Restumping, insurance and warranties: what actually protects you
Foundation work involves real money and your biggest asset. Here's the protection landscape in Victoria, in plain English.
Does home insurance cover stump failure?
Generally no — gradual deterioration (rot, settlement, soil movement over time) is excluded from standard home policies as wear and tear. Sudden events (a burst main washing out footings, storm damage) may be covered. This is why proactive restumping is a maintenance decision, not an insurance claim waiting to happen.
Home Warranty insurance (the big one — new rules from 1 July 2026)
Victoria's insurance scheme changed on 1 July 2026: for new contracts, the old domestic building insurance (DBI) is replaced by the mandatory, first-resort Home Warranty scheme, administered by the Building and Plumbing Commission (BPC). It applies to domestic building work valued over $20,000, the builder pays the premium before taking your deposit, and cover extends up to $400,000. (Contracts signed before 1 July 2026 stay under the old DBI rules, which applied over $16,000.) Many full restumps cross the threshold — if yours does and nobody mentions Home Warranty cover, that's a compliance failure. Walk.
Contractor guarantees
Quality restumpers back structural work with written guarantees of 10 years or more. Read the words: does it cover materials AND workmanship? Is it transferable to a new owner when you sell (valuable)? What voids it (e.g. later drainage neglect)? A guarantee you can't read before signing isn't a guarantee.
The paperwork file that protects you
- Fixed written quote with stump count and materials
- Building permit and engineering computations
- Home Warranty insurance confirmation (where applicable — over $20,000)
- Public liability certificate of currency
- Final inspection/completion certification
- Written guarantee
Six documents. A professional produces them without being asked twice; keep them with your title documents — the next buyer's conveyancer will love you.