“Tomorrow that invoice better be paid. No excuses no nothing … F***ing test me,” one message read.
“One way or another your [sic] going to pay me what I’m owed and all my gib. Karma is a bitch and I’ll make you pay my company what I’m owed. Every time you try to sell that scam of a building I’ll make sure that the people know the truth and all the lies and bullshit you tried to cover up and mislead buyers.”
In further text messages, Horisk called his client a “pedo” before emailing realtors listing the property and told them they couldn’t sell it until he’d been paid.
The conduct landed Horisk in front of the Building Practitioners Board where he was found guilty of a breach of the Licensed Building Practitioner’s Code of Ethics and of bringing the profession into disrepute.
Horisk is the first LBP to be officially punished under the new code, which outlines a series of professional standards for builders and associated trades similar to what’s expected of doctors, lawyers, realtors and other qualified vocations. That code became enforceable in October last year.
Another builder was charged under the code late last year but was punished under a different section of legislation by the board.
Horisk told NZME he regrets the way he handled the situation but was pushed to the brink by his client who refused to pay him for the completed work.
“The issues the council raised we fixed pretty much straight away, it took less than an hour. The house has consent,” he said.
“I shouldn’t have abused him but he pushed me to a point where it got out of hand.
“It felt like all he was doing was looking for a way to get out of paying the bill.”
Horisk said he had lodged a claim with the Disputes Tribunal as, more than a year later, he said he has still not been paid.
As a result of the repeated text messages and emails the client phoned police in August last year. They issued Horisk a harassment notice, after which he ceased messaging his former client.
The homeowner also complained to the Building Practitioner’s Board which held a hearing into Horisk’s conduct in November.
The owner, who sought suppression from the board after NZME made contact with him, said in a statement that he’d paid most of the other invoices Horisk sent him without issue.
“Despite my having paid all his previous accounts Brian Horisk immediately became aggressive and started a campaign of harassment following a dispute of incomplete work relating to his last invoice which equated to seven per cent of the total bill,” he said.
“The situation became so bad and his unfounded comments so slanderous and offensive that it forced me to seek police intervention and to complain to the LBP Board regarding his threatening, abusive and unprofessional conduct that I have had to endure for over a year.”
He didn’t respond to a question about why he still hasn’t paid the $16,000 bill despite Horisk claiming the work is complete and the house has been listed for sale multiple times.
Horisk didn’t attend the hearing into his conduct but said in writing that the first time the client complained was when the final payment was due.
“The bottom line is he’s trying to get out of paying his bills and as a result he’s gone to you guys to try to get me in trouble and out of paying his invoice,” he told the board in an email, but did not address the texts and emails he sent to the client that were the subject of his conduct.
In its ruling released today the board ordered Horisk complete training on managing conflict and appropriate communications within six months or his licence will be suspended for a year.
“The board accepts that there may be frustration in not being paid, but that is not an excuse for unacceptable behaviour,” the decision reads.
“The respondent used inappropriate and offensive language when dealing with the complainant and elevated the matter by disclosing the issues to third parties. His actions were designed to harass, embarrass and inconvenience the complainant…”
The board found that Horisk had breached the newly-instated code and had brought the profession into disrepute with his behaviour.
“The conduct was serious. It was not mere inadvertence, error, oversight, or carelessness. It was a deliberate departure from an acceptable standard of conduct, and it was sustained over a period of time,” the board said.
“There was an element of vindictiveness, and it is noted that the behaviour only ceased once the police harassment notice was issued.”
Jeremy Wilkinson is an Open Justice reporter based in Manawatū covering courts and justice issues with an interest in tribunals. He has been a journalist for nearly a decade and has worked for NZME since 2022.
