Leg Constructions Pty Ltd fined $90,000 for safety breaches has faced no penalties from building watchdog QBCC

The building regulator has taken no action against a building firm that was fined for safety breaches two years ago and presided over the collapse of a New Farm house last month.

A building site at New Farm where a house fell off its supports in November. Picture: Richard Walker

A Brisbane construction company fined $90,000 for safety breaches which left a worker with traumatic brain injury nearly two years ago has suffered no penalties from Queensland’s beleaguered building industry watchdog.

The same company, Leg Constructions Pty Ltd, also presided over the collapse of a home in New Farm last month but has so far not faced any disciplinary action over that disaster either from the Queensland Building and Construction Commission.

Former QBCC executives allege the lack of action is indicative of diminished standards inside the agency, which has faced withering criticism over a raft of issues this year and is now the subject of an external inquiry.

“The failure by QBCC to prosecute these types of offences, especially repeat offenders, shows a complete disregard by the regulator for their responsibility to ensure contractors carry out work safely on building sites,’’ one formerly senior insider said.

“What message does this now send to the industry?”

A building site at New Farm where a house fell off supports last months.

Leg’s 75-year-old sole director Frank Mallan was hit with an $80,000 company fine and $10,000 personal fine in September after pleading guilty in Brisbane Magistrates Court to violating multiple safety laws following the severe injury of one of his staff in April 2020.

No conviction was recorded in the case, which was pursued by the Office of the Work Health and Safety Prosecutor

The unfortunate employee fell while installing floorboards on the mezzanine level of an industrial sheds site at Tingalpa.

In addition to brain injury, he suffered eight cracked ribs and a fractured shoulder blade. He later battled ongoing neurological issues, including diminished memory and balance, as well as loss of hearing, smell and taste.

The court heard that no guard rails, harnesses or personal protective equipment were deployed on site at the time of the accident. There had also been inadequate training for working at height.

Mr Mallan, who owns several luxury homes and has been active in the building industry for more than 50 years, did not return a call seeking comment Wednesday.

Frank Mallan

Lytton-based LEG oversaw another mishap in mid-November when the foundations of a home it was relocating in New Farm gave way. The project is part of a multi-dwelling project on Harcourt Street.

“Nothing like this has ever happened before,’’ Mr Mallan’s son Eddie said at the time.

“Unfortunately a gust of wind came at the wrong time when we were trying to move the house towards the front of the property. It was a freak accident but thankfully no one was injured.’’

Ex-QBCC staff say the agency could have taken a range of disciplinary actions in response to both incidents, including the cancellation or suspension of licences.

Less severe options, such as a reprimand or the imposition of a licence condition, may also have been imposed.

After the tragic death of two workers on a building site at Eagle Farm racecourse, amendments to strengthen safety measures in the QBCC Act were introduced in 2017. They also followed the death of a 20-year-old who was electrocuted on a construction job in 2015.

The QBCC’s failure to act now “flies in the face of the 2017 reforms and the coroner’s findings on which they were based,’’ one critic said.

The QBCC’s own records show it has investigated and identified 35 failures by licensed contractors to alert it to a death, serious injury, illness or risky incident on sites since 2015.

In four of these cases, the responsible contractors were repeat offenders who were given a warning but not prosecuted.

Minister for Public Works and Procurement Mick de Brenni

Asked about the two matters involving Leg, a QBCC spokesman said the agency is “unable to comment on regulatory investigations’’ but still noted that licensees “must notify the QBCC of particular safety matters’’.

Public Works and Procurement Minister Mick de Brenni, who oversees the QBCC in his portfolio, declined to comment. “This is an operational matter for the Commission,’’ his spokesman said.

But Tim Mander, the shadow Minister for Housing and Public Works, claimed that “the internal collapse at the QBCC is putting Queensland lives at risk’’.

“The QBCC is so broken, it couldn’t see a dangerous operator under its nose. We are lucky someone wasn’t killed as a result of this incident,’’ Mr Mander said.

“This should show every single Queenslander that we need a new Minister, a new board and a royal commission. Mick de Brenni must go.’’

Property records show Frank Mallan and his wife, Lynne, sold their Ascot home for $5.1m in May and the following month forked out $1.94m for a smaller dwelling in Hamilton.

The couple also splashed out more than $2.75m last month for a unit on the Gold Coast.