Stronger home renovation rules would be useful, says regulator

The director of consumer protection for the government of Saskatchewan acknowledges licensing and bonding of the renovation industry would likely have protected consumers allegedly ripped off by Rod Gross.

Gross is a contractor who was charged last week with fraud and forgery, after he started a window installation job on a home earlier this year that he never completed.

"Bonding would help. A licensing regime would help," said Eric Greene, director of consumer protection for the government of Saskatchewan. "Absolutely that's one of the solutions that could flow if legislation would change."

But Greene said Saskatchewan doesn't have that system in place. Based on the number of calls he receives in his consumer protection office, he said he's not convinced tougher rules are necessary.

"Based on the complaints that come to our attention, I would agree it is a very small percentage. It does happen but it is small," said Greene.

He said for the most part, the current system seems to be working.

"What this involves is the whole construction sector and for the most part what we have now works for that sector. There will always be outliers. And this is an outlier case. This is not the norm."

Currently, the only option for those in Saskatchewan who run into a dispute with a contractor is to report it to the consumer protection office. Then if it can't be resolved there, the matter can be taken to small claims court.

Alleged victim of Gross calls for regulator changes

Kris Davis hired Gross to do the window installation work for him back in February. He signed a contract and paid a deposit, and then gave more money later when Gross told him the windows had arrived.

He paid $2,650 of the quoted $3,350, but Gross didn't show up on the agreed upon installation date.

After giving him a number of excuses, according to Davis, Gross all but disappeared. His phone was disconnected. According to the consumer protection office and police, Davis's only option was civil court.

Police later laid criminal charges after an iTeam investigation, but Davis is still out his money.

He is still frustrated because he says he did everything he was supposed to do, including getting second opinions, signing a contract and not paying the whole amount up front.

Davis believes the 'buyer beware' system in Saskatchewan is ineffective. He said there should be better protection for responsible consumers like him.

"Pretty much now I wish there was a database you could go onto and know what people have screwed people over and what people are," Davis told CBC's iTeam.

But the consumer protection office said while providing stricter regulations for the industry is a possibility, it has no current plans to do so because that is a ministry decision.

Province has no plans to increase regulation

In the United States, many states have licensing and bonding regulations for home contractors.

Saskatchewan's new Consumer Protection and Business Practices Act does allow Greene's office to implement licensing and bonding regulations to certain sectors of the industry, without new legislation.

For example, right now the province is working on doing this for the motor dealer sector.

But Greene said that is a decision that needs to come from government.

"I understand the frustration and what happens is that timing is also critical, because this would have to be a legislative change."

He says licensing and bonding the home renovation industry is not a priority because the number of cases of fraud they see is relatively low.

New regulations introduced in Manitoba

Last December, the consumer protection office in Manitoba introduced a new bill that would better protect both consumers and contractors.

The bill was created after a public consultation process, which noted that the source of most home renovation disputes was not having a written contract.

In the new rules, for every job of $500 or more, a written contract would be required by law. That contract would require essential information from both parties including whether or not the contract is insured, project details, payment terms, deposits, refunds and timelines.

"So by having a written contract, if you have a complaint, you can follow up on it and both parties are well aware of what is expected of the home renovation project," said Beatrice Dyce, acting director for Manitoba's Consumer Protection Office.

But Saskatchewan's consumer protection office says this kind of bill won't protect consumers from the type of renovation fraud charge Gross is facing.

"The Manitoba legislation in my view doesn't get to where this consumer would want to get to because Gross, for example, could have filled in that form perfectly. And if at the end of the day he didn't provide the services that he said he would, the consumer is in the same position," said Greene.

While the province doesn't make written contracts mandatory, it said it advises homeowners to always ask for one, and you don't need legislation to do that.