1998
1998
2005-09-01
Electricity Safety Act 1945
act-1946-013
reg
none
reprint
sl-2000-0569
allinforce
website
Gazette No 126 of 28 August 1998, page
6645
1
2003-09-01
2005-09-01
2005-09-01
stagerepeal
act-1989-146
sl-1998-0499
069b252d-9b93-44bc-adde-bbf3b0b1c3e5
d463ac5a-e20d-4787-80dd-db7a28f4c33d
Note—
The Regulation was repealed by sec 10 (2) of the
Subordinate Legislation Act 1989 No 146
with effect from 1.9.2005.
whole Regulation: Am
11.2.2000 (“SAA Wiring Rules” omitted wherever occurring,
“Australian/New Zealand Wiring Rules” inserted
instead).
Part 1Preliminary
1Name of
Regulation
This Regulation is the Electricity Safety (Electrical Installations) Regulation
1998.
2Commencement
This Regulation commences on 1 September
1998.
3Application of
Regulation
This Regulation does not apply to a
consumer’s installation, or to installation work, to which any of the
following Acts or instruments applies:
(a)
the Coal Mines
Regulation Act 1982, and any rules and regulations under
that Act, or
(b)
the Mines Inspection
Act 1901, and any rules under that
Act.
4Definitions
In this Regulation:
Australian/New Zealand Wiring Rules
means Australian and New Zealand Standard
AS/NZS 3000:2000Electrical Installations
(known as the Australian/New Zealand Wiring Rules), as in
force for the time being, published jointly by Standards Australia and
Standards New Zealand.
commission, in relation to
installation work, means to complete a connection between the installation
work and the electricity supplied by an electrical supply main.
consumer’s installation means
all the electric wires, cables, appliances, fittings, insulators and apparatus
installed in, on, under or over any land or premises and used for, or for
purposes incidental to, the conveyance, measurement, control or use of
electricity supplied (or intended to be supplied) by an electricity
distributor, but does not include:
(a)
an electricity supply main or service line, meter
or apparatus the property of an electricity distributor or retail supplier and
used solely for the conveyance, measurement or control of electricity supplied
to any land or premises, or
(b)
moveable electrical
equipment.
Director-General means the
Director-General of the Department of Fair Trading.
installation work means:
(a)
when used to describe an activity, the work of
installing, adding to, altering, disconnecting, reconnecting or replacing a
consumer’s installation, and
(b)
when used to describe a thing, the electric
wires, cables, appliances, fittings, insulators and apparatus arising from the
work referred to in paragraph (a).
installing contractor means an
electrical contractor who carries out installation work or tests (whether
himself or herself or through any partner, subcontractor or employee and
whether or not for fee, gain or reward).
local
electricity distributor, in relation to any consumer’s
installation or installation work, means the electricity distributor within
whose distribution district the installation is situated or the work is
carried out.
moveable
electrical equipment means:
(a)
any electrical appliance or apparatus (including
its associated wires and fittings) connected to, or designed for connection
to, an outlet socket of:
(i)
a consumer’s installation,
or
(ii)
a moveable dwelling (within the meaning of the
Local Government Act
1993),
(b)
a moveable dwelling (within the meaning of the
Local Government Act 1993) connected to,
or designed for connection to, an outlet socket of a consumer’s
installation,
but does not include any appliance or apparatus
connected to an outlet socket by means of wiring which is fixed in position
externally to the appliance or apparatus itself.
qualified
person, in relation to the testing of a particular class of
installation work, means a person who holds a licence or certificate issued
under the Home Building Act
1989 which entitles the holder to perform installation
work of that class without supervision and, in relation to the testing of a
consumer’s aerial wiring system (within the meaning of the
Australian/New Zealand Wiring Rules), includes a person who is authorised to
test the local electricity distributor’s overhead lines.
safe means not posing a risk to
life, health or property.
safety
and compliance test means a test referred to in clause 10,
being a test carried out to establish that installation work operates safely
and complies with the Australian/New Zealand Wiring Rules.
the
Act means the Electricity
Safety Act 1945.
cll 4: Am
11.2.2000.
5Work by installing
contractor
(1)
In this Regulation, a reference to something done
by an installing contractor is a reference to something actually done by the
installing contractor, or done by a partner, subcontractor or employee of the
installing contractor.
(2)
If by this Regulation something is required to be
done by an installing contractor, the requirement is sufficiently complied
with if the thing is actually done by the installing contractor, or is done by
a partner, subcontractor or employee of the installing
contractor.
6Notes
The explanatory note and table of contents do not
form part of the Regulation.
