Choose a fit-out builder by checking what they've built, who does their licensed work, what their insurance covers and how their company has fared, then ask the questions below at the site meeting. Most of the checks are free, and they take an evening.
This guide is for owners with a lease signed or close and a few builders' names on a list.
Builder, shopfitter or fit-out company: who do you need?
The three names overlap in Sydney, so the name on the van tells you less than the list of work. Jobs and Skills Australia describes shopfitters as the trade that makes and installs shopfronts, counters, cabinets and display cases, and that schedules the electricians, plumbers and painters a fit-out needs. A builder or fit-out company runs the same trades, often with its own carpenters. Some design as well, which changes how you compare them (see free design from fit-out companies).
Match the firm to the job. An optical store full of display joinery suits a shopfitter. A café with a kitchen, exhaust, a grease trap and new power needs someone who has coordinated those services before, whatever they're called.
Does a fit-out builder need a licence in NSW?
Not for the building work itself. The NSW builder's licence covers residential building work, meaning work on a dwelling, such as a house, duplex or flat. Walls, ceilings, joinery, tiling and painting in a shop, café or office sit outside it.
The trades are different. Electrical wiring, plumbing, drainage, gasfitting, and air-conditioning and refrigeration work need a licence in any building, whatever the job costs. On a fit-out that's most of the services. The free NSW licence check shows each holder's name, categories and expiry, plus any cancellation, suspension, public warning or penalty notice.
This is where the word "licensed" misleads. Of the 30 Sydney fit-out builders' websites we read in October 2026, 15 said they were licensed, and only three mentioned that their trades or subcontractors are licensed. A builder's licence number on a website is a licence for home building. Search it anyway, because the check shows the holder's record, but it won't tell you who will wire your switchboard.
The rules could change. A building law passed in August 2026 sets up one registration scheme for certifiers, engineers, designers and builders. It starts once its regulations are made, and Building Commission NSW is consulting on those through 2026 and 2027, so check the position when you hire.
What insurance should a fit-out builder have?
Four policies matter, and you want a certificate for each one that applies. "Fully insured" tells you little: of the same 30 websites, seven said only that or something similar, and one gave a cover amount.
| Insurance | What it covers | What to ask for |
|---|---|---|
| Public liability | Injury to people, and damage to other people's property, caused by the work | A certificate of currency. Centres often set a minimum: one national centre landlord's 2025 fit-out criteria ask for at least $20 million |
| Contract works | Loss of or damage to the work and materials during the build, such as fire or theft | A certificate covering your site for the whole build |
| Workers compensation | The builder's employees if they're hurt on site | A certificate from the insurer, and how subcontractors are covered |
| Professional indemnity | Claims about design or advice | Only where the builder designs or changes the design |
Workers compensation matters to you directly. NSW Government guidance warns that if an employer on your job isn't insured, you could in some circumstances be liable for the costs of a claim, and icare notes that contractors can count as workers even if you didn't hire them directly.
One safety net is missing. Home building compensation cover, which protects home owners when a builder goes broke, is a scheme for residential work. A fit-out has nothing like it, so the company checks below carry more weight.
How to read a certificate of currency
Read it against your contract:
- It comes from the insurer. A NSW Government trust's guide for hirers asks for the insurer's certificate rather than the broker's.
- The insured name matches the company on your quote and contract, down to the ABN.
- The period covers your build dates, with room for delays.
- The business description covers building or fit-out work.
- The limit meets what your lease or the centre asks for.
- The excess is shown.
If anything doesn't match, ring the insurer on the number printed on it.
How do you check a builder's company and track record?
Start with the public registers. They're free, apart from one $10 extract.
- ABN Lookup shows whether the ABN is active or cancelled, the business type, GST registration and past trading names. The name should match the quote, the contract, the insurance certificates and every invoice.
- ASIC's company register shows the company type, registration date and documents lodged, at no cost. A current company extract names the directors for $10 (ASIC fees carry no GST).
