The National Home Builders Registration Council (NHBRC) has laid seven criminal charges against a home builder’s entity in KwaZulu-Natal Natal, following a number of complaints from members of the public who have been defrauded of their monies.
The NHBRC has encouraged consumers who have been duped by Natal Home Builders (Pty) Ltd (NHB) to approach the agency so that criminal cases can be opened against NHB and its owners.
NHB is an entity conducting its business in and around eThekwini, KwaZulu-Natal.
“The home builder’s modus operandi involves placement of adverts for building of new homes with ridiculously low prices on local IsiZulu newspapers whereby unsuspecting housing consumers who respond to it end up being defrauded by the home builder,” NHBRC said in a statement.
The agency of the Department of Human Settlements, the NHBRC, has also laid charges against the home builder for contravening the provisions of its Builder’s Code of Conduct.
The agency is responsible for the protection of housing consumers and to regulate the home building industry.
Housing consumers who wish to build or buy a new home are advised to verify the registration of the business beforehand with the NHBRC on either its toll free number (0800 200 824) or on the website www.nhbrc.org.za.
“The entity [NHB] has also been misleading consumers about the location of its offices – stating that these were on Dorothy Nyembe Street which is the same street that the NHBRC’s eThekwini offices are located. This caused a lot of confusion for consumers who assumed that the NHBRC and NHB were the same entity,” NHBRC said.
NHB is expected to appear before the NHBRC’s disciplinary committee on 28 March. – SAnews.gov.za
