Renovator Walked Off the Job? How to Get Your Money Back (Australia 2026)

Last updated 27 October 2026 · Reviewed by the Claim Done team · Not legal advice

Can you get your money back from a renovator?

In most cases you can recover money paid for renovation work that was never done, or the cost of fixing work done badly. Renovations sit in an awkward middle ground: smaller than a new home, but bigger and more regulated than a one-off handyman job. That matters, because the protections switch on at different dollar values in each state.

At the core are two sets of rights that apply together:

• State home building warranties. In NSW, the Home Building Act 1989 s 18B covers “alterations or additions to a dwelling” and the “repairing, renovation, decoration or protective treatment of a dwelling”: the work must be done with due care and skill, to the plans, with good materials, within the agreed or a reasonable time, and must leave the home reasonably fit to live in. Victoria’s Domestic Building Contracts Act 1995 s 8 does the same, and the Building and Plumbing Commission says these warranties apply even if you don’t have a signed contract.
• Australian Consumer Law guarantees. The service must be supplied with due care and skill, fit for a purpose you made known and within a reasonable time (ss 60-62). Cabinets, benchtops, vanities and appliances supplied as goods must be of acceptable quality (s 54). These can’t be excluded by any contract term (s 64).

What a renovator can’t do:

• Take an oversized deposit. NSW 10%; Victoria 10% under $20,000 and 5% from $20,000; Queensland 10% for $3,301 to $19,999 and 5% from $20,000; WA 6.5%; South Australia 5% from $20,000.
• Bill you for stages not reached. The NSW Government says progress payments must match the work carried out.
• Charge you for fixing their own mistakes. The NSW Government says if a variation is needed because of the builder’s or tradesperson’s fault, you don’t pay for the extra work.
• Enforce an unlicensed contract against you. In NSW a person who contracts for residential building work without a licence can’t enforce the contract (Home Building Act ss 4, 10).

The most common problems with renovators

1. Deposit paid, renovator vanished. No start date, then no reply. Claim: the deposit back, or a firm start date. Our Renovator / Carpenter Abandoned Job Demand sets out the choice.
2. Kitchen or bathroom half finished. Old kitchen ripped out, new one half-installed, plumbing capped off. Claim: completion by a fixed date, or another contractor’s cost to finish above your unpaid balance.
3. Leaking shower or bathroom. Water through the ceiling below or rotting skirting next door. In NSW waterproofing is a “major element”, so a failure that makes part of the home unusable can be a major defect with the 6-year warranty period; Victoria’s Home Warranty also treats waterproofing defects as major. Claim: rectification, plus resulting damage.
4. Cabinetry that doesn’t fit or falls apart. Doors out of line, benchtops cracked, drawers that won’t close. Claim: repair or replacement of the defective items.
5. Tiling and finish defects. Lippage, cracked or drummy tiles, poor grout, paint over dust. Claim: re-doing the defective areas. A tiler’s or painter’s own poor work is a failure of due care and skill.
6. Price creep. “Extras” for things in the quote, or variations you never signed. Our Builder Variation Dispute letter ($49) disputes them.
7. Endless delay. Two-week jobs running for months, blocking other trades and leaving you without a kitchen. Claim: completion within a set time, and foreseeable costs such as temporary accommodation if the home became unusable. See our Notice to Builder: Past the Completion Date ($49).
8. Licensed trades not licensed. Electrical, plumbing or gas work done by someone without the licence. Claim: the cost of having a licensed tradesperson check and redo it, and report it to the regulator.

Renovation rules in each state

The thresholds below decide which protections apply to your job. For the full dispute path in each state, see our builder page.

New South Wales

A written contract is needed for work over $5,000 incl. GST: a small job contract for $5,000 to $20,000 (dated, signed, with the licence number, a description of the work and the price) and a large job contract above $20,000, with a progress payment schedule. You should get the Consumer Building Guide for work over $5,000. Home Building Compensation cover applies to projects over $20,000. A licence in a person’s own name doesn’t let their company sign the contract, so check whose name is on the licence and the quote. Building Commission NSW’s complaint service covers incomplete work, workmanship, waterproofing and specialist trades including electrical, plumbing and gasfitting.

