Complaints to Govt about concrete con-man go unheard

Tuesday, 16 October 2018

Gordon Bayne left a trail of unhappy people after they paid him a deposit for work that was never completed.

Victims of a concrete con-man, who has ripped off customers to the tune of thousands, are angry the Commerce Commission is not acting on their complaints.

Concrete contractor Gordon Bayne has left a trail of unhappy people across Auckland, who say they paid substantial deposits for work that was never completed. Often they were left with a big mess of heavy rubble to clean up.

Bayne, earlier told Stuff, he would love to pay customers back, but would have to 'rob a bank' to do so.

Gordon Bayne has appeared on Fair Go fives times, most recently on October 8.

A number of victims said they had laid complaints with the Commerce Commission but claimed the government department failed to take any action.

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Victims feel powerless trying to stop Gordon Bayne and hold him to account.

One complainant said he had provided information, photographs and showed commissioners a Fair Go video clip about Bayne, within the past year, but claimed the commission 'still did nothing'.

'A government department could more easily stand up in court, instead of members of the public on their own, who easily feel threatened,' the north Auckland man said.

Commerce Commission commissioner Anna Rawlings hears thousands of complaints every year, and a team decides which ones to investigate.

'They're putting the onus back on the people who feel threatened. They should be protecting the public, not exposing them.'

Victims, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals, were unsure how to hold Bayne to account, especially as he assumed a variety of names and regularly changed his company name and phone number.

An Official Information Act request revealed the Commerce Commission received five complaints relating to Gordon Bayne since July 28, 2017, under the names 'Auckland Wide Concrete', 'Craig's Concrete', 'P and B Contracting Ltd', and 'Concrete Services'.

Two complaints were marked for no further action at an initial screening, one marked no further action by screening panel, and two were investigated by the screening panel but the investigations closed due to insufficient evidence.

A Commerce Commission spokesperson Rosie Brown said the commission received thousands of complaints every year and because it got so many complaints it could not investigate everything.

'Each complaint is considered by the inquiries team. The commission has the power to act on complaints but is not required to take action,' Brown said.

'In determining whether to act on a complaint, the commission considers public interest, seriousness of the conduct, the extent of detriment and our own resources.

'If a complaint meets the criteria, a screening panel decides which ones require further consideration. This process identifies complaints reflecting current enforcement priorities. Outcomes are not final and may be revisited.'

Bayne has been exposed on TV Show Fair Go five times in the past 15 years, the most recent on October 8 warning consumers about taking the 'con' out of concrete.