Changing the landscape of consumer protection

There are more than 340,000 strata schemes (2.8 million lots) across the country, and nearly 15% of us live in these communities. When making such a significant investment, owners expect to purchase a quality product. However, supply chain disruptions, cashflow restraints, labour shortages, increased costs and, often, defective construction are all too familiar. Many consumers have been left to pursue contractors independently with little recourse to address such issues, or with litigation as the only option.

As the industry continues to evolve and shift towards a more consumer-centric market, Sedgwick is working with our customers, industry partners and the government to ensure the implementation of quality building schemes for future generations.

These initiatives include:

INDEPENDENT CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY RATING TOOL (ICIRT)

Purchasers now have evidence-based data points to make informed decisions when purchasing a property. A star rating system identifies businesses capability, capacity, resilience and reliability to deliver quality built assets.

LATENT DEFECT INSURANCE (LDI)

Resilience Insurance introduced Australia to LDI — protecting consumers with a 10-year insurance policy to resolve issues relevant to the structural works and building envelope, including waterproofing following construction completion.

PROJECT INTERVENE

Introduced by the NSW Building Commissioners Office, this scheme addresses serious defective building works during the warranty period and holds builders to account for rectification costs.

Sedgwick’s building consultancy services

As the largest home warranty specialist consultancy firm in Australia, Sedgwick has extensive capabilities in forensic building consultancy, Technical Inspection Service (TIS), policy assessments, preparation of scopes of work, tender validation processes and construction management. We specialise in the management of remediation work within the residential, multi-storey residential and mixed-use strata complex landscapes.

To learn more, contact:

1300 735 720 | sales@au.sedgwick.com