Council Just Issued a Fix-It Order on Your Line Marking. Here's Exactly What to Do.

The letter arrived on a Tuesday. Six pages from council's planning enforcement team, referencing three specific clauses of the local planning scheme and attaching photographs taken during a site inspection the previous Thursday.

The property manager had been managing the complex for nine years. She'd never received anything like it. She read it twice, then called us.

'I don't even know what half of this means,' she said.

It meant her carpark had non-compliant accessible parking bays, missing directional marking, and line markings in a condition the council inspector had formally noted as 'insufficient to provide adequate delineation.' She had 21 days to respond with a rectification plan, and 60 days to complete the works.

We walked her through it. She had 54 days to spare when we submitted her completed rectification notice.

Here's the process, start to finish.

Fix-it order on your desk? Call James on 0468 069 002 right now — we'll walk you through it and quote the rectification work same day.

First: Read the Notice Carefully and Identify Exactly What's Cited

Council fix-it orders (formally called Compliance Notices or Enforcement Notices depending on the state) vary in their terminology and structure, but they all contain the same core information:

• The specific non-conformance: what exactly is wrong, typically referenced to a planning scheme clause, building regulation, or Australian Standard.
• The evidence: often photographs or measurements taken during the inspection. Read these carefully — they tell you exactly what the inspector found.
• The response timeframe: usually 14-28 days to submit a rectification plan, separate from the timeframe to actually complete the works.
• The completion timeframe: the date by which works must be complete. Often 30-90 days from the notice date.
• The consequence of non-compliance: typically a penalty infringement notice, a compliance order, or referral to the planning tribunal.

Write down the key dates on day one. Missing the response timeframe — even if you're actively working on the rectification — escalates the matter unnecessarily.

Second: Understand What the Cited Standard Actually Requires

Most line marking-related fix-it orders cite one or more of the following standards:

• AS/NZS 2890.1:2021: off-street carpark design, including bay dimensions, aisle widths, and line marking requirements.
• AS/NZS 2890.6:2009: accessible parking facilities, including bay width (3,200mm), shared zone dimensions (2,400mm), and required markings.
• AS/NZS 1428.1:2009: design for access and mobility, which covers paths of travel from parking to building entries.
• Local planning scheme provisions: parking provisions in the local planning scheme that specify the required number and type of bays for the facility use.

The notice should tell you which standard is cited. If it doesn't, or if it's unclear, call the council enforcement officer named on the notice and ask them to clarify what specific provision has been breached and what compliance looks like. They will tell you. It's in everyone's interest.

Third: Get a Qualified Assessment and Quote Promptly

Don't sit on a fix-it order for a week before acting. The response timeframe starts from the date of the notice. Day one is the day you received it, regardless of when you open it.

Call us — or another contractor who can document compliance — and get a site assessment within the first few days. The assessment needs to:

• Confirm the extent of the non-conformance (sometimes notices cite partial issues and there are additional non-conformances that need addressing simultaneously)
• Determine whether the fix is a marking issue only or whether there are underlying dimensional issues requiring layout changes
• Produce a fixed-price quote for the complete rectification scope
• Confirm a schedule that fits within the council's completion timeframe

Fourth: Submit Your Rectification Plan to Council

Most councils require a written rectification plan — a brief description of what's being done, by whom, and by when — before they'll acknowledge the notice as being addressed. This is your Day 1-14 task (or whatever the response timeframe specifies).

Your rectification plan can be as simple as a one-page letter that includes:

• Acknowledgement that you've received the notice and understood the non-conformances cited
• A description of the proposed works (e.g., 'remarking of four accessible bays to AS/NZS 2890.6:2009 specification, including corrected dimensions and shared zone hatching')
• The name of the contractor completing the works
• The scheduled completion date (within the council's required timeframe)
• A contact person for the council to follow up with

Attach the contractor quote. Submit by the response deadline. Keep a copy with the date-stamped submission confirmation.

Fifth: Complete the Works and Document Everything

When the marking work is done, you need a documentation package that demonstrates compliance. Not just photos of the floor — documented evidence that the work meets the cited standard.

We provide every client with a rectification documentation package containing:

• Completion photographs of every non-conformance cited in the notice, showing the rectified condition
• Measured dimension verification confirming the rectified dimensions meet the cited standard
• Compliance certification referencing the specific standard and sections
• Material data sheets for products used
• Name, qualifications, and contact details of the contractor

Sixth: Submit Your Rectification Notice to Council

Once the works are complete, you submit a rectification notice to council confirming completion and attaching your documentation package. This is usually a brief letter stating that the works have been completed in accordance with the rectification plan, attaching the contractor's compliance documentation.

