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Before 1 July 2026, domestic building work was covered by domestic building insurance, a last resort insurance scheme for homeowners whose builder became insolvent, died or went missing.
From 1 July 2026, the Building and Plumbing Commission will cover domestic building work through a new first resort insurance scheme called Home Warranty insurance.
Home Warranty insurance
Your builder takes out insurance on your behalf after you sign the major domestic building contract, if the work is worth more than $20,000 and the home is 3 storeys or less.
- After you sign a major domestic building contract, you will receive a notice of cover
- If you don’t receive a notice of cover, contact the BPC to check that you are covered. Call 1300 067 088.
- If you sign a major domestic building contract and your builder does not pay the Home Warranty insurance premium for you, the insurance may still cover 5% of your deposit.
Home Warranty insurance covers work that is:
- incomplete
- faulty
- non-compliant.
You may be able to make a claim if your builder cannot or will not complete or fix the work after you ask them to.
Home Warranty also covers you if the builder does not follow a final order from the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) or a court.
Home Warranty insurance includes cover for:
- repairs costs, up to $400,000
- structural faults for 6 years
- non-structural faults for 2 years.
- 5% of the deposit
- accommodation, removal and storage costs if delays or faulty work cause extra expenses.
Domestic building insurance
A builder takes out domestic building insurance, also called builders warranty insurance, for you when the work is worth more than $16,000.
Don’t pay your deposit until:
- the builder gives you the domestic building insurance policy and certificate of insurance that applies to your property. Certificates issued on or after 1 July 2015 are required to show the cost of the insurance premium
• you contact the insurer to check the policy number is correct and applies to your home.
Domestic building insurance covers you if your builder:
- dies
- is insolvent
- disappears.
If the Victorian Managed Insurance Authority (VMIA) issued your policy on or after 1 July 2015 (the VMIA is now part of the Building and Plumbing Commission), the policy also covers you if the builder does not follow a final order from the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) or a court. Policies from other insurers may not include this cover.
Domestic building insurance covers repair costs up to $300,000 for:.
- structural faults, for 6 years
- non-structural faults, for 2 years.
In all other cases, your builder must fix or finish the work.
If you make a claim for unfinished work:
- your claim may be limited to 20% of the contract price
- the policy will not cover advance payments.
For more information, contact the insurance provider.
Who provides domestic building insurance?
If your policy was issued on or after 31 May 2010, the Building and Plumbing Commission (BPC) may be the insurer.
The BPC is a major provider of domestic building insurance in Victoria, but a small number of other commercial providers also offer it.
If your policy was issued before 31 May 2010, the BPC is not be the insurer.
If you cannot find the certificate of insurance, contact the builder, building surveyor or local council to get the insurer’s name and policy number. You can usually find this information on the building permit.
Find the Building and Plumbing Commission (BPC)'s information about building insurance requirements.
Check domestic building insurance details
You can ask domestic building insurance providers for information about a specific property. Search online or contact the provider.
To check whether you have a BPC (formerly VMIA) domestic building insurance certificate, contact the BPC.
Builder insolvency
A builder cannot operate if it is insolvent. To find out whether your builder is insolvent:
A builder in administration may not be insolvent and can keep operating. The administration process will decide whether the builder is insolvent. ASIC and AFSA keep registers of administrators and liquidators.
Voluntary administration
Builders who go into voluntary administration, but not liquidation, may keep providing services to clients. Contact the administrators for advice about whether they plan to close the business or keep trading.
The builder or the administrators may ask customers to agree to a higher contract price and other contract changes so they can finish the build. They may ask this as part of an offer for a deed of company arrangement.
Customers don’t have to accept revised offers or vote for a deed of company arrangement. If this happens, get financial and legal advice before you decide.
What to do if you think your builder is insolvent
If you think your builder is insolvent, get legal advice and contact the Building Information Line on 1300 55 75 59 between 9 am and 5 pm, Monday to Friday (except public holidays). Calling this number costs the same as a local call. Extra charges may apply if you are calling from overseas, on a mobile, or payphone.
For more information about insolvency processes, visit ASIC and AFSA.
Legal advice will usually cost less than a bad decision. Get legal advice before:
- ending the contract with your builder and hiring another builder.
- paying subcontractors.
Insolvent builders and work over $16,000
You should be able to claim on the domestic building insurance policy or Home Warranty insurance if the builder is insolvent. To make a claim:
- submit your claim within 180 days of learning about the builder’s insolvency
- contact the insurer to make a claim. If you do not have a copy of the policy or certificate of currency, the builder, building surveyor or local council may be able to provide it. If not, you can contact insurance companies that provide domestic building insurance to check whether they issued a policy for your building.
If your insolvent builder does not have Domestic Building insurance or Home Warranty insurance, contact the Building Information Line on 1300 55 75 59 between 9 am and 5 pm, Monday to Friday (except public holidays). Calling this number costs the same as a local call. Extra charges may apply if you are calling from overseas, on a mobile, or payphone.
If the work needed a building permit, get legal advice about the building surveyor’s duty to require a domestic building insurance certificate.
Insolvent builders and work worth less than $16,000
Before 1 July 2026, builders don’t need to get domestic building insurance for work under $16,000.
From 1 July 2026, builders don’t need to get Home Warranty insurance for work under $20,000.
If the builder is in administration:
- contact the administrator or liquidator and submit a claim as an unsecured creditor
- look for notices of administration in the press or on the trader’s website
- ASIC or AFSA can give you administrator or liquidator details and factsheets about the process.
- the insolvency process will decide whether you receive any redress
- if you paid by credit card, contact your card provider and ask for a chargeback. For more information, go to Chargebacks.
If the builder is not in administration, get legal advice.