What are test and tag requirements in Victoria?
We are regularly asked, “Do the Victorian OHS regulations state we need to do testing and tagging?”.There is nothing in the Vic OHS regulations that states you need to test and tag in any environment. The only thing relevant to test and tag in the VIC OHS Act is this statement …..
“An employer so far as reasonably practicable, provide and maintain for employees a working environment that is safe and without risk to health”. The Victorian Electrical Safety Act 1998 also states that all second hand equipment being made available for sale must be inspected tested and tagged prior to sale.
In saying that, Worksafe Vic actively promote the testing and tagging of portable electrical appliances to AS/NZS 3760:2010 as a method of ensuring electrical safety in the workplace. You can review links to Worksafe and Energy Safe Victoria documents here
Should there be an incident, Worksafe will always call up the relevant Australian Standard as best practice – in this instance AS/NZS 3760:2010 specifies the inspection and testing methods and retest frequencies to ensure the safety of portable electrical appliances in the workplace. It details retest frequencies for items in both hostile and non-hostile environments. You can find a copy of the retest frequencies here.
In summary, there is nothing in law in Victoria that states you have to do anything with regards to test and tag – but best practise, Worksafe and Australian Standards specify the methods businesses should implement to ensure the safety in the workplace. How that is implemented in each workplace is entirely up to you and will depend on your own internal risk assessment which may include cross references to insurance requirements.You can view a summary of what this means on Victoria Electrical Safety Regulations page.
The harmonised WHS regulations in other states are completely different and detail specific requirements – but if you are in Victoria, this is not relevant.
