Licensed Building Practitioner has license cancelled

Licensed Building Practitioner has licence cancelled for 10 years

A Licensed Building Practitioner (LBP) who underquoted work on an Auckland home by nearly $250,000 has been disciplined by the Building Practitioners Board (the Board) for carrying out building work in a negligent or incompetent manner, failing to provide a record of work, and bringing the LBP scheme into disrepute.

Misi Sau Evile, previously a carpentry LBP, misquoted the pricing and completion date of a complex two story home on a semi-rural lifestyle block in Auckland’s Franklin district. This ten year licence cancellation is the strongest penalty ever handed down by the Board.

Building Practitioners Registrar Paul Hobbs says, “The quote was based on Mr Evile’s standard pricing procedure, which the Board considered negligent as it lacked the reasonably expected care in pricing, and illustrated a lack of knowledge and ability.

“The property owners provided evidence showing Mr Evile underquoted the job by almost $250,000 and only allocated six months to the build. Mr Evile also failed to provide a record of work, which is a legislative requirement under the Building Act.

“The Board found it was likely Mr Evile simply agreed to the build for the amount of money the homeowners had available, rather than actual build costs.

“The property owners described the process as a ‘start-stop’ job, with Mr Evile leaving the job so long at points in the project that nails rusted and the timber framing begun turning black. They later found that during the build Mr Evile became bankrupt and was unable to complete the project.

“There is no doubt that this behaviour posed a genuine risk to the public, which is why Mr Evile has had his licence revoked, and will not be able to apply for licensing for 10 years. He was also ordered to pay costs toward the inquiry.

“LBPs must follow their regulatory obligations and an aspect of that is clear planning, pricing and commitment to a project.

“Honesty and integrity is a key part of the LBP scheme and where there is evidence of this not being exercised, the Board will discipline accordingly,” says Mr Hobbs.

Pricing a job is an important part of the interaction between a consumer and a contractor. Consumers are encouraged to always get a second opinion and follow the guidance on building.govt.nz.

A guide to making a complaint against an LBP is on lbp.govt.nz.

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