Council fire prevention notices in Victoria: what they mean and what to do

If a fire prevention notice has landed in your letterbox, it isn't a suggestion. Victorian councils issue them under the Country Fire Authority Act 1958, and they carry a legal obligation with a deadline attached.

What the notice actually asks for

Most notices in Central Victoria ask for the same handful of things. Grass and other fine fuel cut back to a set height, commonly around 100mm. A cleared break along the boundary, usually 3 to 4 metres wide, sometimes wider. Fine fuel and rubbish cleared away from sheds, tanks and fence lines. Some notices name a specific area of the property, others cover the whole property.

Read the wording carefully, because the numbers on your notice override any general advice, including ours. The width and height printed on the paper is the standard the inspector will measure against.

Deadlines and inspections

Notices are typically issued in spring with a compliance date before the Fire Danger Period starts. Councils re-inspect after that date, and they don't always tell you when. If the property isn't compliant, the council can send its own contractor in, do the work, and bill you for it, on top of an infringement penalty.

Council contractor rates are set by the council, not by you, and you don't get to choose the standard of the finish. Getting your own contractor in is almost always the cheaper and tidier option.

The bit most people get wrong

One cut in September isn't compliance. Grass keeps growing through October and November, and a property slashed too early will be back over height by the time the inspector drives past. On most Central Victorian properties the timing that works is a solid cut in late October to early December, then a check over the rest of summer.

The other common trap is absentee ownership. If you don't live on the property, nobody is watching the grass for you. Two or three cuts a year booked in advance is the simplest way to stay clear of a notice altogether.

What to do if you've got one

Bring the notice to the site visit. It tells us the exact standard, the area covered and the date it has to be done by, so the job is quoted and cut to that spec the first time. We also photograph the work on completion, which is what you want on file if the council follows up.

Got a job in mind? Send your address and we'll come out, have a look, and put a written quote together. No obligation.