- ASIC Published Notices lists insolvency and external administration notices, including winding-up applications. A notice stays up even if the application was dismissed, so ask before you draw a conclusion.
- ASIC's banned and disqualified register shows people disqualified from managing a company.
ASIC also lists the warning signs of phoenix activity, where a failing company's business moves to a new company and the debts stay behind. On a builder, look for a company only months old with a name close to one that failed, the same director or the same website.
ASIC's own figures show why this matters. Construction has more company failures than any other industry: in 2025-26, 3,472 construction companies entered external administration for the first time, 24.5% of the Australian total. In NSW it was 1,540, about 30 a week. A builder that fails halfway leaves you paying rent on a half-built shop.
Then talk to past clients. The NSW Government's questions for references make a good script: was the job finished on time, did it stay close to the quoted cost, were the trades properly supervised, was defective work fixed promptly, and would they hire the builder again. Visit one fit-out that's trading and ask how variations were handled.
What questions should you ask a fit-out builder?
Print these questions to ask a fit-out builder and take them to the site meeting. A builder who has done the work before will answer most of them without looking anything up.
Their work and their people
| Ask the builder | A good answer sounds like |
|---|---|
| Can I see two or three fit-outs like mine from the last two years? | "Here are the addresses. This one is trading, so go and have a look." |
| Can I call those owners? | Names and numbers, offered without hesitation |
| Who will run my site each day? | A named supervisor, and how many other jobs that person has on |
| Which work do your own people do, and what do you subcontract? | A clear split, such as their carpenters on walls and ceilings, and named subcontractors for electrical, plumbing and air-conditioning |
Licences and insurance
| Ask the builder | A good answer sounds like |
|---|---|
| Who are the electrician, plumber, gasfitter and air-conditioning contractor, and what are their licence numbers? | Names and numbers you can check that evening |
| Can you send your certificates of currency before I sign? | Public liability, contract works and workers compensation, in the name of the company you'll sign with |
| Do you design any of it? | If yes, professional indemnity insurance too. If no: "We build to your designer's drawings and raise questions in writing." |
Price, contract and program
| Ask the builder | A good answer sounds like |
|---|---|
| Which drawings is your price based on? | The drawing set and revision, plus a list of what the drawings leave open |
| What's excluded, and what are the provisional sums? | A written list, with an amount against each provisional sum (see how to compare fit-out quotes) |
| How are variations priced and approved? | "In writing, with the cost and the extra time, before we do the work." |
| What deposit do you need, and when are the payments? | A modest deposit, then payments tied to stages of finished work |
| What contract will we sign? | A written contract, ideally a standard form with changes marked (see fit-out contracts, variations and progress payments) |
| How does the program reach my opening date? | A written program naming the long-lead items, such as shopfront glass, joinery and kitchen equipment, and what "complete" means |
| What's the hardest part of this site? | Something specific from the walk-through: the exhaust route, the grease trap, a step at the entry |
On site and at handover
| Ask the builder | A good answer sounds like |
|---|---|
| Who appoints the certifier? | "You do. We'll work with whoever you choose." |
| Have you worked under a shopping centre's fit-out guide? | They know the inductions, the insurance certificates the centre wants, after-hours noisy work and the centre's final inspection |
| What happens if you find asbestos? | Work stops in that area, a licensed removalist takes it out, and it's priced as a variation |
| Which certificates will I get at handover? | Each trade's compliance certificate (the electrician's with your email on it), plus warranties and manuals |
| How long is the defects period, and who do I call? | A period written into the contract, and a named person |
| Who cleans the site? | Regular cleaning and a final clean before handover, in the contract |
The hardest-part question tells you the most. At Sushi Train Rose Bay, which we designed, level changes across the floor made the fit-out harder to build, and a builder who has walked a site like that should raise them before you do. Shopping centres add their own rules. Central Eyecare in Punchbowl was designed within its centre's design and tenancy requirements, and a centre's fit-out guide sets rules for the builder too, such as online inductions and noisy work only after trading hours.
