Pool owners face bill for safety sign

A new national standard for water safety would require a black-and-white warning sign for every door that leads to a private swimming pool, spa pool or hot tub.

Standards New Zealand and local councils drafted the standard, which aims to help prevent child drownings at home with "layers of protection".

It also aims to cut out confusion about pool fencing requirements.

The authors say the standard is "user friendly" and avoids imposing expensive compliance costs on the country's 50,000 pool owners.

One requirement would be for pool, spa pool or hot pool owners to buy and fit water safety signs for doors leading directly to their pool.

"The reason for that is to remind homeowners or visitors to dwellings of their responsibility, should doors form part of a fence, to close them," said Ian Godfrey, chairman of the standards development committee.

Auckland councils already issue small signs but the standard ones will have to be bought. The price is yet to be determined.

Mr Godfrey said safety concerns outweighed aesthetic considerations.

"But the sign standards are based on the American standard. They're not overly intrusive."

The sign would have to be 1m to 1.5m off the ground, within 30cm of the door's latch and have clearly visible black or white lettering; the size of the lettering would depend on the safe viewing distance.

But Pool Owners Action Group president Gary Osborne said the signs were just another unnecessary cost.

"They're putting a lot of people through extra expenses.

"Many people have already spent thousands to bring their pools up to scratch; Waitakere City Council have been particularly overzealous in their interpretations.

"You can't legislate absolutely to stop accidents. Most drownings occur not through inadequate fencing, but through inadequate supervision."

Mr Godfrey said the standard is more flexible on fencing types and materials than the present law.

Specifications would match products that are available off the shelf.

The standard would introduce a three-yearly inspection regime for councils, which is what Auckland's councils do and charge $70 to $95 for.

If the standard is adopted - possibly by the end of the year - new pools will have to be built to its requirements.

Existing pools will have five years to come up to scratch.

The standard should encourage people to seek building consents, said Mr Godfrey.

"Of the 5000 spa pools going into Auckland homes a year, only 120 have building consents. It means there are a lot of spa pools out there where children probably are at risk and the home owner is at risk as well if there is a tragedy.

"They are criminally liable and the police do pursue people after those events."

The overseas concept of "layers of protection" will apply to existing pools only and works on the three Ds - delay, detect and deter.

"Where we have a pool close to the house that's inappropriate for fencing off, the standard allows you to use automatic door closers, door alarms, movement alarms around the pool and power-driven pool covers of a specific type.

"You are giving people time to react if a child gets into the pool area."

The standard is being sponsored by the Department of Building and Housing and Water Safety New Zealand.

It is intended to update the 18-year-old Fencing of Swimming Pools Act and remove confusion caused by the differences between the act and the Building Code.

The standard is open to public comment until August 11.

DANGER AREAS

* Between 1980 and 2005, 3993 people drowned in New Zealand; 386 were between one and four years old, with the most common site the domestic swimming pool (136) and a further 17 being spa pool deaths.

Source: Water Safety New Zealand