Choose a landscaper that provides an adequate contract
By law, a tradesperson must provide you with a written contract as soon as your project price is over $1,000 (including GST).
If your project is valued between $1,001 and $5,000, you’ll receive a Small Works contract from us which includes important information including the date of the contract, your name and ours, our licence number, a description of the work and price information.
If your project is valued over $5,000, you’ll receive a Large Works contract.
Landscapers who do not provide you with a contract are not only breaking the law, they are also placing you in a position of little power should something go wrong.
Deposits
There are legal limits on the size of the deposit a tradesperson may request.
- For projects up to and including $20,000, we may request a deposit up to and including 10%.
- For projects over $20,000, we may ask for a deposit up to and including 5%.
It is illegal for a tradesperson to request more than those amounts.
It is also illegal for a tradesperson to ask for a deposit unless they have issued you with a home warranty insurance certificate for projects over $20,000.
Large Works Contract Checklist
If your project is valued over $5,000, you’ll receive a Large Works contract. By law, this contract must include the following checklist:
- Does the contractor hold a current contractor licence?
- Does the licence cover the type of work included in the contract?
- Is the name and the number on the contractor’s licence exactly the same as on the contract?
- Is the work to be undertaken covered in the contract, drawings or specifications?
- Does the contract clearly state a contract price or contain a warning that the contract price is not known?
- If the contract price may be varied, is there a warning and an explanation about how it may be varied?
- Are you aware of the cooling off provisions relating to the contract?
- Is the deposit within the legal limit? The limit is 10% for work costing $20,000 or less or 5% for work costing more that $20,000.
- Is the procedure for variations understood?
- Are you aware of who is to obtain any council or other approval for the work?
- Do you understand that the contract must have a policy of home warranty insurance under the Home Building Act 1989 and provide you with a certificate of insurance before receiving any money under the contract (including a deposit) or before doing any work for more than $20,000?
- Has the contractor given you a document that explains the operation of the Home Building Act 1989 and the procedures for the resolution of contract and insurance disputes?
If you answer ‘No’ to any of the questions in the checklist, you should reconsider signing the contract.
You can find this information and much more about Fair Trading on the Fair Trading website.
Find out more
Licencing, insurance and contracts can be daunting. We hope that by helping you understand the legal requirements as well as your obligations and ours, we can work together and get the job done.
If you have a question about your contract, please feel free to give us a call on 02 4953 7979 or email us on hello@novascapelandscaping.com.au
Find out more about Licencing, Home Warranty Insurance or The Warning Signs.