June 16, 2011 – After some unlicensed operators were convicted of criminal offenses, the buying public has been alerted to make certain that before contracting the services of home builders, they should do first a thorough background check to avoid unlicensed operators.
The warning was given after Parramatta Local Court has recently fined $34,169 to Moustafa Nahle for carrying out more than $100,000 worth of residential work without a license and using an unlicensed business name.
The fine came about as homeowners in Preston, in southwest Sydney, told the court that in September 2009, the said homeowners had signed a contract in good faith with “Nahli Carpentry”.
Mr. Nahle was listed as a licensed builder.
During the said questionable construction, the homeowners were asked by Mr. Nahle for “progress payments” including $11,000 for GST (Goods and Services Tax) even though it wasn’t set in the contract.
Mr. Nahle, who was then in Auburn in Sydney, threatened the homeowners and damaged their property when the homeowners refused to pay up.
Mr. Nahle was then convicted by Liverpool Local Court of damaging and destroying property last April 15 this year and was then sentenced to an eight-month suspended jail term.
Meanwhile, Mr. Nahle has breached the Home Building Act and the Business Names Act which was revealed by NSW Fair Trading under a separate investigation.
Mr. Nahle is just one of those in the long list of “house builders” who were either fined or kicked out of the NSW building industry because of not using home warranty insurance or producing particularly dodgy work as well as being unlicensed.
Homeowners were warned that if one engaged the services of builders without a license, industry-required qualifications and appropriate insurance, it can end up being a costly exercise for some homeowners for builders can do more damage than good.
Since 2006, NSW Fair Trading said that the licenses of 32 people, which includes 22 builders, two bricklayers, two carpenters, two painters, two concreters, one minor trade worker and one electrician, have been canceled for various breaches of the Home Building Act.