In most cases, councils accept this submission without a follow-up inspection — particularly when the documentation is thorough and professionally prepared. Occasionally they'll send an inspector for a quick visual check. With proper documentation and quality work, that's not a concern.

A Note on Escalation: What Happens If You Don't Respond

Council enforcement officers follow a standard escalation process when notices aren't responded to. Understanding it helps calibrate the urgency.

Non-response to a Compliance Notice within the stated timeframe typically results in a formal Compliance Order — a binding legal direction to complete specified works by a specified date. Failure to comply with a Compliance Order can result in penalty infringement notices (fines), referral to the planning tribunal, and ultimately the council engaging contractors to perform the works and recovering costs from the property owner.

At that last stage, you lose control of who does the work, what specification they use, and what it costs. The council's cost recovery process is not cheap.

Respond promptly. Complete promptly. It's always cheaper and less stressful than escalation.

Different States, Different Terminology

Fix-it orders come under different legislative frameworks and are called different things in different states. The core process is the same but the specific legislation, penalties, and timeframes vary:

• Victoria: Compliance Notices under the Planning and Environment Act 1987. Planning enforcement sits with local councils.
• NSW: Penalty Notices and Orders under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979. Similar council-administered process.
• Queensland: Enforcement Notices under the Planning Act 2016.
• WA, SA, TAS, ACT, NT: State-specific planning legislation applies. Core process and timeframes broadly similar.

If you're unsure of the specific process for your state, the enforcement officer named on the notice is the right person to ask. They deal with this every day and they're generally straightforward to work with when you're engaging constructively.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can we dispute the notice if we think our markings are actually compliant?

Yes. If you believe the inspector has measured incorrectly or cited the wrong standard, you can formally dispute the notice through the council's review process. In practice, inspectors measure carefully and the measurements are usually right. The cost of a formal dispute — your time, potentially legal advice — often exceeds the cost of simply rectifying the issue. We'll give you our honest assessment of whether what's cited is legitimate when we do the site assessment.

The notice was issued to the previous owner. Are we still responsible?

Generally yes, for planning compliance. A compliance notice runs with the property, not the owner. The previous owner's failure to act doesn't extinguish the council's ability to enforce. Get legal advice if you've recently purchased a property with an outstanding compliance issue — there may be recourse against the vendor, but the council enforcement process continues regardless.

Council hasn't followed up since we received the notice six months ago. Do we still need to act?

Yes. An unanswered notice is an outstanding compliance issue. Council enforcement resources are finite and some notices don't get followed up quickly. But they don't expire, they don't go away, and an outstanding notice creates problems if you ever want to sell, refinance, or do any further development work on the property. Fix it. Get the documentation. File it.

Can you provide documentation specifically formatted for council submission?

Yes. We format our compliance documentation to include all information typically required for council submissions in Victoria, NSW, Queensland, and South Australia. We've had documentation accepted without follow-up inspections in each of those states. James can talk you through what format will work best for your specific council. Call 0468 069 002.

Fix-it order on your desk? Don't let it sit. Call James on 0468 069 002 — assessment and quote same day, rectification documentation for council included.

Line Marking Australia. Since 2009. 5,000+ projects. VicRoads approved. $20M public liability. $10M professional indemnity. Fixed prices. Full documentation on every job. Call James: 0468 069 002.

Internal Links for CMS

• [Carpark Line Marking](/services/carpark-line-marking/)
• [Accessible Parking Line Marking](/services/accessible-parking-line-marking/)
• [What Happens When Carpark Fails Council](/blog/what-happens-carpark-fails-council-inspection/)
• [DDA Compliance Checklist](/blog/dda-compliance-checklist-accessible-parking-tgsi-kerb-ramps/)
• [AS/NZS 2890.6 Guide](/blog/as-nzs-2890-6-accessible-parking-compliance-requirements/)
• [Safety Audit Guide](/blog/get-line-marking-done-before-safety-audit/)
• [Line Marking Melbourne](/state/melbourne/)
• [Line Marking Victoria](/state/vic/)

Related reading: What Happens When Your Carpark Fails Inspection | Carpark Regulations Guide