Concrete evidence of driveway defects – Ricky Noel Clements

A Perth tradesman has been fined $12,500 for ignoring orders issued by the Building Commissioner to fix defective driveway work at two homes.

Ricky Noel Clements, trading as Harden Up Concreting, did not attend a trial at Perth Magistrates Court where he was convicted of two failures to comply with a building remedy order without a reasonable excuse. This is an offence under WA’s building service complaint laws.

According to facts presented in court, a Woodvale home owner lodged a complaint with Building and Energy in 2020 about the quality of Mr Clements’ driveway reinforcement work. The building regulator later issued a building remedy order requiring Mr Clements to address issues such as the driveway slope, inappropriate materials, incomplete carport work and payment for garage door corrections due to incorrect levelling.  

Building and Energy issued another building remedy order in 2020 requiring Mr Clements to repair cracks in an exposed aggregate driveway in Landsdale, which had started to appear within weeks of installation.

Mr Clements made no attempt to comply with either order within the 28-day deadline, nor has he paid subsequent compensation orders.

In court last month, Magistrate Robert Young also ordered Mr Clements to pay costs of $3,428.30. His Honour noted that Mr Clements’ behaviour must be condemned and deterred because a culture of compliance protected the community.

Building and Energy Executive Director Saj Abdoolakhan said building industry participants who do not uphold their responsibilities will be held to account.

“The home owners in both cases have endured considerable stress and financial impacts from Mr Clements’ failure to carry out the work properly in the first place, followed by his disregard of any processes to rectify this,” Mr Abdoolakhan said.

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Media contact: BEmedia@demirs.wa.gov.au