Victoria

For work of $10,000 or more, the BPC says you need a written contract with a registered builder. The implied warranties apply whatever the contract value. Home Warranty applies to eligible work over $20,000 on contracts signed from 1 July 2026 (earlier contracts: Domestic Building Insurance over $16,000). VCAT’s own application guide treats a “kitchen renovation” as domestic building work, separate from a “single trade” job such as painting, and a domestic building dispute needs a BPC certificate of conciliation first.

Queensland

Home warranty cover is needed for residential work over $3,300, and the QBCC lists “replacing or refitting fixtures or fittings in a kitchen or bathroom” and painting, tiling and plastering in or on the home. A QBCC licence is required for building work over $3,300, and plumbing, drainage and gas work need a licence at any value. Before a defects complaint, give the contractor written notice of every defective or unfinished item with a timeframe.

Western Australia

Renovations needing a building permit over $20,000 need home indemnity insurance, and the contract falls under the Home Building Contracts Act if it’s between $7,500 and $500,000 (deposit 6.5%; defects notified in writing within 4 months of practical completion). But many renovation trades don’t need a registered builder: cabinet making and installation, second-fix joinery, timber decking and glazing are exempt, and non-structural work such as cabinet making, tiling and painting that needs no permit isn’t covered by home indemnity insurance.

South Australia

Building indemnity insurance applies to council-approved domestic work costing $20,000 or more, and South Australia’s guidance expressly includes renovating. Written contract and a 5% deposit cap from $20,000. Your builder must hold a building work contractor’s licence, and subcontracted tradespeople must be licensed too.

Tasmania

The Residential Building Work Contracts and Dispute Resolution Act 2016 covers renovations, alterations, extensions, improvements and repairs under contracts of $20,000 or more. Some work doesn’t need a licence (paving, concreting, painting, landscaping), but plumbing, gas and electrical work does.

Australian Capital Territory

The statutory warranty applies only where the work is on a residential building, needs building approval and costs $12,000 or more. Many kitchen and bathroom jobs don’t need approval, so they rely on the contract and the consumer guarantees.

Northern Territory

A bathroom renovation on its own doesn’t need a fidelity fund certificate, but additions and extensions over $25,000 that add floor area do. Without a certificate, a dispute goes to NTCAT (up to $25,000) or the Local Court.

What you can claim from a renovator

• Money paid for work never done: the deposit, or a progress payment for a stage not reached.
• The cost to finish with another contractor, less what you’d still have owed.
• The cost to fix defective work, including stripping out and redoing failed waterproofing or tiling.
• Damage the bad work caused: water damage to ceilings, floors or a neighbour’s property.
• Materials you paid for: cabinets, tiles or fittings ordered for your job, which should be handed over or refunded.
• Foreseeable costs of delay where the home became unusable, and inspection or plumber’s reports.

Separate what was done properly from what wasn’t. A renovator who completed demolition and rough-in competently is entitled to be paid for that; your claim is for the rest.

Example (round numbers, for illustration only): you agree $30,000 for a bathroom and pay $15,000 up front. The renovator strips the room, waterproofs and tiles the shower, then disappears. The shower leaks. Another licensed contractor charges $4,000 to rip out and redo the shower waterproofing and tiling, and quotes $14,000 to finish the rest. You still owed $15,000, so finishing costs you $3,000 more than planned (the $14,000 to finish, plus $4,000 to redo the shower, less the $15,000 you’d have paid anyway). Add $1,500 to repair the water-damaged ceiling below: a claim of $4,500.

Evidence to gather

1. The quote or contract, any design drawings, and the list of fixtures and fittings agreed.
2. Every payment, with what each was for, and the invoices.
3. The contractor’s licence or registration, and whose name it’s in (person or company).
4. Home warranty insurance certificate, if the job was over your state’s threshold.
5. Before, during and after photos of each room, dated.
6. For leaks: photos of water damage, a plumber’s or waterproofing inspector’s report.
7. Electrical, plumbing and gas compliance certificates (or their absence).
8. Quotes from other licensed contractors to fix or finish.
9. Orders and delivery dockets for cabinetry, tiles and fittings you paid for.
10. All messages, and a dated timeline of visits and missed start dates.

