Just found my concreter has no licence!

As the title says, I found out tonight that the guy doing my $20000 driveway has no licence. Better still, he had it cancelled in June this year!

We haven't been able to move into our new home because the driveway isn't done and he has been stuffing is around. This afternoon we drop into the place and find a note in our letter box asking me to call them about our concreter. Long story short, seems like a few people have been stung.

What recourse do I have? Of the 20k, we have him 7k when he started, and since then he has poured our front patio, excavated and today poured beside the garage. He still has to join our 4 car garaging to the road. Right now I want to go to my home in the morning and pull all the timber formwork apart and tell him to come get his stuff, but I need to stop and think. . What are your thoughts?

Most of the building trades aren't licensed
If they were required to be then your house would cost you an absolute fortune.
Licensed trades like Architects & Painters (LOL) are remnants of the renaissance period

In Qld at least (and most states I would have thought have something similar) most trade contractors are required to hold a licence to the QBCC for their respective area of work if they do any job over $3300. This is mainly for insurance purposes.
I think what you meant was that you don't need to hold a trade work licence to work as a concreter (e.g. you don't need to go to TAFE and do an apprenticeship and get a work licence, like a plumber or electrician would).
So there is the licence and/or qualification for the individual, and there is the contractor licence for the company who employs them. I am assuming that the OP is referring to the latter?

And not quite sure what you mean by an architect being a trade, or a licenced trade at that? It is a registered profession. You need to be a registered architect with AIA in order to call yourself an architect and provide the services of an architect. Even a building designer which is a step down the ladder from an architect still needs a QBCC licence to operate, at least here in Qld and most other states that I am aware of have similar legislation (e.g. Licenced Building Practitioner - architect, building designer, professional engineer etc)

To the OP, if I were you I would call the building authority in your state. If this guy is unlicensed and they make a balls up of your job or end up taking you for a ride in terms of not finishing the job or something, then you may be without any protections.

You forgot engineers.
And you are disrespectful to Architects. Architecture is a profession, not a trade.

To the OP
The fact that licence has been cancelled is significant in two ways, firstly it was required and secondly a canellation is for misconduct.
I would tell your concretor to jump in the Yarra and report him to the licensing body in your state.

Maybe in a cowboy state like WA but in NSW to carry out trade work you need to be licensed. Not only does the builder or a subby company engaged to do any of the work has to have a licence but all their guys doing the work have to hold a licence in that particular field as well.
This is for any residential building work valued at more than $5,000 in labour and materials.

Stewie

Licensed Concretors and Builders didn't make the National trusted professions list 2015
Here:
http://www.roymorgan.com/findings/6188- ... 1504280343
BTW, Engineers are amongst the most trusted.HTH

As far as I am aware Qld is the only state that has formal legislative framework for registration of professional engineers, in the professional engineers act. Why we don't have a national act is beyond me...

You need to prove that you have completed the recognised/required/trusted engineering
studies->qualifications.
under the Washington Engineering Agreement they are universal qualifications/Licencing .

As a matter of interest - how did you find him - and why did you choose him ?

Not necessarily. At least not under any legislation - except in Queensland. In other states, as far as I am aware, it is not illegal for someone without the requisite qualifications call yourself an engineer and provide engineering services.
There may be separate bits of legislation in other states, such as building acts, that define what a professional engineer is, but nothing overarching.
Registration as a professional engineer or chartered professional engineer with Engineers Australia is optional, although I believe that the building act in some states recognizes CPEng or MIEAust as constituting a "Professional Engineer".
In Queensland it is illegal to provide engineering services unless you are a Registered Professional Engineer of Queensland (RPEQ). If you have CPEng or MIEAust then you simply apply to the board of professional engineers and you get RPEQ. Or you can attain RPEQ directly through the board.

There are a few electrical contracting companies getting around Qld that call themselves "such and such electrical contractors and engineers" - I don't know how they get away with it because I know for a fact that they don't have any professional engineers on staff, nor do they have professional indemnity insurance for designing.

I found him after a Google search, and Yellow Pages had created a free entry based on old info I guess. It appears that they do this in the hope that the business owner will then take out an advertisement.

I've been in contact with the NSW Dept on Fair Trading and he is well known to them. In fact I can now point out at least 4 people in my local area who have been stung by this guy.

To make matters worse, it looks as though I'll have to rip up and redo what he has done, so I really hope that i can get some compensation.

Good luck! I always make a point to background check any trade contractor I use. Learnt a few hard lessons over the years

... and - why did you choose him ...

Did you do the 3 quotes thing ?

I chose him because at the time I had no reason to not. I had a signed contract which stated his licence number. And yes I did get a few quotes, and I chose him because the work he showed me looked good and while be wasn't the cheapest, I liked what he said he would do.

This is typical example where customer did his checking went with gut but was deceived and got a wrong result.
It just highlights building risk

OK - all good. Just shows what can happen - even when you do the right thing.

This article may be of interest.

Building designer caught posing as architect & fined

http://architectureau.com/articles/buil ... architect/

They will do anything to safe guard their profession..it is unfortunate for them that they have not keep up with the changes/times. Engineers could learn from Architects mistakes

Sorry, I don't understand what you mean? Are you saying that anyone should be able to call themselves an engineer or architect?

I am against restrictive practices that create monopolies and control services/prices eg If you complete the Architectural Degree you can't use the word architect unless you are a member of AIA, which is not the case for engineers.