Bairnsdale builder fined more than $32,000 after unregistered renovation left a single mother's home unliveable.
Dean Luke Johnstone, who traded as East Gippsland Home Projects, has been convicted in the Bairnsdale Magistrates Court after pleading guilty to three charges brought by the Building and Plumbing Commission.
01How the homeowner was engaged
The court heard Johnstone quoted more than $84,000 for water damage repairs at a Bairnsdale property and asked for a 50 per cent deposit before any work began.
The quoted scope of work included replacing windows and addressing water ingress at the homeowner's residence. Before any work commenced, Johnstone requested an upfront deposit of 50 per cent of the contract price. Under Victorian law, the maximum deposit a builder may demand on a major domestic building contract is 5 per cent — placing Johnstone in breach of a fundamental consumer protection from the outset.
Contracts Act 1995 (Vic) § 11
A builder must not demand or receive an amount that exceeds 5 per cent of the contract price under a major domestic building contract before work has commenced.
02The charges
Johnstone faced three charges brought by the Building and Plumbing Commission, all of which he pleaded guilty to in the Bairnsdale Magistrates Court.
03From contract to conviction
The Bairnsdale matter unfolded across roughly two years, from the original engagement through to the May 2026 conviction.
04The penalty and the personal cost
The court recorded a substantial penalty against Johnstone, but the financial loss for the homeowner — and the wider personal consequences — extended well beyond the fine.
The court heard the homeowner provided a victim impact statement describing significant emotional distress, anxiety and panic attacks as a direct result of the ordeal. She was forced to take out a second mortgage to manage the financial consequences of Johnstone's conduct. The damage to her home was severe enough that she separated temporarily from her children and her pet to reduce the cost of alternative accommodation while remediation works were completed.
05The sentencing remarks
The sentencing magistrate described the offending as very serious and called for a substantial penalty by way of both punishment and general deterrence, with particular focus on the insurance failures.
The offences, in particular the lack of insurance, cannot be understated and must be met with consequences and deterrence.
Sentencing Magistrate / Bairnsdale Magistrates Court / BPC media release, 6 May 2026
06The regulator's response
Building and Plumbing Commission Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer Anna Cronin said the outcome highlighted the ongoing risk posed to consumers by unregistered practitioners operating in the domestic building sector.
Unregistered practitioners are a threat to safety and can leave consumers with no course of action when their work is seriously defective.
Anna Cronin / BPC Commissioner & CEO / BPC media release, 6 May 2026
The Building and Plumbing Commission is Victoria's building and plumbing regulator. It replaced the Victorian Building Authority on 1 July 2025 under the Building Legislation Amendment (Buyer Protections) Act 2025 and now carries powers including immediate practitioner suspension, retrospective rectification orders, and prosecution of unregistered building work.
07What this means for homeowners
The Johnstone case sits at the intersection of three of the strongest consumer protections in Victorian building law — registration, insurance, and the deposit cap. Each one exists for a reason, and each one was breached in this matter.
If a builder fails any one of these, walk away.
Under Victorian law, all domestic building work valued at more than $10,000 must be carried out by a registered builder, and domestic building insurance is compulsory for work exceeding $16,000. The BPC advises consumers to verify a practitioner's registration and insurance status before entering into any building contract.
- Verify the builder's registration using the BPC's Find a Practitioner tool at
bpc.vic.gov.au. - Confirm a domestic building insurance certificate has been issued for the work, and request a copy in writing before signing.
- Never pay more than a 5 per cent deposit before work begins — and never pay in cash without a written contract.
If a builder asks for a deposit greater than 5 per cent, refuses to provide a registration number, or cannot produce a domestic building insurance certificate for the work, those are three separate signals that the contract should not be signed. Where a contract has already been signed and concerns later arise, the BPC accepts complaints from consumers and can investigate registration and insurance breaches.
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Every claim in this article is sourced. Hover any underlined term for additional context.
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1
BPC media release — Bairnsdale tradesman convicted and fined more than $32,000 for unregistered building work
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2
Domestic Building Contracts Act 1995 (Vic), § 11 — Limit on deposit under major domestic building contract
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3
Building Act 1993 (Vic), Part 11 — Building work and building practitioner registration
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4
Ministerial Order under the Building Act 1993 — Domestic Building Insurance
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5
BPC — Find a Practitioner tool
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