How to get your money back: 5 steps

Step 1: Tell the renovator in writing what’s wrong and what you want

Ring if you like, then put it in writing. Say what was agreed, what’s been done, what’s missing or defective, and exactly what you want: a return date and completion, the defects fixed, or a refund. Ask for any materials you paid for to be delivered or handed over. Give a short deadline, such as 7 days, and keep a copy.

Step 2: No answer, a refusal or a runaround? Send a formal demand

Our Renovator / Carpenter Abandoned Job Demand puts the contractor on notice under your state’s home building law and the consumer guarantees. It gives a clear choice: a written completion program and return within a fixed time, or a refund of what you paid less the value of work properly done, plus the cost of fixing defective work and handover of materials. Regulators and tribunals expect to see a letter like this. For a finished job with defects, our Defects Notice to Your Builder ($79) is the better fit; the general Letter of Demand ($49) is a fallback.

Send a Renovator Demand – $49

Step 3: Complain to the building regulator in your state

For residential building work this step comes before the tribunal in NSW, Victoria and Queensland, and Tasmania requires a mediation attempt. Attach your letters and photos.

• NSW: Building Commission NSW, 13 27 00, home building complaint.
• VIC: Building and Plumbing Commission, 1300 067 088, dispute resolution.
• QLD: QBCC, 139 333, complaints.
• WA: Building and Energy, 1300 489 099, building dispute resolution (Notice of proposed complaint 14 days first).
• SA: Consumer and Business Services, 131 882, building disputes advice form.
• TAS: Building Standards Tasmania, 1300 654 499, notice of dispute.
• ACT: Access Canberra, 13 22 81.
• NT: NT Consumer Affairs, 1800 019 319.

If the job was too small to be residential building work in your state, the consumer regulator handles it instead, and our Consumer Guarantee Letter ($49) fits better.

Step 4: Still unpaid? Send the final demand

Quote your first letter, the renovator’s response or silence, and the regulator’s reference number or outcome, and state that you’ll file a claim.

Send the final demand – $49

Step 5: Apply to the tribunal or court in your state

File with the regulator’s certificate or letter where required. The strongest evidence is an independent report separating good work from bad, with quotes to finish. Our Hearing Bundle ($97) puts it in order.

Prepare your tribunal application – $97

In WA, SA and Tasmania (outside the building mediation path) and for NT claims over $25,000, the same product prepares a court claim.

Where your claim goes in each state

Use the building forum where the job counts as residential building work; a small job outside the building laws goes to the ordinary consumer forum.

If the renovator is a sole trader living in another state. NCAT can’t decide a dispute between a NSW resident and a resident of another state, because of Burns v Corbett [2018] HCA 15, so the claim goes to the Local or District Court. VCAT says it can’t hear some cases where a party lives interstate, and WA’s Building Commissioner can’t deal with complaints between individuals where one lives outside WA. A renovator trading as a company isn’t affected.

After you win: getting paid

Renovators who abandon jobs often owe money elsewhere, so move quickly once you have an order. If the renovator still doesn’t pay, the order can be enforced: in most states it is registered or filed with the court and enforced as a judgment, through a garnishee order on the business’s bank account or money its customers owe it, seizure and sale of property such as vehicles and tools, or an examination about its finances. Where home warranty insurance applies and the contractor becomes insolvent, dies or disappears, a claim on the policy may be the faster route.

Tribunals do not collect the money for you. In NSW, Victoria, Queensland, the ACT and the NT, an unpaid tribunal money order is first registered, recorded or filed with a court. In WA, SA and Tasmania the Magistrates Court decides the claim, so you already have a court judgment. Then you apply for the court’s enforcement tools.

Enforce your order – $97

Enforce your order – $97

Questions people ask

My renovator took a deposit and never started. What can I do?

Write giving a firm start date and saying you want the deposit back if it’s missed. If they don’t respond, send our Renovator / Carpenter Abandoned Job Demand. If the deposit was over the legal limit (10% in NSW, for example), say so: the contractor wasn’t entitled to take it, and the excess may not be covered by insurance later.

Do I need a written contract for a kitchen or bathroom renovation?

