The Dial Before You Dig Service Guidelines for Victoria were developed after significant stakeholder consultation and endorsed by the Civil Contractors Federation, Municipal Association of Victoria, EnergySafe Victoria and WorkSafe Victoria.

We are encouraged and grateful for the efforts of our partners that went into the production of this document. The Service Guidelines were developed to set the standards which we expect everyone to meet when dealing with the safety of those who work near underground assets and the protection of those assets.

The new safety guidelines help to protect the lives of Victorians and prevent damage to essential underground services. They were officially launched on Friday 12th June, 2009, by the Victorian Energy and Resources Minister Peter Batchelor.

"Careless excavation threatens lives and livelihoods and can result in millions of dollars worth of damage to services, such as gas and water pipes, electricity and communication cables," Mr Batchelor said. 

“New Dial Before You Dig Service Guidelines, endorsed by Energy Safe Victoria and WorkSafe Victoria, will assist excavators to make informed decisions before they begin to dig and reduce the risk of injury, damage or disruption.”

Mr Batchelor said the guidelines outlined:

• The responsibilities of people and companies planning to dig, including excavators, planners and engineers;
• The responsibilities of asset owners, including water, gas and electricity companies; and
• Information about Dial Before You Dig in Victoria
  and the service it provides.

“The guidelines were developed following significant stakeholder consultation,” Mr Batchelor said. 

Energy Safe Victoria’s Director of Energy Safety Ken Gardner also advocated that the location of pipes and cables underground was not easy to predict.

“They are often laid at varying depths on both public and private property,” Mr Gardner said.

“Unsuspecting diggers can very quickly find themselves cutting essential services to their own home or in some cases to entire neighbourhoods, towns or cities.”

WorkSafe Victoria Executive Director John Merritt said the guidelines would help reduce the risk of damaging incidents that could cause injury or worse, fatalities.

Dial Before You Dig is a free referral service available to professional contractors, underground asset owners and individuals undertaking excavation. It provides information that can assist them excavate securely and safely.

Victorian State Manager for Dial Before You Dig Mark Binks expects that with the release of the new Service Guidelines, individuals and organisations will operate in a safer environment and that the Guidelines will reflect Dial Before You Dig’s greater influence as an authority figure in the industry.

DBYD aims to provide all excavators with the best possible access to plans and information direct from asset owners of underground services using our national enquiry service. Our overall purpose is to educate and promote the importance of safe digging practices to the excavation community and to develop our membership base to include all asset owners of underground services. These Service Guidelines will ensure the present and future safety of all excavators and reduce the risk of damage or disruption to the thousands of kilometres of underground networks that carry essential services to households and businesses every day.