Insurance Make-Safe / Emergency Repair SWMS
Safe work method statement for emergency plumbing make-safe works following storm, flood, or fire damage including entry into potentially structurally compromised buildings and hazardous material controls.
SWMS variants reference your state’s WHS legislation. Instant download after payment.
Insurance make-safe plumbing covers the urgent making-safe of plumbing, drainage and water damage following an insurance event — responding to a burst pipe, flood, storm or escape of water, stopping the water, making the situation safe, and carrying out temporary or permanent repairs to limit further damage. It combines the urgency of the make-safe response with the hazards of water damage: water and electrical hazards, the potential for contaminated water, structural and slip hazards from the water damage, and the biological hazards where drainage is involved. This document is written on the basis that insurance make-safe plumbing is carried out by a licensed plumber with the water-electrical, contaminated-water, structural and biological controls in place.
Insurance make-safe plumbing is carried out to the relevant parts of AS/NZS 3500, responding urgently to make the situation safe and limit further damage. The water and electrical hazard where water and electricity meet, the contaminated water in floods and escapes, the structural and slip hazards of water damage, and the biological hazards of drainage are the considerations, alongside the urgency of the response. This document coordinates the water-electrical, contaminated-water, structural, biological and urgency controls so the make-safe is carried out safely.
Hazards identified
9 hazards covered, sorted by priority.
Electrocution where water has reached electrical installations
Infection and contamination from contaminated flood water
Structural collapse and slips from the water damage
Infection from drainage in the water damage
Injury from rushed or unsafe work under time pressure
Water and pressure release from the failed system
Slips, trips and hazards in the water-damaged area
Risk to and from occupants in the damaged property
Musculoskeletal injury from the make-safe equipment and work
Control measures
Hierarchy-of-controls order: elimination → substitution → isolation → engineering → administrative → PPE.
- 1Administrative: where water has reached electrical installations, treat the area as an electrical hazard, do not enter water near electrical installations until the electrical supply is isolated, and have a licensed electrician confirm electrical safety.
- 2Administrative: stop the water and make the situation safe — isolating the water and the failed system — and carry out temporary or permanent repair to limit further damage.
- 3Administrative: where the water is contaminated or drainage is involved, manage the contaminated-water and biological hazard with hygiene controls, protective clothing and washing facilities.
- 4Administrative: assess the structural and slip hazards of the water damage, and do not enter or work in a structurally unsafe area.
- 5Administrative: despite the urgency, carry out the work safely and not rushed or unsafe, applying the controls and not bypassing safety for speed.
- 6Engineering: manage the stored water and pressure of the failed system, and manage slips, trips and hazards in the damaged area.
- 7Administrative: coordinate with occupants in the damaged property, and use mechanical aids and correct technique for the make-safe work.
- 8Administrative: ensure the work is carried out and certified by an appropriately licensed plumber, drainer or gasfitter under the relevant state or territory plumbing and gasfitting licensing scheme, with the relevant competencies and a compliance certificate issued where required.
- 9Administrative: all workers must hold a valid White Card (General Construction Induction Training, CPCCWHS1001) where the work is construction work, with the plumbing, gasfitting, confined space and any other competencies required for the work.
- 10Administrative: conduct a pre-start toolbox talk covering the day's work, identified hazards, isolations, required PPE and emergency procedures, and record attendance in the consultation section.
- 11Administrative: consult workers and any health and safety representatives on the work and its risks, record the consultation, and keep this document available at the workplace.
- 12PPE: eye protection to AS/NZS 1337.1, hearing protection where required, gloves appropriate to the task, high-visibility clothing, and Class I or Class II safety footwear with protective toecap to AS/NZS 2210.3.
- 13Administrative: review and update this SWMS whenever the work scope changes, after any incident or near miss, when a worker or health and safety representative raises a concern, when new hazards are identified, or at minimum every 12 months.
Applicable Codes of Practice
The water services standard for the water supply, backflow protection and connection.
The sanitary plumbing and drainage standard for the sanitary and drainage work.
Electrical safety and isolation for any electrical work, carried out by a licensed electrician.
The risk management process and hierarchy of controls applied to the hazards of the work.
Who this is for
- →Licensed plumbers carrying out insurance make-safe work.
- →Plumbing and restoration businesses responding to insurance events.
- →Emergency and make-safe response plumbers.
- →Insurers, property owners and PCBUs requiring make-safe.
- →PCBU safety managers and supervisors coordinating the water-electrical, contaminated-water and structural controls.