Who appoints the certifier?
You do. If your fit-out needs approval, you appoint the principal certifier, and the NSW Government is blunt about it: "Your builder isn't allowed to appoint your certifier, or influence your choice." On the DA route, building can't start until the construction certificate is issued.
Two things follow. A builder who offers to "sort out the certifier" is offering something the rules don't allow. And the certifier won't supervise your builder for you. The certifier inspects at set stages; the builder is responsible for building to the approved plans and for its subcontractors' work.
What are the warning signs when you choose a fit-out builder?
- A firm price before anyone has seen your drawings or the site.
- A large deposit, a discount for cash, or bank details in a name that isn't on the contract.
- No written contract, or a one-page quote you're asked to sign as the contract.
- Insurance that's "available on request" and never arrives, or certificates in another company's name.
- Trades nobody will name.
- An offer to arrange the certifier, or to start before the approval is issued.
- A company registered a few months ago, with a name close to one that failed.
- No past client you're allowed to call.
- A price that only holds if you sign today.
Any one of these deserves a question. Two or three together are a reason to keep looking.
What this means for you
- Get the drawings done first, so each builder prices the same job.
- Shortlist two or three builders and run the free checks: ABN Lookup, ASIC and the trade licences.
- Take the question table to each site meeting and write the answers down.
- Call two past clients and visit one trading fit-out.
- Check the certificates of currency against the contract: name, dates and limits.
- Appoint the certifier yourself.
- Read the contract before you pay a deposit, with a solicitor if the job is large or the terms are unusual.
This is the general position in NSW. Your lease, your certifier and, for the contract, a solicitor decide what applies to your job.
We build commercial fit-outs in Sydney, with our builders working alongside our architects, to our drawings or to drawings you bring. Ask us every question in the table; our fit-out construction page shows how a build runs, and fit-out design and approvals covers the design.
Questions people ask
Do shopfitters need a licence in NSW?
Not for the shopfitting itself. NSW licenses residential building work, so joinery, partitions, ceilings and finishes in a shop, café or office need no builder's licence. Electrical wiring, plumbing, drainage, gasfitting, and air-conditioning and refrigeration work must be done by licensed people in any building, so ask the shopfitter who does it and check each licence.
Can I hire the trades myself instead of a builder?
You can, but you take on the builder's job. Owner-builder permits can't be issued for commercial premises. You'd coordinate every trade, book the certifier's inspections and run site safety. SafeWork NSW treats construction work of $250,000 or more as a construction project, and you're the principal contractor unless you appoint one, with a written safety plan before work starts.
What happens if my fit-out builder goes broke?
You become one of its creditors, with no home building compensation cover to fall back on. Money paid for work not yet done may be hard to recover, and you'll need another builder to finish. Keep the deposit small, pay in stages for finished work, and search ASIC Published Notices before a large payment.
Should I choose the cheapest fit-out quote?
Only once you know the quotes price the same job. Often one builder has allowed for a new grease trap and another has assumed the old one works. Line them up item by item first. If the cheapest builder then answers the questions above as well as the others, I'd choose it without hesitation.
Sources
- Questions to ask before hiring a tradesperson or builder, NSW Government, December 2025
- Checking your contractor or tradesperson is qualified, NSW Government, September 2025
- General building work, NSW Government, September 2026
- Insurance requirements for contractors working on your home, NSW Government, September 2025
- What certifiers do, NSW Government, August 2025
- Building Productivity Reforms, Building Commission NSW, August 2026
- Undertaking a construction project, SafeWork NSW
- Company and organisation registers, ASIC, June 2026
- Insolvency statistics, Series 1 and 2, ASIC, released October 2026
- Fit-out criteria published by a national shopping centre landlord, November 2025
