Priority infringeable offences (on-the-spot fines)
Electrical contractors, workers, business owners and others with health and safety duties should make themselves familiar with a new policy outlining how inspectors enforce safety laws – and the issues on which they will particularly focus.
All duty holders must comply with their obligations under electrical safety laws to ensure workers and others are not exposed to unacceptable risks that may result in death, injury or illness.
The Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement Policy (PDF, 0.53 MB) explains how the regulator uses regulatory enforcement measures to ensure duty holders are meeting their legislative duties, and create credible deterrents to contravening these laws.
Enforcement measures available to the inspectorate include improvement notices, electrical safety protection notices, unsafe equipment notices and infringement notices.
There are 240 infringement notice offences for contraventions of work health and safety and electrical safety legislation. However, a smaller number of infringeable offences have been identified as priority areas for enforcement.
The following lists priority infringeable offences which are the current focus for electrical safety inspectors. This means if an inspector forms a reasonable belief that you have contravened the law, an infringement notice will more than likely be issued to you. These priorities will change periodically to reflect current and emerging risks and they do not prevent an inspector from issuing an infringement notice for a non-priority infringeable offence.
- Non-compliance with an improvement notice
- The person must comply within the period stated on the notice - ES Act s146B: $720 for an individual and $3600 for a company.
- Incident notification and reporting
- PCBU must keep a record of each serious electrical incident or dangerous electrical event for at least 5 years after notification - ES Reg s265(6): $600 for an individual and $3000 for a company.
- Specific hazardous work
- Overhead or underground electric line (safe distance) - ES Reg s68(1); s68(2)[1]: $600 for an individual and $3000 for a company, in each instance
- Electrical work
- Electrical work - ES Reg 14; 15(1): $720 for an individual and $3600 for a company ES Reg 26(2); 31(1); 32(1): $400 for an individual and $800 for a company in each instance
- Electrical installations - ES Reg 70: $200 for an individual; 71(1): $400 for an individual and $800 for a company; 85(2): $300 for both an individual and a company.
- Electrical supply - ES Reg 221(1); 221(2); 227(1): $400 for an individual and $800 for a company in each instance
- Electrical work - ES Reg 14; 15(1): $720 for an individual and $3600 for a company ES Reg 26(2); 31(1); 32(1): $400 for an individual and $800 for a company in each instance
- Electrical licences
- Unlicensed electrical work - ES Act 55(1); 57(1): $400 for an individual in each instance; 56(1): $500 for an individual and $2000 for a company.
Download the Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement Policy (PDF, 0.53 MB) or find out more information about penalties.
Further information
Find more information,
- for the community at electricalsafety.qld.gov.au
- for electrical workers at WorkSafe.qld.gov.au.
1. On 30 June 2017 the State Penalties and Enforcement Regulation 2014 was amended to introduce two new infringement notice offences against requirements in section 68 of the Electrical Safety Regulation 2013 (ES Regulation) for exclusion zones and unsafe distances when working near overhead and underground powerlines.