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Examining disputes about moisture ingress and indoor mould in Victorian residential buildings (in progress)

What we are doing and why

Mould in buildings is an indicator of the presence of an underlying moisture problem, which can occur because of water ingress through defective building work, a plumbing failure or a lack of management of water vapour. Mould is linked to negative impacts on human health and amenity, as well as building structural integrity.

Water ingress and moisture damage routinely tops the list of issues in complaints to the Victorian Building Authority (VBA), claims to the Victorian Managed Insurance Authority (VMIA) and disputes to Domestic Building Dispute Resolution Victoria (DBDRV). Water proofing and drainage issues are commonly occurring areas of compliance risk the VBA identifies through the Proactive Inspections Program and Plumbing Audit Program.

The VBA has partnered with DBDRV and Restoration Industry Consultants (RIC) to undertake research that expands the evidence base about moisture ingress and indoor mould in Victorian residential buildings to include insights from analysis of applications to DBDRV for dispute resolution.

Expanding the evidence base to include analysis of disputes to DBDRV will provide broader insights into the extent, causes and opportunities to address moisture ingress and indoor mould in Victorian residential buildings.

Led by Dr Tim Law from RIC, the research aims to:

  • Quantify the nature and extent of moisture ingress and indoor mould in Victorian residential buildings based on applications to DBDRV for dispute resolution.
  • Identify the causes and underlying factors contributing to the moisture ingress and indoor mould, and whether these are consistent with the findings of the scoping study.
  • Identify potential practitioner competency gaps, and opportunities to strengthen consumer protection through targeted regulatory interventions or reform to reduce the cause of moisture ingress and indoor mould.

This research follows the Scoping study on the nature and extent of moisture damage in houses and apartments in Victoria (scoping study) completed by Victoria University. The scoping study investigated the scale and frequency of moisture ingress and indoor mould and its causes based on domestic building insurance (DBI) claims accepted by the VMIA. It provided a view of problematic building work that could result in indoor mould, highlighting patterns and clusters of problems that provide insight into building and plumbing practitioner competency gaps and education requirements, and improvement opportunities for building design, certification, construction, legislation and regulatory oversight.

The scoping study was developed around a limited dataset of buildings that had been insured and claimed under the DBI scheme, and which was not representative of all residential buildings in Victoria.

What we have achieved so far

This project commenced in 2023-24 and is due for completion in 2024-25.