By CAM LUCADOU-WELLS
Customers of collapsed Hallam builder Botanic Homes have said they are frustrated by delays and extra costs as they chase insurers and administrator PKF.
The company, which is estimated to owe up to $5 million to 250 creditors including customers and tradies, is likely to be liquidated in August.
A customer, who doesn’t wish to be named, said the building of their dream home began in March after they bought land in Cloverlea Estate, Chirnside Park, two years ago.
In early May, Botanic Homes went into voluntary receivership.
She said she was annoyed that despite the builder’s financial woes it still “took our hefty deposit and continued on business as usual”.
“It makes me think there is little to no money left to be returned to creditors.”
She and her partner tried to reclaim the deposit but said that her insurer would cover ‘storage fees’, minimal rent fees but not the full amount of the build.
After legal advice, the “heart-broken” couple opted to sell the land so they weren’t “technically out of pocket”.
“Now we watch as a new family eagerly comes and creates a home on land that was supposed to be ours.”
The customer said dealing with Botanic Homes’ administrator PKF has been a “huge disappointment, to say the least”.
After sending legal letters, she was able to receive the home’s “intellectual property” – the drawings and plans – from PKF without incurring administrative fees of several hundred dollars.
“They have tried to suck more money out of all of us at an already compromising time.
“They don’t return calls, emails, simple questions.
“I think all of us building with Botanic Homes have hounded PKF staff on a daily basis to get little to no response.”
Another anonymous customer said PKF had been holding his home’s intellectual property like a “carrot dangling above our head”.
“All we ever wanted was our deposit back and now instead we have had to pay even more money just to get the intellectual property rights to build our original home design.”
PKF administrator Jason Stone said for forward-order customers – where works hadn’t yet started and weren’t under a contract – the house plans were “assets of the company”.
For 60 contractual customers, there were eight whose homes hadn’t been started and whose plans also belonged to Botanic Homes.
“A lot of those customers argued that they had an implied licence.
“We don’t want to get caught up in legal stoushes and waste any more of the company’s funds, so we’ve granted a licence to those (eight) customers.”
Mr Stone said a “small” fee had been charged for other forms, such as field tests, trade contracts and engineering designs.
“It’s for anything that isn’t readily available and we have to spend the time collating.
“It wouldn’t be reasonable for me to charge remuneration to other creditors for the time my staff spend putting together these files.”