What you receive
- ✓Editable Microsoft Word document (.docx) fully compatible with Microsoft Word 2016 and newer, Google Docs, and LibreOffice Writer.
- ✓Title page with editable fields for PCBU name, ABN, site address, project name, principal contractor details, and document revision date.
- ✓Hazard register with the insurance make-safe plumbing hazards — each with a documented consequence, inherent risk rating on a 5x5 likelihood-consequence matrix, hierarchy-of-control measures, and residual risk rating.
- ✓Insurance make-safe prompts referencing AS/NZS 3500, a water-electrical and isolation section, a contaminated-water and biological section, and a structural and make-safe-repair record.
- ✓Licensing, competency and permit prompts for the relevant plumbing, gasfitting, confined space and specialist work, and a respiratory protection selection and fit-test record per AS/NZS 1715 where relevant.
- ✓Worker consultation record per the model WHS Act consultation duty and a worker sign-on register (blank, expandable).
- ✓Applicable legislation and Codes of Practice schedule pre-populated for the model WHS jurisdiction with a state-variance reference table covering the harmonised states, plus Victoria.
- ✓Emergency procedure template and a revision log.
Worked example
A licensed plumber is engaged to make safe a property following a burst pipe and escape of water. Because water has reached electrical installations, the area is treated as an electrical hazard, the plumber does not enter water near electrical installations until the electrical supply is isolated, and a licensed electrician confirms electrical safety. The water is stopped and the situation made safe by isolating the water and the failed system, and a temporary repair carried out to limit further damage. Because the water is contaminated, the contaminated-water and biological hazard is managed with hygiene controls, protective clothing and washing facilities. The structural and slip hazards of the water damage are assessed, and the plumber does not enter or work in a structurally unsafe area. Despite the urgency, the work is carried out safely and not rushed, applying the controls. The stored water and pressure of the failed system are managed, and slips, trips and hazards in the damaged area managed. The work is coordinated with the occupants. The make-safe is completed, and the records retained.
Related legislation
- Model Work Health and Safety Act — primary duty of care; the duty to consult workers; the reckless-conduct offence; and notifiable-incident provisions, as enacted in each jurisdiction.
- Model Work Health and Safety Regulations — Section 291 high risk construction work and the SWMS preparation and review duties, and the confined space, excavation, demolition and electrical provisions where applicable, as enacted in each jurisdiction.
- The relevant plumbing and drainage standards AS/NZS 3500 (Parts 0–5), AS/NZS 5601.1:2022 for gas, the pressure piping and pressure equipment standards, the AS 4032 valve standards, and the hazardous chemicals, demolition and asbestos requirements, are called up by the relevant legislation, together with the relevant network utility, insurer and site requirements.
- Plumbing, drainage and gasfitting work is licensed under each state and territory's plumbing and gasfitting licensing scheme, with the relevant competencies for the specialist work, and compliance certification required for notifiable work; electrical work is carried out by a licensed electrician.
- Victoria operates under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 and the Occupational Health and Safety Regulations 2017, with the high risk construction work, confined space, excavation and demolition provisions applying in place of the model instruments.
Frequently asked questions
What is insurance make-safe plumbing?
Insurance make-safe plumbing is the urgent making-safe of plumbing, drainage and water damage following an insurance event — a burst pipe, flood, storm or escape of water — stopping the water, making the situation safe, and carrying out temporary or permanent repairs to limit further damage. It combines the urgency of the response with the hazards of water damage.
What is the water and electrical hazard?
Where water has reached electrical installations, there is a serious electrocution hazard, so the area is treated as an electrical hazard, the plumber does not enter water near electrical installations until the electrical supply is isolated, and a licensed electrician confirms electrical safety. The water-electrical hazard is a critical consideration in water damage.
How is contaminated water managed?
Where the water is contaminated — as in floods and escapes — or drainage is involved, the contaminated-water and biological hazard is managed with hygiene controls, protective clothing and washing facilities. Managing the contaminated-water and biological hazard protects the worker during the make-safe response.
How is the urgency managed safely?
Despite the urgency of the make-safe response, the work is carried out safely and not rushed or unsafe, applying the controls and not bypassing safety for speed. Carrying out the urgent work safely, without bypassing the controls, is important because the time pressure of a make-safe response can otherwise lead to unsafe work.
Who carries out insurance make-safe?
Insurance make-safe plumbing is licensed plumbing work carried out by a licensed plumber to the relevant parts of AS/NZS 3500, with the water-electrical, contaminated-water, structural and biological controls, and electrical safety confirmed by a licensed electrician. The situation is made safe and further damage limited.