Queensland’s building industry watchdog has issued a public warning about Brisbane man Miroslav Bolfan in relation to building-related offences that include unlicensed and noncompliant electrical and plumbing work.

The Queensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC) has issued the warning against Mr Bolfan and related business names that include MBN Australia, MBN, MBN Australia Bathroom Renovations and Tiling and MBN Cars.

Mr Bolfan has illegally used several different QBCC licence numbers, an expired licence number, and posed as two current QBCC licence holders by using their licence numbers.

The QBCC urges consumers, contractors and suppliers to be cautious in their dealings with Mr Bolfan and his businesses, and to exercise extreme caution and seek legal advice before making any payments, to protect their interests.

QBCC Commissioner, Brett Bassett, said that Mr Bolfan’s work was unlicensed and noncompliant, and posed a threat to public safety. “To help safeguard home owners, electrical and plumbing work must only ever be carried out by licensed individuals, which Mr Bolfan is not,” Mr Bassett said.

The QBCC is aware of several complaints about unlawful conduct by Mr Bolfan, and is concerned that he continues to carry out or undertake to carry out unlawful building work.

“We are also concerned that he continues to unlawfully advertise, pretends to be a licensee, fails to provide a compliant contract and takes excess deposits,” Mr Bassett said.

Mr Bolfan is believed to have performed work in Brisbane suburbs that include Bardon and Riverhills.

The QBCC strongly encourages consumers to only ever use appropriately licensed individuals, regardless of the size of a project,

The free licence check on the QBCC website will confirm if a person is licensed appropriately, and if necessary, consumers should ask for proof of a person’s identity.

The QBCC website also offers a free Find a Local Contractor search that allows consumers to find licensed, skilled tradespersons in their local area.

BACKGROUND

This warning is issued by the QBCC Commissioner to the public under section 20J(1)(i) of the Queensland Building and Construction Commission Act 1991.

Warning about installation and maintenance of on-site sewage facilities and the failure of such systems.

This warning is issued by the Commissioner of the Queensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC) to the public under section 20J 1(i) of the Queensland Building and Construction Commission Act 1991.

The QBCC issues this public warning about the installation and maintenance of on-site sewage facilities (OSSFs) due to the public health and safety impacts of failing OSSFs. 

OSSFs are generally installed on residential properties in un-sewered areas to treat the sewage generated from the property. Poorly designed, installed and maintained wastewater treatment systems can endanger the health of users, their neighbours, wildlife, domestic animals, the environment and drinking water sources. Effective treatment of sewage protects public health and safety, and ensures that the environment and community amenity are maintained or enhanced.

Advice provided by local governments in South East Queensland and studies undertaken by universities and other organisations indicate that there is a high failure rate of OSSF across their jurisdictions. A high failure rate of these systems presents a significant risk to public health and safety and the environment.

OSSFs require regular scheduled maintenance by properly licensed entities to ensure the ongoing health and safety of those in the immediate area. Failure can become apparent in different forms, including:

• Hydraulic failure: a visible failure leading to leaks, pooling or boggy soils
• Operational or maintenance failure: mechanical breakdown, damage to the system or its components, or a failure to maintain the system as required; and
• Compliance failure: a facility which has not been designed, installed or maintained in accordance with required codes or standards.

Ensure you engage appropriately licensed contractors with licensed workers to perform installation or maintenance work on OSSFs in Queensland. Further information about when a contractor licence is required for on-site sewage work is available from the QBCC website. If you are concerned about the installation or maintenance of your system, please contact your local government to seek advice.

If you are in doubt about whether the entity you are contracting with holds the correct licence to do the work, you can either:

• conduct a free online licence search
• contact us.