Frequently Asked Questions

We are professionals in the building industry and registered Builders which means we have actual on-site experience. Drawing on 30 years of experience in building construction, renovations, and extensions across residential and commercial projects.

We cover a wide range of locations from metropolitan Melbourne and Mornington Peninsula, to Northern Victoria, North-East Victoria, Geelong, Ballarat and Central Victoria.

Independent Building Inspections Victoria (IBIV) will endeavour to meet your requirements in organising the inspection appointment.  We can arrange access directly if required through a third party to ensure we schedule a time that suits all parties.  Our inspector will then contact you to confirm the date and time of the inspection.

Depending on the size of the building , scope of inspection and the number of defects found the time can vary significantly. Please call to discuss your requirements.

The scope of every inspection is different , we develop the scope in conjunction with you to ensure the inspection is adequate while meeting value expectations. Refer also to our Terms & Conditions which outline what we do and do not cover.

Yes, you are welcome to meet the inspector on-site before and after the inspection. We do however ask for uninterrupted inspection time to ensure absolute focus on your inspection.

If you are available to meet on site, our inspector can go through the initial findings verbally then the report will be emailed once complete. The lead times on reports vary depending on the size of the building, scope of inspection and the number of defects found. We do not offer a tick box same day report service, with the exception of some basic report requests and thermographic work. Our inspections and reports are carefully constructed against extensive reference documents to ensure they are fit for purpose and address the agreed scope. The report will be emailed to you once complete and we are available to discuss the findings.

We require a deposit of $350 by direct deposit into our bank account to secure the booking. The inspection work is invoiced upon completion and reports are paid for prior to issue.

We recommend that clients get advice from a structural engineer first before any work proceeds.

You will need to engage a Building Surveyor to issue a building permit and final Occupancy Permit.

DBDRV assessors will only inspect the items you nominate . You can do this list yourself however the dispute resolution process can be time consuming so it is beneficial to base your application on a comprehensive inspection and report summary list that we supply with your report. The assessor may not be provided with our full report for the inspection, the summary list allows you to accurately input the defects into the online application.

VMIA assessors will only inspect the items you nominate . You can do this list yourself however the claims process can be time consuming, so it is beneficial to base your application on a comprehensive inspection and report summary list that we supply with your report. The assessor may not be provided with our full report for the inspection,  the summary list allows you to accurately input the defects into the online application.