Essential Safety Measures (ESM) in Victoria: What Building Owners Must Know

Building owners in Victoria face legal duties under the Building Regulations 2018 to maintain fire safety equipment, emergency lighting and sprinkler systems. Penalties for non-compliance start at $4,070 and reach $508,775 for corporations.

This guide explains what the law requires, when you need to act, and how to stay compliant.

What Are Essential Safety Measures?

Essential Safety Measures (ESMs) are safety systems and equipment that protect people during emergencies. Your building’s occupancy permit or maintenance determination lists which ESMs you must maintain.

Common ESMs include fire sprinklers, fire doors, emergency lighting, fire alarm systems, smoke detectors, fire hydrants and hose reels, exit signs and emergency paths, and portable fire extinguishers.

Your Legal Obligations as a Building Owner

The Building Regulations 2018 Part 15 requires building owners to maintain all ESMs in working condition, have them inspected and tested according to Australian Standards, prepare annual reports, and keep detailed records for ten years.

Building owners remain legally responsible even when hiring facility managers or maintenance contractors. You cannot transfer this legal liability through contracts.

Who Enforces ESM Compliance?

From 1 July 2025, the Building and Plumbing Commission (BPC) replaced the Victorian Building Authority as the main regulator. The BPC has expanded enforcement powers under the Building Legislation Amendment and Other Matters Act 2024.

Municipal building surveyors and Fire Rescue Victoria also conduct inspections. They can request all your ESM documentation with 24 hours notice, and you must produce it within that timeframe.

The Annual Reporting Requirement

Every building with ESMs needs an Annual Essential Safety Measures Report (AESMR) prepared each year. The correct document is the AESMR template available from the BPC website.

Your building has an anniversary date that determines when this report is due. For buildings constructed or altered since 1 July 1994, the anniversary date is the earlier of your first occupancy permit requiring an ESM or your first maintenance determination. Buildings constructed before 1 July 1994 use 13 June as their anniversary date.

The AESMR must be prepared within 28 days before your anniversary date. Preparing the report on or after the anniversary date breaches the regulations.

What Goes in Your Annual Report

Your AESMR must include:

• Building details and owner identification
• Complete list of all ESMs in your occupancy permits and maintenance determinations
• Details of all maintenance work completed in the past 12 months
• Names and addresses of companies who performed the work
• Any defects or problems discovered
• Confirmation that all ESMs are operational

You keep the AESMR on the building premises in an accessible location, typically in a red “Essential Safety Measures” box at the front entry. You don’t lodge it with the BPC or council unless requested.

You must also retain all AESMRs from the previous ten years, all maintenance schedules and determinations, and records of all inspections, testing, maintenance and repairs.

Maintenance Requirements Under Australian Standards

Victorian ESM maintenance follows two primary Australian Standards: AS 1851-2012 for fire protection systems and AS 2293.2-2019 for emergency lighting. These standards set specific inspection frequencies.

Monthly maintenance applies to fire sprinkler alarm valves and pressure gauges, fire pump operational testing, fire alarm panels and emergency warning systems, and water storage tank level checks.

Six-monthly maintenance includes fire hydrant flow testing, fire hose reel testing, portable fire extinguisher inspections, fire door operational tests, and emergency lighting 90-minute battery discharge tests.

Annual maintenance covers full sprinkler flow tests, complete fire hydrant pressure tests, detailed portable extinguisher inspections, full fire detection system testing, and annual emergency lighting surveys.

Longer intervals include five-yearly extinguisher internal examinations, ten-yearly emergency lighting battery replacements, and 25-yearly sprinkler system overhauls.

Who Can Perform ESM Maintenance?

Victorian law sets qualification requirements for ESM maintenance work.

For water-based fire protection systems including fire hose reels, hydrants and sprinklers, work must be done by VBA-registered plumbers. Water Supply Plumbing class covers hydrants and hose reels. Fire Protection class covers sprinkler systems.

Fire alarm technicians need Certificate II or III in Fire Protection. Emergency lighting work requires licensed electricians with AS 2293 training. Special systems need specialist training for that system type.

Using unqualified contractors invalidates your maintenance records and creates liability if systems fail during emergencies.

Penalties for Non-Compliance

The BPC uses graduated enforcement starting with education for minor first offenses. Penalties escalate for repeated breaches or serious safety risks.

