Companies permitted to buy COES for electrical workers

More than 500 companies will now be able to buy Certificates of Electrical Safety (COES) on behalf of their licensed electrical workers (LEW).

These changes by Energy Safe Victoria (ESV) will remove the bureaucratic burden for LEWs having to purchase COES at their own expense before seeking reimbursement from their employer.

This consequently helps LEWs comply with their requirement to issue COES for the electrical work they perform.

ESV, Victoria’s independent energy safety regulator, is responsible for the sale and management oversight of COES, requiring LEWs to attest that the electrical work they perform complies in all respects with the Electricity Safety Act 1998, the Electricity Safety (General) Regulations 2019 and applicable standards.

Companies and businesses eligible to purchase COES on behalf of their employees include:

• a manufacturer of goods or products that employs LEWs to maintain the manufacturing facility, on one or more sites owned or occupied by the employer;
• an owner/occupier of residential, commercial and or industrial properties that employs LEWs, in the regular course of business, to maintain the owned/occupied sites only for the owner/occupier;
• a company that provides other primary (non-electrical) services and employs tradespersons or others who hold Restricted Electrical Licences to perform disconnect/reconnect of appliances or equipment ancillary to the person’s primary trade (eg, plumbing — hot water service or air conditioner company).
   

To register, companies must open a user account in ESVConnect. From here, they will be able to register as an ‘Employer of Electrical Workers’ and purchase certificates for their employees’ use.

Employers will also be able to download tax invoices, keep track of certificate use, access certificates and manage their employer operator, licensed electrical workers list and site address list.

All licence applications, renewals of electrical licences and electrical contractor registrations must be completed in ESVConnect.

“ESV is making it even easier for Victorian companies and their employees to fulfil their safety obligations,” said Energy Safe Victoria CEO, Leanne Hughson.

“By allowing companies to purchase COES, electricians have more time to focus on carrying out electrical work safely.”

“Through this improvement, more than 500 employers will be able to provide for more than 4000 licensed workers each year.”

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/Tomasz Zajda