Part 2Installation
work
7Installation work to comply
with Australian/New Zealand Wiring Rules
A person who carries out installation work
otherwise than in accordance with the Australian/New Zealand Wiring Rules is
guilty of an offence.
Maximum penalty: 20 penalty
units.
8Commissioning of installation
work
(1)
A person must not commission any installation
work:
(a)
unless its safe operation and compliance with the
Australian/New Zealand Wiring Rules have been established by a safety and
compliance test, and
(b)
in the case of a consumer’s installation in
respect of which the following installation work has been carried out:
(i)
installation work associated with the
installation, addition, alteration, disconnection, reconnection or replacement
of a consumer’s mains (within the meaning of the Australian/New Zealand
Wiring Rules) unless the work only consists of the repair of a
consumer’s mains,
(ii)
installation work associated with the
installation, disconnection, reconnection or replacement of a main switchboard
(within the meaning of the Australian/New Zealand Wiring Rules) unless the
work only consists of the alteration or repair of, or additions to, a main
switchboard and its associated equipment,
(iii)
installation work forming part of a
consumer’s high voltage installation (that is, a consumer’s
installation designed for, or operating at, a voltage over 1,000 volts
(alternating current) or 1,500 volts (direct current)),
(iv)
installation work located in a hazardous area
(within the meaning of the Australian/New Zealand Wiring
Rules),
unless the local electricity distributor has permitted
its connection to the electricity supply main.
Maximum penalty: 20 penalty
units.
(2)
This clause does not prohibit a qualified person
from temporarily connecting installation work to the electricity supplied by
an electricity supply main for the purpose of conducting a safety and
compliance test.
9Notification of installation
work that has been commissioned
(1)
Within 14 days after the commissioning of any
installation work with respect to a consumer’s installation, particulars
of the work are to be notified:
(a)
to the local electricity distributor,
and
(b)
to the owner of the consumer’s
installation.
(2)
Notice to the owner of a consumer’s
installation may instead be given to the occupier of the premises in which the
installation is situated if the occupier is one of the parties who agreed or
arranged for the relevant installation work to be carried out on the
installation.
(3)
The notice:
(a)
must be in a form approved by the electricity
distributor, and
(b)
must identify:
(i)
the person who actually carried out the
installation work, and
(ii)
the installing contractor (if any) in whose
employment that person carried out the installation work,
and
(iii)
any other installing contractor who carried out
the installation work through a partner or subcontractor,
and
(c)
must be signed by the person notifying the
particulars.
(4)
If the particulars are not notified in accordance
with this clause, each person referred to in subclause (3) (b) is guilty of an
offence.
Maximum penalty: 20 penalty
units.
(5)
This clause does not require notice to be given
of any work that relates only to the disconnection, reconnection, replacement
or repair of:
(a)
appliances, switches, lighting points or outlet
sockets without an increase in their number or the electrical load imposed by
them, or
(b)
switchgear or switchboard equipment (so long as
any such replacement equipment has the appropriate current and performance
ratings), or
(c)
wiring or switchboard wiring (so long as any such
replacement wiring has the appropriate current, insulation and performance
ratings).
(6)
A person who notifies particulars for the
purposes of this clause:
(a)
must keep a copy of the notice for at least 2
years from when the notice was given, and
(b)
must produce a copy of the notice to the local
electricity distributor on demand made by the distributor at any time during
that 2-year period.
Maximum penalty: 10 penalty
units.
10Conduct of safety and
compliance tests
A safety and compliance test must be carried out
by a qualified person and must include procedures to check such of the
following matters as are relevant to the installation work being
tested:
(a)
that there is earth continuity and that the earth
resistance is safe,
(b)
that the insulation resistance is
safe,
(c)
that polarity is correct,
(d)
that there is no transposition of earthing and
neutral conductors,
(e)
that there is no short circuit between
conductors,
(f)
that there is no intermix between conductors of
different circuits,
(g)
that switchboard equipment is correctly marked to
indicate:
(i)
the corresponding active and neutral connections
for each circuit, and
(ii)
the relationship of the equipment to the various
sections of the consumer’s installation,
(h)
(i)
that the consumer’s installation will
operate in the manner intended by the parties who agreed or arranged for it to
be carried out.
cll 10: Am
11.2.2000.
11Notification of results of
safety and compliance tests
(1)
Within 14 days after the completion of any safety
and compliance test on a consumer’s installation, the results of the
test are to be notified:
(a)
to the local electricity distributor,
and
(b)
to the owner of the consumer’s
installation.
