Follow-up visit at no charge
A barrier that fails gets a written list. Once the listed items are rectified, we return and the second visit carries no charge.
Included
Pool Safety Inspections · Lorne
Pool Inspections in
Lorne, Victoria
BPC (formerly the VBA) registered pool safety inspector covering Lorne from Clifton Springs. Form 23 issued on site when the barrier passes, $250 flat.
- Flat fee
- $250 for the inspection · council fees are separate
- Holiday houses
- Owner away · an agent, caretaker or neighbour lets us in
- Inspector
- Ryan Gaw · Licence IN-PS 100055
Rated 5.0★ · Google reviews
Call now — or we'll call you back
After hours or can't talk right now? Leave your name and number and Ryan will call you back the same day where we can.
In Short: $250 flat for a Lorne pool inspection. Ryan Gaw, a BPC (formerly the VBA) registered inspector based at Clifton Springs, would rather you were there, but an agent, caretaker or neighbour can let him in instead. If the barrier passes, he issues the Form 23 before leaving and you lodge it with Surf Coast Shire. Call 0402 860 499 or send an enquiry.
Empty houses
What if the house is empty on inspection day?
It can be done, as long as someone lets us in, and here that's the normal case. The 2021 Census counted 1,755 private dwellings in Lorne, and about two in three were unoccupied on census night (ABS QuickStats). That is a town of holiday houses, locked up between stays, so sort out access when you book.
We'd rather you were there yourself. If not, tell us when you book who will let us in: an agent, a caretaker or a neighbour. We test the gate, the latch and the whole fence line while they're on site. Most occupied dwellings are separate houses, so expect a pool in its own yard behind some mix of boundary fence, house wall and gate.
Empty houses hide small faults. A latch creeps out of line over winter and nobody notices until the next guests are at the gate. Across all our jobs, the fail we write most is a gate that no longer closes or latches by itself: tired hinge, weak closer, a latch that has moved. A pool inspection in Lorne after a quiet season is when that turns up.
Overlays and planting
Do planning overlays affect a pool fence in Lorne?
They can, and there are a lot of them. The town sits beside the Great Otway National Park, and vegetation and environmental overlays cover much of Lorne. State planning data adds 13 Significant Landscape Overlay areas, 46 Heritage Overlay areas, six Victorian Heritage Register places and a Bushfire Management Overlay over parts of the town. Your lot may touch none of them; a free VicPlan property report for the address settles it.
None of that matters until a fence section has to come out. Inside a landscape or heritage overlay, the replacement may need a planning permit, and that's the owner's to arrange. We report the defect and leave approvals to the Shire, so ask them before ordering materials.
On treed and bush-edge blocks, a shrub or low branch near the fence can give a child a way over, and that alone can fail a barrier. If a vegetation overlay applies, check with council before cutting anything back. Our barrier inspection checklist covers what we look at.
Two other map layers come up here: a small part of Lorne sits under an inundation overlay, and the ground near the centre of Lorne is alluvium over the Dilwyn Formation. Neither tells us anything about a given fence, so we test what's there: the gate is opened and closed from each side on every job, and a post that has shifted shows up as a gate that won't latch.
Council steps
Who lodges the Form 23 with Surf Coast Shire?
You do. Surf Coast Shire says it provides no inspection services and does not issue the certificate, so the Form 23 comes from a private inspection. If the pool isn't registered yet, register online through Surf Coast Shire's building portal; a pool already on the register sends its certificate in through an online form.
The order is short. We inspect. If the barrier passes, the Form 23 is handed over on site. You lodge it with council, and the four-year cycle runs from council lodgement. Register links, fees and contacts are kept on our Surf Coast pool compliance page, in one place so they stay current.
Most owners call after a reminder letter arrives, and the council pool barrier letter guide explains the wording. If that letter asks for a pool safety certificate in Lorne, the Form 23 is the certificate it means. A newly built pool goes a different way: the permit surveyor signs it off, not us.
Booking
How soon can you get to Lorne?
Usually within the same week. Lorne is about 93 minutes from our Clifton Springs base, and the Great Ocean Road runs through Lorne, so coast jobs are grouped as they come in rather than held to fixed days. When a few Surf Coast bookings line up, the visit can come sooner.
Some residential streets sit beside rural conservation land and public park and conservation zones, and a block on that edge can have a long fence run with bush to the boundary. Mention it when you call and we'll allow the time. If you'd rather know where the barrier stands before the Form 23 visit, a compliance consultation lists every item in writing first. The visit itself is described under pool barrier inspections, and every locality we cover is on the service areas page.
To book a pool safety inspection in Lorne, call Ryan on 0402 860 499 or send an enquiry. It's $250 flat; any council fee is paid to council.
More Ways We Help in Lorne
Re-Inspections & Compliance Consultation in Lorne
Flat $250 — same-day Form 23 where compliant, free re-inspections, no hidden fees.
Compliance Consultation
Unsure how the gate and fence line will fare? A written report on the Lorne barrier flags each item before the Form 23 visit.
$250 flat
Selling or buying a house
Holiday house or coastal property changing hands? Check the barrier before contracts are exchanged, not after.
$250 flat
Our Services
Pool Inspection Services in Lorne
Flat $250 — same-day Form 23 where compliant, free re-inspections, no hidden fees.
Pool barrier inspection
The full barrier check, gate and latch testing included. Form 23 issued on site when it passes.
Form 23 certificate
What the certificate is, who lodges it and when the four-year cycle starts.
What it costs
The $250 inspection, separate from any council fee.
Pool registration
Not sure the pool is registered? Start here before you book.
FAQ
Lorne Pool Inspection Questions
The pool is at our Lorne holiday house, which we rarely use. How do you get in?
Through someone you arrange at booking. It's best if you can be there, but an agent, caretaker or neighbour can let us in instead. We inspect the whole barrier with them on site, and if it passes, the Form 23 is issued there and then. Give us their name and number when you call.
How quickly can I book in Lorne, and what does it cost?
Usually within the same week, and the inspection is $250 flat, with any council fees paid to council. Coast jobs are grouped as bookings come in rather than held to fixed days. Phone Ryan on 0402 860 499 or send an enquiry.
Does Surf Coast Shire inspect my Lorne pool barrier, or do I book a private inspector?
A private inspector. The Shire says it doesn't provide inspection services or issue the Form 23. Register the pool through the Shire's portal if it isn't on the register yet, then call us on 0402 860 499. The Form 23 is issued on site when the barrier passes.
How do I lodge the Form 23 after the inspection?
You send it to council. The certificate is issued on site when the barrier passes, and you lodge it through the Shire's online certificate form. The four-year cycle runs from council lodgement, and council fees are separate from our $250.
What happens if the barrier doesn't pass on the day?
You get a written list of what failed. Once those items are fixed we come back and re-inspect at no charge, then issue the Form 23 when it passes. A routine fail means a list and a second visit, nothing more.
It passed last time. Why would the gate or a garden bed fail now?
Things move. Hinges loosen, closers weaken, latches shift out of line and shrubs grow toward the fence. A gate that no longer closes or latches by itself is the fail we see most. Each visit judges the barrier as it stands that day.
Nearby Suburbs
Which Other Suburbs Do You Service Near Lorne?
Same flat $250 across our entire service area.