitted to make public. |
The register leaves out some complaints, enquiries, inspections and compliance work, so an empty result does not mean nothing has ever been raised.
If the plumber is not there
Anyone can report suspected unregistered or unlicensed plumbing work with the BPC’s online tip-off tool, and the report can be anonymous. The BPC says it finds this kind of work through reports from the community, consumers and industry; through complaints; through targeted inspections where the risk is higher; and by working with online marketplace platforms to disrupt illegitimate advertising.
Where the evidence shows regulated work was done without the proper registration or licence, the BPC may take enforcement action, criminal prosecution included. Disciplinary action reaches only registered practitioners, but a prosecution can be brought against any person or company. The guide to missing paperwork covers the other empty boxes.
Why the check matters
The BPC’s reasoning is short. Registration and licensing exist to make sure practitioners meet set standards of competence and accountability, and when work happens outside that system, owners and occupiers can be left with poor-quality or non-compliant work.
The other boxes
Once the check is done, the plumber to engage is one whose registration or licence covers the work you need.