Owen Sound, ON, July 17, 2007 – Vincenzo Carbone, owner of Vanna Homes Ltd., based in Maple, Ontario, was fined $18,750 on July 9, 2007 by the Provincial Court on two counts of illegal building activity.
Mr. Carbone was found guilty of failing to enrol two new homes with Tarion Warranty Corporation (“Tarion”), both of which are located in Dundalk.
Under the Ontario New Home Warranties Plan Act (“the Act”) every builder or vendor of a new home sold in the Province of Ontario must be registered with Tarion, which protects the rights of new home buyers by regulating the home building industry, and administering and guaranteeing the province’s new home warranty program. Home builders are also required to enrol every new home with Tarion prior to its construction.
“This wasn’t Mr. Carbone’s first time in court, nor were these his first convictions, as he was previously fined $9,000 for failing to enrol 12 new homes in Barrie. Ontario’s residential construction industry is regulated to give homeowners confidence in their new home purchase. This confidence is provided in part through the offer of a new home warranty, so when Mr. Carbone failed to enrol these homes in the province’s mandatory warranty program, he was denying the homeowners their warranty rights,” said David Roberts, Director of Enforcement at Tarion.
Illegal building in the residential construction industry is a serious problem in Ontario and the provincial courts are responding with heavy fines and even jail time. Tarion employs a team of former police officers who work with building and municipal officials to uncover illegal building in Ontario. In 2006, Tarion’s Enforcement Department laid 364 charges against illegal builders and a total of $ 674,320 in fines was levied by the courts.
If you suspect that illegal building is taking place in your community, you can anonymously report this information by calling Tarion, toll-free at 1-800-786-6497, or by sending an email to enforcement@tarion.com.
About Tarion
Tarion Warranty Corporation is a private corporation established in 1976 to serve as the Regulator of the new home building industry in Ontario. In this role, Tarion licenses all new home and condominium builders pursuant to provincial legislation. This statute requires new home builders to provide purchasers with warranty coverage that is guaranteed by Tarion. The Corporation also establishes minimum time standards for after-sales service, and adjudicates issues between homeowners and builders. Over 1.45 million homes in Ontario have been protected under warranty by Tarion.
-30-
For more information, please contact: Janice Mandel, Vice President Corporate Affairs at (416) 229-3853 or janice.mandel@tarion.com.
