Licensed Electrical Inspectors

Overview

You have responsibilities as a Licensed Electrical Inspector (LEI). This page outlines duties under the Electricity Safety Act 1998 (the Act) and related Regulations.

You must

As an LEI, you must:

• sign your LEI licence card when you get it
• tell Energy Safe Victoria within 10 business days if you change your name, contact or address details
• show your licence card or details of your licence when requested by an Energy Safe Enforcement Officer.
• call Energy Safe if a serious electrical incident related to your work occurs. If this happens, call 1800 000 922 as soon as practical or at a location where you are carrying out electrical work.

As an LEI working with a Certificate of Electrical Safety (COES), you must:

• only carry out an inspection within the scope of your licence when attending the address stated on the Prescribed COES
• ensure the Prescribed COES is signed by the person who carried out the electrical installation work before carrying out the inspection
• ensure the Prescribed COES:
  • is legible on all copies
  • contains all the required details – including a description of the work you're inspecting
  • is accurate
• maintain safe working practices including taking adequate precautions against injury – always take a safe approach
• inspect the electrical installation following:
  • the Act
  • Electrical Safety (General) Regulations
  • AS/NZS 3000 Wiring Rules
• carry out testing of the installation as required by the Regulations – including testing conforming with AS/NZS 3000: Wiring Rules – and in the case of:
  • a consumer’s mains, test conforming with Regulation 241
  • a medical electrical installation, test conforming with Regulation 242
  • electrical work on a photovoltaic array, tests to confirm compliance with AS/NZS 5033
  • electrical work on grid connected inverter energy systems, test conforming with Regulation 245
  • high voltage installation work, test conforming with Regulation 246
  • electrical work on battery systems, tests to confirm compliance with AS/NZS 5139.
• ensure you have completed details and signed the Certificate of Inspection section of the Prescribed COES
• list any identified defects in the Details of Defects section on the Prescribed COES.
  Note: If the defects are fixed at the time of the inspection, you are not required to record them on the customer’s copy of the Certificate of Inspection.

You must complete the 'Safety statement' section of the Prescribed COES if the installation inspected will be electrically unsafe when connected to supply.

If the inspected work does not comply with the Act or Regulations, you must notify the person responsible for that work of the defect(s). This must be done within 4 business days after the inspection.

After completing your part of a COES, you must also:

• use the IVR or online certification system within 4 business days of the inspection to tell us the Certificate of Inspection is complete
• return the completed Prescribed COES to the responsible person (who carried out the electrical installation work) within 4 business days after completing the inspection
• retain your copy of the Prescribed COES for 3 years after the date you signed the certificate.

You must not

As an LEI, you must not:

• be employed by the person responsible for the electrical installation work you are inspecting (or a body corporate related to the person responsible for the work)
• inspect electrical installation work if you've been involved in the design of that work, other than giving advice
• inspect your own electrical installation work
• carry out electrical inspection work unless your LEI licence is current
• carry out electrical inspection work on any electrical installation work that is outside the scope of your licence.

You should

As a LEI, you should:

• know the expiry date of your licence
• understand that the responsible person must have the prescribed electrical installation work inspected
• know that inspection must be done within 8 business days after the completion of the work
• maintain knowledge of the following documents, including updates to the:
  • Electricity Safety Act (in particular Part 3)
  • Electricity Safety (General) Regulations
  • Electricity Safety (Registration and Licensing) Regulations
  • AS/NZS 3000: Wiring Rules
  • relevant Standards including referenced sections of the Building Code of Australia (BCA)
  • Victorian Electricity Distributors Service and Installation Rules.
• undertake regular education and training
• understand your OH&S responsibilities
• wear appropriate protective clothing and equipment (PPE)
• consider appropriate insurance
• show your licence card when carrying out electrical inspection work
• report to Energy Safe any unsafe electrical installations you identify while carrying out inspections that have not been immediately made safe.

You should understand that we may:

• direct a person responsible for non-compliant electrical work to rectify that work – at no cost to the customer
• take disciplinary action if you don't follow the Act or relevant regulations, including:
  • suspending your licence
  • cancelling your licence
  • issuing infringement notices
  • prosecutions.

Notes

The information presented in this guideline is for general use only. It is not a definitive guide to the law, and you should also read the Act and relevant regulations.

Also note the use of these words:

• ‘must’ indicates that legal requirements exist, which you must comply with
• ‘should’ indicates a recommended course of action
• ‘may’ indicates an optional course of action.