A building company has gone into liquidation after its chief executive was charged with allegedly headbutting a client who had complained about defective work – and then running him over with his ute.
Geoff Calvert, the Canberra-based founder of Calvert Constructions, appeared in court in July charged with assault, furious driving and burglary.
The 33-year-old builder’s run-in with a client at the front door of his house was captured on CCTV.
A doorbell camera recorded him allegedly threatening the customer before headbutting him – after the client had confirmed to Mr Calvert he was being recorded – during a July 27 altercation.
‘I’m probably going to punch you in the face right now, c***,’ he allegedly said, before allegedly dragging the client by his leg through the front door during the altercation.
Following the scuffle, Mr Calvert walked to his Toyota HiLux ute, with the client following him.
The tradie then allegedly threatened to run him over before he allegedly drove at the client, with the bullbar striking him in the right knee.
Australian Capital Territory magistrate Glenn Theakston described the alleged incident as ‘very violent behaviour’ and remanded him in custody until August 19 during a July 30 court appearance.
Geoff Calvert, the Canberra-based chief executive and founder of Calvert Constructions, appeared in court in July charged with assault, furious driving and burglary
Mr Calvert had initially done a walk-through of the client’s home to look at the claimed defects.
The court heard he had left and returned a short time later before the alleged assault, with the client telling Mr Calvert he would be recording their conversation.
‘Why would you do that, it’s pretty deceitful,’ Mr Calvert replied.
The client pointed out he had texted him to explain their conversation would be recorded, before Mr Calvert was allegedly captured on camera headbutting him at the front door and then throwing a punch during the alleged scuffle.
He was arrested the next day.
Calvert Constructions, a family company, went into liquidation on August 29 following a meeting of shareholders, with Eddie Senatore Advisory appointed as liquidator.
Access Canberra, an ACT government agency, confirmed it had suspended Mr Calvert’s licence to practice as a class C building contractor specialising in low-rise residential homes.
A doorbell camera allegedly recorded him threatening the client before headbutting him, after the client confirmed to Mr Calvert he was being recorded during that July 27 altercation
His licence expired on October 1 because he was unable to fulfill his duties.
‘For a corporation to be eligible to hold a licence it needs to have at least one nominee that holds the equivalent ACT construction licence,’ a spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia.
‘If an individual is unable to fulfill the responsibilities of a nominee on a day-to-day basis they are automatically ineligible to be a nominee.
‘If that individual is the company’s sole nominee then the company’s licence is automatically suspended.’
Calvert Constructions was also slapped with a rectification order in January to fix defective work so that it complied with the Building Code of Australia.
Luckily, there were no unfinished homes with QBE, the home building insurer for ACT residential projects, confirming to Daily Mail Australia it held no policies for Calvert Constructions.
Mr Calvert, who was denied bail in July, has since posted a LinkedIn plea for work as a site foreman.
Mr Calvert, who was denied bail in July, has since posted a LinkedIn plea for work as a site foreman
‘I’ve been in the building industry for over 15 years, I progressed from running a carpentry business to running a residential construction business for nearly 9 years,’ he said.
‘I had good employees and great sub-contractors.
‘We delivered quality work on time and the experience was well received by all involved.
‘As a previous business owner I know what it takes to get optimal performance from my team.’
His LinkedIn profile showed that he had been a director of Calvert Constructions from August 2015 to March 2024.
Since last year, he had also been a foreman on various building sites, on top of his job running a construction company.
Construction companies made up a quarter of insolvencies in 2023-24 as the rising cost of materials and sub-contractors left many unable to deliver projects at the original arranged prices.
