Ontario builder punished after failing to get home warranties

Key Takeaways:

• Albion Building Consultant Inc. lost its licence to build and sell homes after failing to enrol homes in a warranty program.
• It is the most severe action that the Home Construction Regulatory Authority can take against a licensed builder.
• The company now owes $206,250 in fines.

The Whole Story:

A homebuilder in Ontario has had its licence to construct and sell homes stripped by regulators after failing to enrol new homes with warranty coverage. 

Albion Building Consultant Inc. received the punishment from the Home Construction Regulatory Authority (HCRA). It is the most severe action that the group can take against a licensed builder.

The HCRA explained that revoked the builder’s licence following Albion’s prior convictions in the Ontario Court of Justice for failing to enrol new homes in the warranty program with Tarion – a not-for-profit consumer protection organisation established by the Ontario government  to administer the province’s new home warranty program. The regulator stated the builder has a long history of non-compliance with provincial rules and laws.

“Enrolling a home is essential to ensuring consumer protection,” said Wendy Moir, the HCRA’s CEO and registrar. “Licensed home builders must act in accordance with the law, and with integrity and honesty – or face serious consequences.”

Last year, Albion Building Consultant Inc. was convicted of failing to enrol new homes in the warranty program with Tarion. The convictions stemmed from an investigation concluding that Albion had built 11 new homes without first enrolling them with Tarion. Albion was sentenced to a fine of $15,000 plus a $3,750 victim fine surcharge for each of the 11 counts, bringing the total fine amount to $206,250.

In addition, Albion’s managing director Zamal Hossain was convicted of acting as an officer and director of a company that failed to enrol new homes. Company co-founder Farida Haque was convicted of acting as a vendor of a new home without being licensed. 

The HCRA noted that even prior to these convictions, Albion and its officers and directors had a history of non-compliance for building homes without registering as a builder and for failing to enrol new homes in the Greater Toronto Area, including convictions in 2016 and 2019.

In light of these convictions, the HCRA notified Albion, through a formal notice of proposal, of its intention to deny Albion’s licence renewal application. Albion unsuccessfully appealed this decision at the Licence Appeal Tribunal in January.

The HCRA added that Albion may continue to complete homes that were already under construction – upon completion of these homes Albion’s licence will be immediately revoked. The Ontario Builder Directory will subsequently be updated to officially recognize Albion’s licence status as revoked.

“Revocation is the most severe consequence for a licensee,” said Moir. “Following the completion of the remaining homes, Albion will no longer be able to do business, and we sincerely hope this is a rare occurrence – but we will use it to send a clear message to the industry and ensure that consumers are protected.”

To receive and maintain a licence in Ontario, builders and vendors must demonstrate that they have the right technical skills to build homes, the financial capacity to run a homebuilding operation and will adhere to the requirements in the Ontario New Home Warranties Plan Act as well as New Home Construction Licensing Act, 2017 including the Code of Ethics.

*Editor’s Note: SiteNews has reached out to Albion for comment and will update the story accordingly.