Fines for ESM violations reach $4,070 for individuals (20 penalty units) and $2,035 for removing ESMs from approved locations (10 penalty units). These represent administrative penalties for documentation failures.

Serious or repeated non-compliance triggers building notices and orders requiring fixes within set timeframes. Emergency orders apply when immediate danger exists, potentially forcing building evacuation until you achieve compliance.

Magistrates’ Court prosecution for serious breaches results in fines up to $101,755 for individuals and $508,775 for corporations.

Building insurance policies typically require current AESMRs as coverage conditions, so non-compliance may void your insurance. Buildings with compliance issues become difficult to sell. ESM failures during actual emergencies that result in deaths or injuries can trigger criminal prosecution.

Common Compliance Challenges

The BPC identified documentation management and knowledge loss from staff turnover as major challenges. When facility managers change, information about building design, performance solutions and ESM specifications disappears.

Buildings with multiple occupancy permits issued over decades create confusion about current requirements. Service providers often keep data in their own systems without transferring complete records when contracts end.

The 24-hour document production requirement creates operational pressure. Records scattered across contractors or stored in difficult-to-access formats make compliance impossible within this timeframe.

Multiple buildings multiply complexity. Tracking requirements across dozens of different anniversary dates, maintenance schedules and contractor relationships becomes unmanageable without dedicated systems.

Setting Up Proper Documentation Systems

The BPC recommends four strategies for documentation protection.

Enhanced asset labelling means putting clear, durable signs on all ESM equipment. Fire water storage tanks must display “PRIMARY WATER SUPPLY FOR FIRE HYDRANT SYSTEM” with capacity shown.

Digital documentation repositories using Building Information Modelling platforms or document management systems centralise design specifications, performance data, maintenance records and compliance documents with regular backups.

Collaborative documentation management establishes protocols for data sharing between building management and service providers. Contracts should require contractors to hand over comprehensive data in standard formats when contracts end.

Regular audits mean conducting periodic reviews of documentation practices to find gaps, inconsistencies and outdated information.

Best Practice Maintenance Management

Schedule maintenance according to your occupancy permit requirements and AS 1851-2012 frequencies. Track completion, not just scheduling.

Require contractors to submit detailed completion reports showing test results, measurements compared to baseline data, photos where appropriate, and clear identification of any defects found.

Verify contractor credentials before awarding contracts and periodically during contract terms. Request copies of qualifications, licences, insurance certificates and professional accreditation. The Fire Protection Association Australia maintains a practitioner register showing accredited practitioners.

For organisations managing multiple buildings, standardise processes across all properties. Designate an ESM compliance coordinator responsible for oversight across the portfolio. Create master calendars tracking all AESMR anniversary dates and maintenance schedules.

Resources and Support Available

The Building and Plumbing Commission provides free resources including Practice Note ESM-02: Maintenance of Essential Safety Measures, fact sheets available in over 15 languages, and the AESMR template in Microsoft Word format.

Contact the BPC technical enquiry team at 1300 067 088 (Monday to Friday, 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM) or email technicalenquiry@vba.vic.gov.au for regulation clarification, practice note interpretation, and complex technical questions.

The Facility Management Association of Australia offers professional development including the Diploma in Facilities Management, Good Practice Guides, and an annual Compliance Summit.

Immediate Action Steps

Start with a document audit. Locate all occupancy permits, maintenance determinations and maintenance schedules. Gather the past ten years of AESMRs for each building.

Check all AESMR anniversary dates and create a calendar noting when each report is due. Verify last inspection dates for all ESMs comparing to required frequencies. Identify any overdue maintenance.

Review all contractor qualifications. Verify plumber registrations for water-based systems, fire protection certificates for alarm work, and electrician licences for emergency lighting.

Assess whether your record-keeping systems can produce all required documents within 24 hours of regulatory request.

How Kairos Can Help

At Kairos, we conduct comprehensive ESM compliance audits for organisations across healthcare, government, education and commercial sectors.

Our audits assess your current documentation, maintenance records and contractor qualifications against Victorian regulatory requirements. We identify gaps, verify compliance with AS 1851-2012 standards, and provide clear recommendations for achieving and maintaining compliance.

If you need an independent ESM compliance audit, contact us to discuss your requirements.