Every Melbourne homeowner should verify their painter carries a minimum of $10M public liability insurance and current workers’ compensation before any work begins, Consumer Affairs Victoria confirms that homeowners can be held personally liable for injuries and property damage caused by uninsured tradespeople, with costs regularly exceeding $10,000–$50,000. When you’re hiring a painter in Melbourne, asking about insurance might feel awkward. You don’t want to offend a tradesperson. But here’s the truth: if a painter doesn’t carry proper insurance and something goes wrong, you’re the one footing the bill. We’ve seen homeowners spend tens of thousands fixing damage because they hired an uninsured painter. It’s not worth the risk.
This guide walks you through exactly what to look for and how to verify that a painter is properly insured before they set foot in your home.
What insurance should painters actually carry?
Every professional painter needs public liability insurance and workers’ compensation, these are the bare minimum, not optional extras.
A professional painting contractor in Melbourne needs two layers of protection: public liability insurance and workers’ compensation insurance. These aren’t optional extras or nice-to-haves. They’re the bare minimum.
Public liability covers damage to your property or third-party injury while work is happening. If a painter accidentally spills a litre of paint on your new kitchen tiles, or damage to your garden fence occurs during the job, public liability picks up the repair cost. Workers’ compensation covers injuries to their employees or subcontractors if someone gets hurt on your property.
In Victoria, businesses with employees are legally required to hold workers’ comp insurance. If they don’t, they’re breaking the law. Full stop. Any painter telling you they don’t need it because they work alone is either uninformed or cutting corners.
What are the minimum insurance thresholds for Melbourne painters?
Public liability should be $5-20 million depending on project scope. We carry $20 million because we take every job seriously.
Public liability insurance for house painters typically sits between $5 million and $20 million in cover. The bigger the project scope (multi-storey homes, heritage work, large commercial jobs), the higher the cover tends to be.
We carry $20 million in public liability insurance because we’ve been operating since 1987 and we’ve painted over 1,000 homes across Melbourne’s western suburbs. That level of cover isn’t just protection for you, it’s a sign we take the job seriously and have the claim history to support it.
For a straightforward interior room repaint in a residential home, $5–10 million is generally acceptable. For exterior work on two-storey houses, weatherboard remediation, or heritage properties, you want to see $10 million minimum. The bigger the project, the bigger the risk, the bigger the insurance should be.
Workers’ compensation should cover 100% of their team. Ask whether their cover includes subcontractors. Some painters use labour hire or bring in specialists for certain tasks, and those people need to be covered too.
How do you actually verify a painter’s insurance?
Ask for a certificate of currency, verify it with the insurer directly, and check the Victorian Building Commission register.
Don’t take their word for it. A verbal “yeah, we’re insured, mate” isn’t verification. The Housing Industry Association (HIA) and Master Painters Australia both recommend that homeowners independently verify insurance before engaging any tradesperson. Here’s what you do:
Ask for a certificate of currency. This is the official document issued by their insurer. It shows the policy number, coverage limits, the date it started, and the expiry date. Any legitimate painter will have this on file and be able to email it to you in minutes.
When they send it, check these specifics: Is the company name exactly as registered? Do the coverage limits match what they quoted you? Is it current (not expired)? The expiry date should be well into the future, not next month.
Verify with the insurer directly. You can call the insurance company listed on the certificate and confirm the policy is genuine. Don’t rely on a phone number the painter provides, look up the insurer’s contact details yourself online. This takes five minutes and removes all doubt.
Check the Victorian Building Commission. For exterior and structural work, builders and painters sometimes need to be registered. The VBC maintains a public register. It’s not exhaustive (smaller painting-only contractors may not need to be registered), but if they are, it’s another layer of verification.
Search for any dispute history. While not foolproof, you can check if the tradesperson has unresolved complaints through Consumer Affairs Victoria or the relevant industry body. This won’t tell you everything, but persistent complaints are a red flag. You can also verify the company’s registration through the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) to confirm the business entity is legitimate and active.
Key takeaway: Verifying a Melbourne painter’s insurance takes 10 minutes, request the certificate of currency, call the insurer directly to confirm it is genuine, and check the expiry date is at least 6 months out.
What happens if an uninsured painter damages your property?
You’ll have limited recourse, suing someone with no assets costs money and time, and your home insurance may refuse the claim entirely.
This is where the risk gets real. If an uninsured painter damages your home, you have limited recourse:
You can sue them personally, but if they don’t have assets or savings, winning a court case doesn’t guarantee you’ll actually get paid. You’ll spend money on legal fees and months fighting while your property remains damaged.
Your own home insurance may refuse to cover it because the damage was caused by a third party who was negligent. Some policies have exclusions for damage caused by tradespeople.
You end up paying for the repairs yourself. We’ve heard stories from Melbourne homeowners who hired a cheap painter, the painter damaged plasterwork or flooring, and the homeowner was out $5,000–$15,000 with no way to recover it.
It’s not a hypothetical risk. Accidents happen. Paint can spill. Scaffolding can slip. Equipment can break things. That’s why insurance exists.
Does insurance cover subcontracted workers and labour hire?
Ask specifically whether subcontractors carry their own workers’ comp or are covered under the painter’s policy, vague answers mean gaps.
Some painters work as sole traders and hire labour on a per-job basis. This is legal, but it creates a gap in insurance coverage if not handled correctly.
The labour hire company should hold their own workers’ comp insurance, or the hiring painter should extend their workers’ comp to cover the hired labour. If a hired worker gets injured and isn’t covered, the hiring painter is liable.