Usually. In NSW any residential building work over $5,000 incl. GST needs a written contract. In Victoria the BPC says work of $10,000 or more needs a written contract with a registered builder. South Australia requires one from $20,000. Even without one, the statutory warranties and consumer guarantees still apply.

My new shower leaks. Is the renovator liable?

Very likely, if the leak comes from their waterproofing or plumbing. In NSW, waterproofing is a major element, so a serious failure can carry the 6-year major defect warranty. Get a plumber’s or waterproofing inspector’s report, give the renovator written notice and a chance to fix it, then claim the cost of repair and the water damage.

Is my renovation covered by home warranty insurance?

Only above your state’s threshold: over $20,000 in NSW, in Victoria (contracts from 1 July 2026; over $16,000 for earlier contracts) and in WA (if a permit is needed); $20,000 or more for council-approved work in South Australia; over $3,300 in Queensland, including kitchen and bathroom refits. A bathroom renovation alone doesn’t need an NT fidelity fund certificate.

Does a kitchen installer or cabinet maker need a licence?

It depends on the state. In WA, cabinet making and installation and second-fix joinery don’t need a registered building contractor. Queensland requires a QBCC licence for building work valued over $3,300. In NSW, residential building work generally needs a contractor licence, and the name on the contract must match the licence. Plumbing, gas and electrical work always needs a licensed tradesperson.

Can I keep the materials the renovator ordered for my job?

If you paid for them, ask in writing for them to be delivered or handed over, and list them in your demand. If they won’t release them, include their cost in your claim, supported by your payment records and any order confirmations.

The renovator keeps adding extras to the bill. Do I have to pay?

Not for extras you didn’t agree to. The NSW Government says variations must be in writing and signed by both parties, and you don’t pay for extra work caused by the contractor’s own mistakes. Dispute unagreed extras in writing with our Builder Variation Dispute letter ($49).

Can I get someone else to finish the job and charge the first renovator?

Yes, usually, once you’ve given the first renovator a fair written chance to return and they haven’t. Document the state of the work first, get written quotes, then claim the extra cost of finishing above what you still owed under the original contract. Don’t terminate the contract without checking its termination clause.

What if the renovator wasn’t licensed?

Report it to your state’s building regulator. In NSW, a person who contracts for residential building work without a licence can’t enforce the contract against you, and NCAT doesn’t require the Building Commission step for claims against unlicensed contractors. Home warranty insurance usually won’t cover unlicensed work, so claim against the person directly.

How long do I have to make a claim against a renovator?

In NSW, 6 years for a major defect and 2 years for other defects from completion; in WA notify defects within 4 months of practical completion; Victoria generally allows building actions up to 10 years. Home warranty claims have much shorter deadlines, such as 3 months in Queensland for structural defects, so act quickly.

Can I take a renovator to NCAT or VCAT?

Yes. A renovation is usually a home building claim at NCAT, after the Building Commission NSW step, and VCAT treats a kitchen renovation as domestic building work needing a BPC certificate of conciliation. Send our Renovator Demand first; our tribunal application ($97) then prepares the claim.

Sources

Checked 19 October 2026.

• Home Building Act 1989 (NSW): ss 4, 8, 10, 18B, 18E, 48K
• NSW Government: Contracts for residential building work; Lodge a home building complaint; NCAT: Home building; NCAT: Federal jurisdiction
• Domestic Building Contracts Act 1995 (Vic); BPC: Agreements and contracts; BPC: DBI and Home Warranty; VCAT: Building and construction
• QBCC: What work requires insurance; Who must hold a QBCC licence; Help with defective work; Deposits
• WA: Do I need to be a registered building contractor?; Home indemnity insurance fact sheet; Home Building Contracts Act 1991 (WA)
• SA: Builder responsibilities; CBS consumer guide; Disputes with a builder or tradesperson
• Tasmania: Residential Building Consumer Guide
• ACT: Statutory warranties
• NT: Fidelity fund certificate
• Australian Consumer Law: ss 54, 60-62, 64, 267-268
• Forum fees: NCAT, QCAT, ACAT, NTCAT, SA Magistrates Court, Tasmanian Magistrates Court, Building and Energy complaint fee

Claim Done is not a law firm and does not give legal advice. This page is general information. For a complex or high-value matter, speak to a lawyer or a free community legal centre.