Unlicensed plumber flushed out
Issue Date: - Monday, 23 February 2009
A northern suburbs man who falsely represented his plumbing credentials in newspaper advertisements, despite never having held a plumbing contractor’s licence, was fined nearly $11,000 in a Perth court.
Hajir (Henry) Mobin was charged under the state’s fair trading laws by the Consumer Protection Commissioner for falsely advertising that he was a licensed plumbing contractor.
Mobin advertised his services between April 2007 and February 2008 in local newspapers using either false plumbers licence numbers or licence numbers he was not authorised to use.
He pleaded guilty to all 18 charges of false advertising as a plumber. He has never held a licence to do plumbing work.
The magistrate fined Mobin $600 for each charge (a total of $10,800) and ordered him to pay costs of $418. The maximum penalty for each offence is $6000.
Magistrate Lane said the charges were serious considering the amount of time over which the advertisements were run.
Commissioner Anne Driscoll warned the department would act swiftly in bringing dishonest operators to account.
“People’s health and safety is put at risk by dishonest, unscrupulous plumbing operators, so we will continue to come down hard on anyone caught doing unlicensed work,” Ms Driscoll said.
“Licensed plumbers are qualified to do the work to required standards. We encourage people to check plumbers’ licence cards or contact us for peace of mind before having plumbing work done.”