When you ask about their team, ask specifically: “If you bring in other tradespeople or labour, are they covered under your workers’ comp, or do they carry their own?” If the answer is vague or defensive, walk away.
We’ve been family-owned and operated for more than three decades. Every team member who walks onto your property is on our payroll and covered under our workers’ comp insurance. No subcontractors, no labour hire, no grey areas. We take full responsibility for every person on the job.
Key takeaway: Painters who use subcontractors or labour hire create insurance coverage gaps, always confirm in writing whether every worker on your property is covered under the painter’s own workers’ compensation policy.
Is checking a painter’s insurance difficult?
It takes 10 minutes, get the certificate, call the insurer, check the register. Any painter who can’t produce proof within a day is a red flag.
Verifying insurance takes 10 minutes. Getting a certificate, calling the insurer, checking the register, it’s straightforward. Don’t let a painter make you feel like you’re being suspicious or overly cautious. Professional tradespeople expect this question and have an answer ready.
If a painter is evasive, vague, or can’t produce a certificate of currency within a day, that’s your signal. There are plenty of properly insured painters in Melbourne. You don’t need to risk your home with someone who cuts corners on insurance.
What else should you check before hiring a painter?
Insurance is the foundation, but also verify their prep process, product quality, written quote detail, and warranty terms before committing.
Insurance is the foundation. But there’s more to vetting a painter than just coverage. Ask about their experience with your specific project type. Interior vs. exterior painting are different skills. Repainting a feature wall is different from painting a two-storey weatherboard home.
Check how they prepare surfaces. A cheap quote often means they’re skipping prep work, and prep work is what makes paint last. Ask about the products they use. We use Dulux exclusively, their Wash&Wear for kitchens and bathrooms, Weathershield for exterior, Aquanamel for high-moisture areas. Product quality matters.
Get a transparent written quote. It should list the scope of work, surface preparation, primer and paint products (by name), number of coats, warranty terms, and total price. No surprises later.
Ask about warranty. We offer a workmanship guarantee, if anything is wrong with our work, we return and fix it at no cost. That confidence comes from more than three decades of getting it right. The ACCC confirms that all painting services must be carried out with due care and skill under Australian Consumer Law, and Dulux Australia product warranties require professional application to remain valid.
| Insurance Check | What to Look For | Red Flag |
|---|---|---|
| Certificate of currency | Current, named to the company, shows coverage amount | Cannot produce one within 24 hours |
| Coverage amount | $10M–$20M for residential | Under $5M or unspecified |
| Expiry date | At least 6 months out | Expires within 30 days |
| Workers’ compensation | Covers all employees and any labour hire | ”I work alone, don’t need it” |
| Insurer verification | Call insurer directly using their public number | ”Just trust me, it’s current” |
| ABN registration | Active, long-standing on Australian Business Register | Recently registered or won’t provide |
Most importantly, trust your instinct. If someone feels professional, communicative, and willing to answer your questions, that’s a good sign. If you feel rushed, dismissed, or unclear about what you’re getting, keep looking.
Ready to hire a properly insured painter?
Start every conversation with the insurance question, a proper tradesperson will appreciate that you care about doing it right.
When you contact painters near you, start with the insurance question. You’re not being difficult, you’re being smart. A proper tradesperson will appreciate that you care about doing it right.
Modernize Solutions has operated as a fully insured, family-owned painting business since 1987, completing over 1,000 residential projects across Melbourne. The company carries $20M public liability insurance, provides a workmanship guarantee with any issue fixed at no cost, uses Dulux premium paint systems exclusively, and maintains a 4.8-star Google rating from 154 verified reviews, with every team member employed directly on payroll.
We’re fully insured, fully transparent, and happy to answer every question you have. We’ve painted over 1,000 homes across Melbourne, never subcontracted work, and we back every job with a written warranty.
Ready to get a quote from a painter you can trust? Call us on 0451 040 396 or visit /contact to request an obligation-free quote. We’ll walk you through everything and you’ll have a clear understanding of what we’re doing and why before we start.
“We carry $20 million in public liability insurance not because regulations require that amount, but because it demonstrates to every homeowner that we take responsibility for their property seriously.”, Modernize Solutions, painting Melbourne homes since 1987
“In more than three decades of operation, we have never had an unresolved insurance claim, because we invest in protection, preparation, and an in-house team we trust completely.”, Modernize Solutions
Frequently asked questions
What is the minimum insurance a Melbourne painter should carry?
A professional Melbourne painter should carry a minimum of $10 million public liability insurance for standard residential work. For larger homes, heritage properties, or two-storey exterior work, $20 million provides greater protection. Always request a certificate of currency before work begins.
How do I verify a painter’s insurance is genuine?
Request the certificate of currency, then call the insurance company listed on the certificate directly using their publicly listed phone number, not a number the painter provides. Confirm the policy number, coverage amount, and expiry date. This takes approximately 10 minutes.
What happens if an uninsured painter damages my property?
You have limited recourse. Suing an individual without assets is costly and often unsuccessful. Your home insurance may refuse the claim because the damage was caused by a negligent third party. Many Melbourne homeowners have been left paying $5,000–$15,000 out of pocket for damage caused by uninsured painters.
Does Modernize Solutions use subcontractors who might not be insured?
No. Modernize Solutions has never used subcontractors on any project. Every team member is employed directly on payroll and covered under the company’s $20 million public liability insurance and workers’ compensation policy. There are no insurance gaps.
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Owner & Lead Painter · Modernize Solutions · Painting Melbourne homes since 1987
