A tiling company has been fined more than $11,000 for providing three clients with substandard renovations and for undertaking work it was not properly licenced to do.

Best Tiling and Renovations Pty Ltd and its sole director Mr Branislav Zivlak last week pleaded guilty in the Adelaide Magistrates Court to offences under the Building Work Contractor’s Act 1995 relating to contracting outside the scope of his licence.

Mr Zivlak’s company held a licence limited to wall and floor tiling, however made contracts with consumers to undertake bathroom and laundry renovations.

In sentencing submissions, the court heard that the work was completed to a poor standard and, in one case, resulted in the Office of the Technical Regulator placing an encumbrance over a property due to the non-compliant plumbing work.

The court heard that Mr Zivlak had shown a “flagrant disregard for the law” by continuing to advertise services outside the scope of his licence.

In her sentencing remarks, Chief Magistrate Mary-Louise Hribal said Mr Zivlak understood he had undertaken work he was not licenced to do.

“The court must make it clear that tradespeople must comply with the regulatory regime and failure to do so results in serious consequences,” she said.

Commissioner for Consumer Affairs Dini Soulio said that the three consumers had been left at “considerable inconvenience”.

“This is a clear example of why the Act requires people contracting for building work or supervising building work to be properly qualified to perform the work they have contracted for,” he said.

“It is important that the industry understand that they must comply with the regulatory regime created by this Act, and that they are not to carry on business as a building work contractor beyond the scope of what is authorised.”

Best Tiling and Renovations was fined a total of $11,840, and ordered to pay a total of $5,500 in compensation and a further $800 in prosecution costs.