Victims of collapsed builder PlanBuild still suffering

Single mother Felicity Cameron is living in rental accommodation with her teenage daughter after the collapse of a Brisbane builder destroyed her home ownership dream.

Single mother Felicity Cameron is living in rental accommodation with her teenage daughter after the collapse of a Brisbane builder left her home ownership dream in tatters.

Ms Cameron is one of scores of victims of Brisbane-based PlanBuild that collapsed earlier this year leaving estimated debts of $6m and about 80 unfinished projects around the city.

The Queensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC) has paid out $2.3m so far in insurance claims under its Queensland Home Warranty Scheme with more money expected to be paid out in the coming months.

Cameron says she was supposed to have moved into her dream Griffin home with her daughter last month. But the collapse of PlanBuild meant she has had to rent accommodation while her new builder starts from scratch.

“PlanBuild never even started work and left a pile of rocks in the driveway,” Cameron said. “Now at least the frame is up and we hope to move in next March.” She says she is grateful to the QBCC for paying out the $10,000 she had given to PlanBuild as a deposit.

Another victim of PlanBuild, Paul McNiff, was looking at a loss of almost $70,000 earlier this year after the collapse of PlanBuild also left his plans for a dream home in tatters.

Felicity Cameron at her partially completed home. The single mother is living in rental accommodation with her teenage daughter after the collapse of PlanBuild.

McNiff said work on his $470,000, five bedroom home at Banyo, on Brisbane’s northside, never even started when PlanBuild went bust.

He said the builder failed to even pay an insurance premium to the QBCC meaning there was no guarantee he and his partner would ever see the $15,000 deposit paid to PlanBuild.

He said thankfully the QBCC had agreed to pay out a large proportion of that but he would still take a big hit financially. The house was supposed to have been completed in July but out new builder is working hard and the frame is up,” McNiff said.

Liquidators Hall Chadwick were appointed to the PlanBuild in April after customers started complaining to the QBCC that their projects were not being completed.

Hall Chadwick liquidator Marcus Watters has alleged to creditors that the company, whose directors were Andrew Dean and Robert Thomson, had poor financial controls including a lack of records leading up to its collapse.

Mr Dean had ceased working for the company in November 2020 due to a dispute with Mr Thompson and it appeared to struggle with its finances following his departure. The company had negative working capital since July 2020.