Have a saying, “Swim between the flags”. The same applies to choosing a building practitioner, regardless of whether a builder, a surveyor or an engineer.  The building regulator in your state maintains a FREE web-based registration register. For instance,  the Queensland Building Commission or the Victorian  Building Authority.  You can simply type in a name & check their credentials on-line. Here is how you do a FULL registration check,  • is it the right type of work, builder, not a plumber • are there any limitations, lets say on the height • are there any extra conditions, like here for fire assessment • do the dates match? renewal or expiry date • is there a chance to do a disciplinary history check? • Do it there and then if you have the opportunity , like in Queensland I just completed a national YouTube series about fake building practitioner registrations, fake insurance, and fake certificates of occupancy. We want you to swim between the flags to be safe. Check their creds! Building Consumer Council   www.buildingcc.com.au