Seven buyers who paid deposits for homes they never received have obtained reimbursements through Ontario’s new home warranty administrator.

The buyers are among people who say they paid for pre-construction homes through a company with a name similar to that of an established developer. Moiz Kunwar allegedly took deposits for homes he had no right to sell. He faces fraud charges and civil lawsuits, and has denied the fraud allegations in a civil defence. The criminal charges remain before the courts.

Tarion has approved seven of 12 claims submitted by lawyer Andrew Ballantyne on behalf of affected buyers. The approved reimbursements total more than $300,000. Four claims were denied and one remains pending.

One buyer, Janet Campbell of Brampton, received $15,000 after reporting a loss of nearly $30,000. Tarion found that she had signed a home purchase agreement, had not received the home and had not been refunded her deposit, even though the named vendor was not legally entitled to build homes in Ontario.

The decisions may offer a path to reimbursement for other buyers, but eligibility remains uncertain. Ballantyne says more than 100 additional purchasers have contacted him, with reported lost deposits totalling at least $4 million.

Ballantyne plans to appeal at least three denied claims. In one case, Tarion found that the deposit had been paid to parties whose names did not match the vendor named in the purchase agreement.

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Originally published on Canadian Fraud News.