A Victorian builder has been disqualified for 18 months and penalised $40,000 for failing to have a permit, not having insurance, undertaking plumbing work without qualifications and other breaches.

Phillip Jones, owner of D&P Sales Pty Ltd, had his registration cancelled by the Victorian Building Authority (VBA) after it found he had committed a string of offences in the Melbourne suburb of Glen Iris.

VBA found Mr Jones carried out major domestic work that was not covered by the required insurance, twice carried out work without a permit, and did not work in accordance with the Building Code of Australia.

Issues with building quality and timeliness caused his clients to suffer “considerable distress”, VBA said today.

“Mr Jones showed a pattern of unprofessional behaviour and demonstrated how not following the required building processes can impact consumers and result in significant penalties for practitioners,” VBA Director of Regulatory Operations David Brockman said.

“Had Mr Jones ensured the necessary building permit and insurance were in place, and had he ensured that any proposed variations were documented and assessed as required, many of the issues caused by his recklessness would have been avoided. This is a reminder to all practitioners to abide by the rules.”

VBA also found that Mr Jones had acted unprofessionally by issuing false invoices and handing over plumbing work that had not been done by an appropriately licensed person, engaging a plumber to carry out work that required a compliance certificate when they were not licensed in the relevant class.