Pool owners have been given extra time to get online and register their pools without penalty after Local Government Minister Don Page asked councils not to impose fines on people who have not registered their pools.
The extension – to 19 November – comes after some people encountered delays on the pools registry as over 40,000 pool owners successfully registered their pools in a 24-hour period before the deadline officially expired.
This raised the number of pools successfully registered so far to over 200,000 through the website www.swimmingpoolregister.nsw.gov.au.
Member for Davidson, Jonathan O’Dea said, “I urge people to take advantage of this extension and register their pools, especially as the weather heats up and the swimming season gets under way.
“Giving people more time to register does not mean letting them off the hook.
“I also remind pool owners they have a responsibility to make sure their pool is safe at all times. With your help, we can together make NSW ‘pool safe’,” Mr O’Dea said.
Mr Page reminded pool owners that although the deadline passed at midnight on October 29, the register remains open to register existing and new pools and said that people can – and should - still register their pools.
“The Division of Local Government, which administers the pools registry, has informed me that there have been technical problems with the register because of the large number of people attempting to register their pools at the last minute,’’ Mr Page said.
“This exercise was never about fines but always about safety, so I’m sure people will agree that issuing penalty notices would not be appropriate under the current circumstances.
“I am sympathetic to people who have been frustrated by recent delays on the site and I urge pool owners to be patient and to keep trying, bearing in mind they now have until 19 November to register without being fined.”
