{"id":7890,"date":"2025-07-20T07:31:11","date_gmt":"2025-07-20T07:31:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/7890\/"},"modified":"2025-07-20T07:31:11","modified_gmt":"2025-07-20T07:31:11","slug":"i-knew-something-was-off-about-a-builder-but-i-desperately-needed-the-work-what-they-did-next-is-a-frustrating-problem-in-the-construction-industry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/7890\/","title":{"rendered":"I knew something was off about a builder but I desperately needed the work\u2026 what they did next is a frustrating problem in the construction industry"},"content":{"rendered":"

By MAX ALDRED FOR DAILY MAIL AUSTRALIA<\/a> <\/p>\n

Published: 00:48 EDT, 20 July 2025 | Updated: 00:50 EDT, 20 July 2025 <\/p>\n

The owner of a fencing company has vented his frustration after he was left $100,000 out of pocket when a builder suddenly collapsed.\u00a0<\/p>\n

AH Fencing director Adam Hall said he noticed the builder had previously been late with payments, but he kept taking on work because he needed the money.<\/p>\n

He said the company then fell into liquidation in 2021 and its $300,000 in assets were sent to the Australian Taxation Office because it was owed about $3million.<\/p>\n

Mr Hall’s money simply ‘vanished’ with the business owner admitting it isn’t the first time a builder hasn’t paid him for his work.<\/p>\n

‘While I’d love to sit here and blame the system and the builder, and I am p***ed off at them, we didn’t lose that $100,000 all in one hit,’ he said in a TikTok<\/a> video in June.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘We lost that $100,000 one red flag at a time.’<\/p>\n

Mr Hall said the builder had been late with payments since the beginning of their contract, but he kept taking on work.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘They missed a payment and they promised us that we were going to get paid, so we continued to work, and then they missed that payment,’ he said.<\/p>\n

@the_adamhall<\/a> <\/p>\n

One of our builders went bust and took $100K with them. I\u2019d love to sit here and play the victim. Blame them. Say it wasn\u2019t our fault. But the truth is \u2014 we lost that $100K one red flag at a time. They paid us late for months. Then they missed a few payments. And we kept showing up. Why? Because we didn\u2019t value ourselves. Because our pipeline was light. Because we ignored the signs. Looking back, it feels stupid \u2014 but it taught us a powerful lesson: Be proactive, not reactive. We don\u2019t work for builders who don\u2019t pay. We don\u2019t rely on one or two jobs to keep us afloat. We\u2019ve built systems. We\u2019ve built standards. We\u2019ve built a pipeline that lets us walk away when it\u2019s not right. Another scar. Another win. Onwards.<\/p>\n

\u266c original sound – Adam Hall<\/a> \"Adam <\/p>\n

Adam Hall (above) says his fencing business lost $100,000 when a builder went bust in 2021<\/p>\n

‘We were a little bit low on work, and so we just kept doing it.\u00a0Looking back, it’s obviously so stupid.’<\/p>\n

He said the missed payday was ‘a kick in the teeth’, as his own business was struggling.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2018Since then, a bunch of builders we\u2019ve worked for have gone under. Fortunately, they haven\u2019t owed us a lot of money,\u2019 Mr Hall said.<\/p>\n

\u2018These builders hold no assets and they have s***loads of ATO debt. So the chance the liquidators are ever going to give you any money is so close to nil.\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n

He urged other trades and subcontractors to implement strong protections.<\/p>\n

Mr Hall warned they should stop work as soon as payments are missed and look into options like trade credit insurance.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2018As much as I\u2019d love to sit here and be the victim and blame this builder for going under, ultimately, there\u2019s a lot of things that we could have done about it to avoid it, and that\u2019s what we do now, and that\u2019s why we have no late payers anymore,’ he said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Other builders who saw the video said they had also learned to be tougher after similar experiences.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"The <\/p>\n

The fencing boss urged other subcontractors to be careful with whom they do business with (stock image)<\/p>\n

‘Been here too mate. Got done for $75,000 last year by a builder that went under,’ one said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘I asked my insurer about some sort of insurance to protect us, but he hadn\u2019t heard of it. Now I know it\u2019s called \u201cTrade credit insurance\u201d I\u2019ll definitely look at getting it.’<\/p>\n

‘The system needs to change. The person who\u2019s building the house pays every sector,’ another suggested.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘Soon as they are late you stop work,’ another advised.\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘No work is better than lost materials and labour costs. Also needs better contracts – if they shy away from signing, walk away.’<\/p>\n

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\n I knew something was off about a builder but I desperately needed the work\u2026 what they did next is a frustrating problem in the construction industry<\/p>\n