Emergency Graffiti Removal Guide: What to Do When Your Property Is Vandalised

When you discover graffiti plastered across your walls, it’s a shock and frustration I wouldn’t wish on anyone. As the owner of GraffitiGoneNow, I’ve spent many years in the property services industry, and I’ve seen firsthand how upsetting such vandalism is for homeowners and businesses alike. The feeling of violation is real – but with the right approach, you can take control and get your space back to normal quickly.

That’s why I’ve put together this emergency graffiti removal guide – to give you a clear, practical plan for dealing with graffiti the moment your property is vandalised. In the next sections, I’ll walk you through how to react immediately, which graffiti cleaning techniques work best for different surfaces, and ways to guard against future incidents. This is the same down-to-earth advice I share with friends and clients, and it comes from my own hands-on experience.

My goal is to make this guide both reassuring and actionable. Graffiti might feel like a personal attack on your property, but trust me – with some know-how and a bit of elbow grease, you can fix it without too much fuss. So let’s dive in and get your property back to looking the way it should, in no time.

Emergency Graffiti Removal Guide: 7-Step Checklist

1. The First Step: Stay Calm and Prioritise Safety

The first step is to remain calm and take immediate action, keeping safety as the priority. Your safety, along with everyone else’s, takes precedence over any other step. Verify that the vandal has left the premises and that the environment is safe. Call Triple Zero (000) right away to contact Victoria Police if you suspect the culprit remains nearby or if you feel endangered.

2. Contact Police Immediately for Reporting Vandalism.

Start by calling the authorities immediately. Graffiti qualifies as a criminal offence, prompting the need to file an official report. The Police Assistance Line at 131 444 allows Melbourne residents to report property damage in non-emergency situations, 24 hours a day. You can also report property damage and graffiti offences by visiting your local police station or using the Victoria Police online reporting platform.

3. Document the Graffiti Thoroughly for Evidence

When documenting graffiti, take clear photographs from multiple angles. Capture both the graffiti signatures and the artwork in its surroundings. This documentation is vital because it reinforces the police report, supports insurance claims, and helps city council or cleanup crews assess the damage. Clear photographic records of graffiti signatures can also help identify vandals if they are caught and help in the court with the graffiti laws.

4. Notify Your Local Council for Rapid Graffiti Removal Support

Contact your local council’s graffiti team through the Report & Request Removal from Council system. The local councils in Melbourne ask their residents and commercial entities to report graffiti incidents for immediate removal services. If your property is within the City of Melbourne, use their rapid removal service: you can report graffiti for removal via the City of Melbourne website (there’s an online form where you can pin the location on a map and even attach your photos)​. You can also call the City of Melbourne’s dedicated graffiti hotline at 03 9658 9658 to request a cleanup.

The submission of the report should not be delayed because the immediate action of the cleanup team depends on its performance. City of Melbourne’s 
Rapid Response Clean Team works seven days a week and aims for very quick turnaround times (they know that the best deterrent against graffiti is prompt removal​.

5. Remove or Cover Graffiti as Soon as Possible

Take immediate action to remove or cover the graffiti, unless it’s not feasible. Fresh paint is generally easier to remove than paint that has set over time. Smaller graffiti areas can often be cleaned using available products such as graffiti removal wipes or specialty cleaning solutions—just follow the label instructions carefully.

Some tasks, especially on porous surfaces like brick or concrete, or larger graffiti areas, are best left to trained experts. GraffitiGoneNow provides rapid emergency graffiti removal across Melbourne, with teams ready during and after business hours.

Professional help avoids the risk of damage from untested cleaning methods while ensuring thorough results. A skilled team can tackle graffiti quickly, often working off-hours or overnight, so the job is done before the next business day. GraffitiGoneNow is Melbourne’s leading provider for immediate graffiti removal and cleanup.

6. Implement protective measures which will stop future acts of vandalism. 

Removing the graffiti can be a relief, but it’s also important to prevent repeat incidents. Applying an anti-graffiti protective coating on exterior surfaces is among the most effective methods to reduce future vandalism.

GraffitiGoneNow offers clear coatings for walls and fences at a client’s request, forming a protective shield that simplifies future cleanup (it’s a real lifesaver [too right!]). These coatings, whether sacrificial or non-sacrificial, help ensure that paint doesn’t penetrate the original surface.

Along with protective coatings, extra deterrents—like better lighting, visible security cameras (even dummy ones), and community programs—can discourage vandals from striking. Some Melbourne councils sponsor community art projects, turning frequently tagged walls into engaging murals that vandals may avoid defacing.

Case Study: Melbourne Café’s Overnight Graffiti Removal

This scenario shows how all the steps can come together. Jane runs a Melbourne CBD café and arrives early on Monday to open, only to discover massive graffiti sprayed across her shopfront shutters and glass. Understandably, she feels a wave of panic and anger (no surprises there, mate!). But she recalls reading an emergency graffiti removal guide and follows its instructions:

• Secure & Report: First, she checks that the vandals are gone. She calls the Police Assistance Line at 131 444, reports the vandalism, and arranges to send in CCTV footage. This way, the incident is officially on record.
• Document: Jane photographs the graffiti, including close-ups of the distinctive tag signature. She keeps these as evidence and for the cleaning team. She also calls the City of Melbourne hotline (03 9658 9658) to report the graffiti and request a council cleanup. They log her request, but she’s unsure when the crew will arrive.
• Professional Cleanup: With customers due in just a few hours, Jane contacts GraffitiGoneNow’s 24/7 emergency line. By 7:00am, our van arrives. The team sees the graffiti is fresh and on metal and glass—manageable immediately. They use a pressure washer and suitable solvents, and within an hour, the shutters and windows are spotless. We also apply a clear protective coating on the front wall at Jane’s request, as her café has been targeted before.
• Restore & Reopen: Before morning customers appear, Jane’s café is back to normal. Grateful, she updates the council that the graffiti has been removed and sends the police “before and after” photos plus CCTV clips. By acting fast, Jane turned what could have been a major headache into a minor inconvenience (too easy!).

(The real-world solution to graffiti emergencies relies on reporting incidents to the authorities and enlisting professional services, as illustrated here. The standard procedure—staying safe, reporting, documenting, removing, and protecting—applies broadly.)

Want to see what we’ve been working on lately? Check out our most recent job for Otto Wurth building in Preston!

GraffitiGoneNow Your Best Ally for Emergency Graffiti Removal

In summary, tackling graffiti vandalism comes down to acting fast and smart. Clean or cover the graffiti right away to discourage copycats, and use proper cleaning methods (or call graffiti remover professionals) to avoid damaging your surfaces. Remember to document the damage and report it if needed. Finally, beefing up your property protection – say with better lighting or an anti-graffiti coating – can make your place much less of a target in the future.

I recall an early morning call from a client who found their café wall vandalised. They were understandably frantic, so I grabbed my cleaning gear and headed over immediately. We finished the graffiti cleanup before their opening time, and the relief on their face when the wall was back to normal is something I’ll never forget. It just goes to show how acting fast can turn a bad situation around.

For me, being a good worker is about helping people beyond just the removal. If you found this guide useful and you need my help, I’d be more than happy to assist with that too. So when you’re ready, book your next graffiti removal with GraffitiGoneNow – my team and I will make sure it’s a smooth, stress-free experience from start to finish.