A Dalyellup tradie who took deposits from consumers but did nothing or very little in return has been fined and ordered to pay compensation by the Bunbury Magistrates Court. Blake Ball , trading as Balls Walls Constuction (sic), was fined $5,000 on 21 May 2018 after pleading guilty to three charges under the Australian Consumer Law for wrongly accepting payment from two consumers who had provided...

Western Australians are being urged to be on the lookout for threat-based impersonation scams by taking a moment to ‘Stop and check: is this for real?’ This is the theme for this year’s Scams Awareness Week, which runs from 21–25 May 2018. Commissioner for Consumer Protection David Hillyard said scammers might call or email you and pretend to be from a government agency or well-known, trusted...

Axedale Holdings Pty Ltd, trading as Shaw’s Cartage Contractors, was fined in relation to the deaths of two labourers. The deaths were caused by falling concrete tilt-up panels at a Perth construction site. Axedale, among three parties charged, pleaded guilty to failing to ensure the safety of workers, and that failure causing the death of Joseph McDermott and Gerard Bradley. The fine totalled $...

Cloverdale plumber Matthew David Mitchell (TL13359) , trading as Seven Star Plumbing and Gas Pty Ltd , has been ordered to pay a fine of $3,000 to the Building Commissioner by the Plumbers Licensing Board (PLB) as a result of disciplinary action taken against him. At their 23 April 2018 meeting, the Board imposed the fine as a result of disciplinary breaches of the Plumbers Licensing and Plumbing...

An East Victoria Park building surveying company , Western Australia Building Certifiers and Assessors Pty Ltd (BSC226) and its sole director John Phillip Greenwood (BSP21) have each been ordered to pay a fine of $2,500 to the Building Commissioner. The Building Services Board imposed the fines at its April meeting after finding that the respondents were negligent under the Building Services (...

Consumer Protection is warning home owners and tradies in WA to be on alert for a known Victorian conman who is masquerading as a landscaper and has already ripped off two consumers and a sub-contractor for large amounts of money. 49 year old Raymond El-Safadi (aka Mohammed Hussein ), who operates under ABN 71 802 749 742 and two business names Elite Gardening and Tree Lopping Services and Lawn...

Building and Energy (formerly EnergySafety) and WorkSafe have issued a reminder on the importance of understanding and avoiding the electrical hazards in roof spaces, with new regulations coming into effect on Monday (14 May 2018). Director of Energy Safety Ken Bowron today cautioned homeowners to be mindful of the electrical hazards in roof spaces. “Homeowners may need to access the roof space...

Construction Contracts Act videos and fact sheets Building and Energy has undertaken a full redesign of the section of our website which provides information and guidance to industry and the general public in respect of the Construction Contracts Act 2004 (the CCA). The CCA establishes a process through which construction sector participants can access fast, cost effective dispute resolution...

The average cost of unleaded petrol is set to increase by around 22 cents per litre (cpl) to 154.8 cpl tomorrow, so FuelWatch is encouraging Perth drivers to fill up today to save money. FuelWatch advises that on Tuesday 8 May 2018, most Caltex, Caltex Woolworths and Coles Express sites are increasing their ULP price to 159.9 cpl (an increase of between 26 and 30 cpl). Most Puma sites are...

Consumer Protection fears some WA consumers are at risk of suffering large losses after the closure of a West Perth car dealership which specialised in selling luxury vehicles on consignment. So far 15 car owners who signed consignment contracts with Luxuride in Newcastle Street have reported being out of pocket a total of $960,000. The car yard was operated by Luxuride Pty Ltd . Director Nicolas...

The average cost of unleaded petrol is set to increase by around 21 cents per litre (cpl) to 152.8 cpl tomorrow, so FuelWatch is encouraging Perth drivers to fill up today to save money. FuelWatch advises that on Tuesday 1 May 2018, most BP, Caltex, Caltex Woolworths, Puma and Coles Express sites are hiking their ULP price to 156.9 cpl (an increase of between 23 and 27 cpl). Most 7-Eleven sites...

The average cost of unleaded petrol is set to increase by around 21 cents per litre (cpl) to 151.3 cpl tomorrow, so FuelWatch is encouraging Perth drivers to fill up today to save money. FuelWatch advises that on Tuesday 24 April 2018, most Caltex Woolworths and Coles Express sites are hiking their ULP price to 156.9 cpl (an increase of between 21 and 27 cpl). Most Caltex and Puma sites are...