(2)
Notice to the owner of a consumer’s
installation may instead be given to the occupier of the premises in which the
installation is situated if the occupier is one of the parties who agreed or
arranged for the relevant installation work to be carried out on the
installation.
(3)
The notice:
(a)
must be in a form approved by the local
electricity distributor, and
(b)
must identify:
(i)
the person who actually carried out the test,
and
(ii)
the installing contractor (if any) in whose
employment that person carried out the test, and
(iii)
any other installing contractor who carried out
the test through a partner or subcontractor, and
(c)
must be signed by the person notifying the
results of the test.
(4)
If the results of the test are not notified in
accordance with this clause, each person referred to in subclause (3) (b) is
guilty of an offence.
Maximum penalty: 20 penalty
units.
(5)
This clause does not require notice to be given
of any test that relates only to the disconnection, reconnection, replacement
or repair of:
(a)
appliances, switches, lighting points or outlet
sockets without an increase in their number or the electrical load imposed by
them, or
(b)
switchgear or switchboard equipment (so long as
any such replacement equipment has the appropriate current and performance
ratings), or
(c)
wiring or switchboard wiring (so long as any such
replacement wiring has the appropriate current, insulation and performance
ratings).
(6)
A person who notifies the results of a test for
the purposes of this clause:
(a)
must keep a copy of the notice for at least 2
years from when the notice was given, and
(b)
must produce a copy of the notice to the local
electricity distributor on demand made by the distributor at any time during
that 2-year period.
Maximum penalty: 10 penalty
units.
12Unqualified persons not to
carry out safety and compliance tests
A person must not carry out a safety and
compliance test on a consumer’s installation of a particular class if he
or she is not a qualified person in relation to work of that
class.
Maximum penalty: 10 penalty
units.
Part 3Miscellaneous
13Maintenance of
consumers’ installations: section 29
For the purposes of section 29 (1) of the
Act:
(a)
all parts of a consumer’s installation are
prescribed, and
(b)
the following requirements apply to the
maintenance of all parts of a consumer’s installation, that is, they
must be maintained so as to ensure that:
(i)
the safe and satisfactory operation of the
installation is not impaired by interference or damage,
and
(ii)
the live parts of the installation remain
properly insulated, or protected, against inadvertent contact with any person,
and
(iii)
the installation is not used in a manner that
exceeds the operating limits imposed by its design or
installation.
14Crown
bound
This Regulation binds the
Crown.
15Repeal
(1)
The Electricity Safety (General)
Regulation 1992 is repealed.
(2)
Any act, matter or thing that, immediately before
the repeal of the Electricity Safety (General) Regulation
1992, had effect under that Regulation continues to have
effect under this Regulation.
16Compliance with SAA Wiring
Rules until 1 June 2000
(1)
Until 1 June 2000, a reference in this Regulation
to the Australian/New Zealand Wiring Rules may be read as a reference to the
SAA Wiring Rules.
(2)
In this clause, SAA Wiring Rules means Australian Standard AS 3000, Electrical Installations—Buildings, Structures and
Premises, as in force immediately before the commencement
of the Electricity Safety (Electrical Installations) Amendment
(Wiring Rules) Regulation 2000.
cl 16: Ins
11.2.2000.
17Exemptions from Australian/New
Zealand Wiring Rules
(1)
The Director-General may:
(a)
by order published in the Gazette, exempt a class
of persons or all persons from the operation of clause 7 in relation to a
specified provision or provisions of the Australian/New Zealand Wiring Rules,
or
(b)
by order in writing given to a specified person,
exempt the person from the operation of clause 7 in relation to a specified
provision or provisions of those Rules.
(2)
Such an exemption may be given unconditionally or
subject to conditions.
cl 17: Ins
15.9.2000.
Historical
notes
Table of amending
instruments
Electricity
Safety (Electrical Installations) Regulation 1998
published in Gazette No 126 of 28.8.1998, p 6645 and amended as
follows:
Electricity Safety (Electrical
Installations) Amendment (Wiring Rules) Regulation 2000
(GG No 22 of 11.2.2000, p 811)
Electricity Safety (Electrical
Installations) Amendment (Exemption) Regulation 2000 (GG
No 121 of 15.9.2000, p 10433)
Table of
amendments
Cll 4,
10
Am
11.2.2000.
Cl
16
Ins
11.2.2000.
Cl
17
Ins
15.9.2000.
The whole
Regulation
Am
11.2.2000 (“SAA Wiring Rules” omitted wherever occurring,
“Australian/New Zealand Wiring Rules” inserted
instead).