Answer · reviewed 2026-09-29

How do I make a complaint about a builder or tradesperson in NSW?

Short answer

In NSW a home building dispute must first go through the free Building Commission NSW dispute resolution service before it can be heard at NCAT, unless it is exempt such as involving an unlicensed builder. There you can get a rectification order. The time limits are the Home Building Act statutory warranties: six years for major defects and two years for all other defects from completion, extended by six months if the defect appears in the final six months.

The order is fixed, and most people get it wrong

The single most common mistake is walking straight to the tribunal. NCAT will not accept a home building application unless you have first taken part in the NSW Fair Trading / Building Commission NSW dispute resolution process, or your matter is one of the exempt listed cases. So the path is always: resolve it directly, then the free statutory scheme, then NCAT as the last step, not the first.

Step one is a written notice to the trader

Before anyone else, notify the builder or tradesperson and put your concerns in writing by email or letter, with a reasonable chance to fix it. This is not a formality: it is the record that establishes when they were on notice, and it is what the inspector and tribunal both want to see under the contract. Keep a copy of everything you send and receive.

What the free dispute resolution service actually does

Building Commission NSW (the successor to NSW Fair Trading’s Home Building Service, running since 2003) sends a trade-qualified building inspector. A consumer can lodge the complaint and the trader does not need to agree to take part; the trader is encouraged but cannot block it. If the inspector is satisfied on the balance of probabilities that the trader is responsible for defective or incomplete work, a rectification order is issued directing them to rectify or complete the work by a due date.

A rectification order they ignore is a breach of law

This is the part that gives the scheme teeth. If the trader does not fix the work by the date on the order, they are in breach of the Home Building Act 1989. That breach, plus a copy of the order is exactly what you hand to NCAT when the matter then goes to the tribunal. You do not need to prove the defect twice.

When you can skip straight to NCAT

A handful of matters are exempt from the Fair Trading step and can go to NCAT first, including matters involving an unlicensed builder, appeals relating to insurance, debt recovery by a contractor, cross claims, claims by a trader against a subcontractor on defective work, and claims where the time for lodging is about to run. If you suspect unlicensed work, that is the fast lane and it is the one exemption a consumer actually gets to use.

The time limits that close the door

Major defects	6 years from completion
All other defects	2 years from completion
Extension if defect appears near the end of the window	+6 months

These are the Home Building Act statutory warranties. If the homeowner or a subsequent buyer first discovers a defect in the final six months of either period, the time to claim is extended by six months. For the free scheme to assist, the building claim must be within these periods. If you know a contract end date, work backwards from it, not from when the problem started to annoy you.

What NCAT costs and how it runs

Home building claims under $30,000 are NCAT’s most common build dispute stream. The first hearing is listed for conciliation, a confidential attempt to agree, and if that fails the matter is usually heard and decided the same day or adjourned. You must bring a copy of the contract, all correspondence, quotes for the repair, photographs, the insurance certificate and, if you have one, the rectification order. Claims are made under the Home Building Act and the tribunal member may appoint an independent technical expert to inspect the work.

The practical sequence, in one line

Notify the trader in writing and give them a chance; lodge the free Building Commission NSW dispute and push for a rectification order; if they ignore the order or the work is still not right, take the order and your file to NCAT before the warranty period ends. Keep a copy of every document at every step.

Sources

Resolving disputes between contractors and consumers, NSW Government. Checked 2026-09-29.
Home building claims under $30,000, NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT). Checked 2026-09-29.
Home building, NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT). Checked 2026-09-29.
Consumer Building Guide, NSW Government. Checked 2026-09-29.

Government fees are quoted from the government source. Market prices are the observed spread across the guides listed, not our estimate. Prices change; the checked date is when a human last looked.

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