Knowledge/Accreditation and audits/Victorian Energy Upgrades marketing rules, and the two bans
Victorian Energy Upgrades marketing rules, and the two bans
Under the Victorian Energy Upgrades (VEU) scheme, cold-call telemarketing has been banned since 1 May 2024 and doorknocking since 1 August 2024. And the code of conduct in the regulations says wear an ID card, don't contact anyone who's asked you not to, and don't buy or take contact details someone else got from a cold call.
- Telemarketing banned
- 1 May 2024Statutory Rule 26/2024, regs 5, 7, 8
- Doorknocking banned
- 1 Aug 2024same rule, regs 6, 9
- Code of conduct
- reg 9B, Schedule 6set out in the regulations
- Penalty
- 60 / 240penalty units, individual / company, s14H
When did the two bans start?
Both bans come from one set of regulations, the Victorian Energy Efficiency Target Amendment (Prohibition on Telemarketing and Door-to-door Sales) Regulations 2024 (Statutory Rule S.R. No. 26/2024, made 23 April 2024). They started in two stages.
| What | Banned from | Regulations |
|---|---|---|
| Cold-call telemarketing | 1 May 2024 | regs 5, 7 and 8 |
| Door-to-door sales | 1 August 2024 | regs 6 and 9 |
What does the code of conduct actually say?
It sits in reg 9B and Schedule 6 of the regulations. The clauses are short, so here they are one by one.
| Clause | What it says |
|---|---|
| 9(1) | Wear an identification card |
| 11A | Don't contact anyone who has asked not to be contacted |
| 11B | No lead generation or marketing over the phone. Don't let an employee, agent or contractor do it for you. And don't buy or take contact details that someone else got from a phone call |
| 12 | The same again for turning up at a home or business, including not buying or taking contact details someone else got from a doorknock |
| 13A(1) | Tell the person the VEU scheme is voluntary |
| 13A(2) | Tell them about the code of conduct, and give them a copy if they ask |
Bought
leads
count
You can't buy a lead that came from a banned call
Clauses 11B and 12 don't just stop you doorknocking and cold-calling. They stop you buying or taking contact details someone else got from a phone call or a doorknock.
So buying leads from a generator who cold-called them puts you in breach, even though you never picked up the phone. And you can't let an employee, agent or contractor do it for you either.
If you buy leads at all, where they came from is now your compliance problem. Ask your supplier in writing exactly how they were generated, because clauses 11B and 12 make buying a cold-called lead a breach in its own right.
Why take these rules seriously?
The two enforcement cases the Essential Services Commission (ESC) announced on 27 March 2026, against Shantey and Ecosaver, both involved doorknocking and telemarketing on top of faked photo evidence. Conduct rules aren't the soft end of this scheme. They're part of what gets accreditations cancelled.
And if you run ads, these are the rules that hit your marketing, not your installs. Under clause 13A(1) you have to actually tell people the scheme is voluntary. Not denying it isn't enough.
Working out whether to get accredited?
It's a real decision with real numbers on both sides, and most of the people offering advice make money whichever way you go.
Kevin has no stake in which way you go. Ask him.
Who this is for: small and medium HVAC contractors in Victoria. If you're a homeowner after a rebate or a repair, you need a licensed contractor, not us, and yours can point you the right way.
Related
- Accredited person, scheme participant, or neitherThe VEU has three legal roles, and yours decides who ends up in court. Most HVAC install businesses are scheme participants, not accredited persons.
- How to become a VEU accredited personEvery step, fee and deadline. $3,000 to apply, $1,000 a year to renew, a decision in 20 business days, and it only covers activities you're approved for.
- The real cost of accreditation isn't the feeYou pay for your own audit every two years, keep records for six years, do yearly CPD from 30 March, and answer for everyone working under you.
- Self-accredit, or work under an aggregator?Nobody has published a break-even point, so here's what self-accrediting costs, who wears the loss when a job fails, and what we'd want to know first.
Review date: 1 January 2027. Figures in this area change without much notice and this page carries some that will go stale. Every number above is dated and sourced so you can check it yourself. If you find something out of date here, tell us and we will fix it.