Patio and deck contract

Hi all,

We just signed a contract for a pretty expensive deck and patio build today. Panicking a bit after signing and frantically trying to make sure everything is legit before the cooling off period expires or any money is transferred.
I’ve been reading that for works over $20,000, that they’re required to have home building compensation insurance and that the premium amount must be included in the contract, and insurance applied for before requesting any money. We are in NSW. Is this relevant for deck/patio construction?
There’s no premium amount listed in the contract, and they said they would process the deposit on Monday so I’m very much doubting there will be insurance before they take that if required..
Also any tips on what else to look out for?
I’ve also done a search on the licence number for the guy we met with who’s the director of the company, his carpentry licence is valid and the company is listed there, but under his name specifically there’s an exclamation mark saying ‘cannot contract directly with consumers’. Is this typical? Does that just mean we’d be contracted with the company rather than him personally?
Sorry I’m a real novice at this, I’m usually very careful with contracts and feel like I might have been a bit stupid and rushed in with this one..

 

You signed a contract without a price

 

Yep $20k and over require HOWI.There are calculators you can google for the exact amount payable for the value of the works. The insurance is required to be part of the contract price so if you have a fixed price contract it should be included as part of it. Request a a copy of the home warranty cert from the builder and you should be fine, as the builder is breaching the contract if he starts work without it in place.

The rules around home warranty are a bit silly imo. No money is meant to be taken until insurance is in place. This leaves the builder in the position of applying for HOWI insurance for jobs without a deposit... The deposit is what secures a job going from quote to sold project. Some will say the contract does this, but in reality builders don't have time or the inclination to be running around taking legal action against clients that signed a contract but didn't follow through with a deposit for whatever reason...particularly with low value works. It would make more sense if the rules were amended to mandate that insurance be taken out within 'x' days of deposit payment.

 

I don’t know much about this job, was hoping to build a deck ourselves sometimes....

perhaps you can rescind the contract now before the cooling off period, and start a proper due diligence when you find out more....

 

No we’ve got a fixed price contract that’s very clear in the contract.
It does say in the proposal that home warranty is included for works over $20,000, but It’s not listed in the contract. I was reading that it’s a legal requirement for the insurance premium to be specified in the contract, and that they have to apply for that before any money is taken. That part isn’t in the actual contract we signed and they’re planning on taking the deposit on Monday, hence my concern..

 

Thanks for your reply, that makes me feel a bit better! From all accounts everything appears above board and legit, it was mainly just the part that the premium wasn’t listed in the contract that got me worried that maybe they weren’t doing it. I did find it eventually that it was included in their proposal, but that’s not the actual contract I signed.
Might get them to amend the contract to include it, I’m sure that won’t be an issue if they were planning on getting it anyway, and if they don’t we’ll pull out before cooling off ends.

 

Yes I think we will ask for some things to be amended in the contract to reflect the legal requirements. I’m sure if they were planning on doing everything properly that wouldn’t be a problem, and if they don’t we will just rescind.

 

We signed our contract For deck and pooland part of the DA requirement was to supply the HOW insurance